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Straight line ripping

Started by Homer, August 09, 2006, 04:59:02 AM

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Homer

Has anyone tried to make a straight line rip saw? Is a chain requried? Can rollers be used? Glue line accuracy? Buying  a commercial saw presents some problems. No three phase power, no room/ must be on casters, can't spend $7k+. Any advice appreciated. Homer

Larry

I built a ripping sled for the table saw.  Depending on board size I can do 200 to 600 bf/hour one edge.  Have to run a little slower to get a glue line rip with a sharp blade.  Don't know if that would be useful to ya or not.

Only use it on KD lumber after it has been through the planer.


Larry, making useful and beautiful things out of the most environmental friendly material on the planet.

We need to insure our customers understand the importance of our craft.

footer

I have thought about building one. I was thinking of using a conveyor belt on the infeed with rollers to hold the board down. Rollers could probably be used if they are rubber covered or such as to grip the board.

urbanlumberinc

While I do not use one on a regular basis, I have on occasion needed straight line rips done for a few different projects.  The most accurate method to do this inexpensivley has got to be Festool's circular saw and guide track.  If you should happen to hit the lottery in the near future check out a Felder - what a sweet unit!

ARKANSAWYER


  I put a very square 5x5 on the mill and place about 6 boards then a oak 4x4 and clamp them back on the mill.   I but on a 0.055 blade and take my time going down the boards, flip over then again leaving about 1/8 of an inch width.  A trip though the jointer and I have a good board.
  It is important that the back block be as long as what you are trimming and very true.   Bandmills rule!    ;D
ARKANSAWYER

Larry

Got a order last night from a repeat customer for KD 6/4 red oak S2S and glue line ripped one edge.  So it was either pull a Mattison out of the proverbial hat or use my home made rip sled. 




The sled loaded with a board.  The board butts up to what I call the head block...just a board with dry wall screws through it that stick in the board.  The sled has a track on the bottom which runs in the miter slot.  The blade cuts at the right edge of the board.  Inadequate dust collector and guard helps me keep fingers attached.




View from the operator end.




View from the out feed side.  The sled runs on the wood tracks.  Off fall on the left side of the track.

All the oak was 1C so a lot of narrow boards.  Kept track of how fast I was ripping and worked out about 400 BF/hour.  A glue line rip blade is essential along with the splitter for both safety and accuracy.  It's surprising how accurate the sled is...anyhow a lot cheaper than a Mattison which would only get run maybe once every two or three months.

Being the curious type when I loaded the buyer out I asked him if he would still have bought if I couldn't glue line rip...the answer was no.  He would have went to the big boys.

And credit to the inventor...another sawyer that published an article in Fine WoodWorking maybe 10 years ago.  Can't remember the guys name.
Larry, making useful and beautiful things out of the most environmental friendly material on the planet.

We need to insure our customers understand the importance of our craft.

Tom

MY!   How pretty that wood is.

It never ceases to amaze me the beauty that is encapsulated inside of a rough-barked, not-perfect log.  The straighter the cuts and the smoother the surfaces, the prettier the lumber becomes.   Then you put a finish on it and there is no manufactured product in the world that can hold a candle to it.

Even your sled is pretty as a cabinet in the pictures.   If your customer would have turned down that wood only because of a little machining, he's nuts.

Those pictures sure make me want to work with the finished end of some dried wood.  I'd never let myself sell it though.

OneWithWood

Larry, how long is that sled?
One With Wood
LT40HDG25, Woodmizer DH4000 Kiln

brdmkr

Larry,

That is a nice sled system you have there.  If it will run 400 bdft/hour of 6", I would say that your setup would provide all the machining capability I would ever need.  I really like the way your outfeed is set up to allow the cut-off to fall to the floor.   I could even see adding some holes and pegs to allow rapid setup for ripping boards that already have a square edge.
 
Lucas 618  Mahindra 4110, FEL and pallet forks, some cant hooks, and a dose of want-to

Larry

My kilns can only handle 10' long boards so I made the sled 11' long.  It's oak strips (scrap) glued together with 3/16" laun plywood top and bottom for stability.  The sled that I copied was 16' long and the guy had roller tables for both his infeed and outfeed sides.
Larry, making useful and beautiful things out of the most environmental friendly material on the planet.

We need to insure our customers understand the importance of our craft.

SawDust_Studios

We've used the mill before for rips.  When making alot of trim, I'll set edged boards on mill and make like 2 1/4 or 2 1/2 rip whatever I need. Then run them through the planer on both edges a few boards at a time. 

Then send them through the moulder.  Doesn't really waste anymore than the tablesaw, but boards are true. Even with the table saw, we always run through planer to make sure they are perfect. 
Making Sawdust on a Woodmizer LT40SHD CAT 51 /WM Twin Blade Edger and WM DH Kiln

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