In this article, you’ll learn about How to Use a Table Saw for Beginners Step by Step. A table saw is a multipurpose tool that you may use to save on time and labor costs. Table saws are used to cut boards, and they can perform both small, angled cuts, known as crosscuts, and long vertical cuts, known as rips.
You can use your table saw to make accurate and exact cuts if you use the required procedures, have the necessary safety gear, and have it set up correctly.
The table saw, so named because it supports the material being cut, is a great instrument for accomplishing repetitive cutting jobs quickly and precisely.
Read up on this information on How to Use a Table Saw Safely if you’re in the market for one of these beauties or have just purchased one for your home workshop.
A Comprehensive Guide: How to Cut Aluminum with Table Saw
Table Saw Basics:
Table saws are priced according to the size of the blades they can accommodate; prices range from $300 for a normal model to $700 for a contractor-quality model.
The most popular and optimal size for most carpentry and woodworking operations is 10″, but 8″ and 12″ table saws are also available and useful for smaller jobs and making deeper cuts on thicker materials, respectively. Table saw components include:
- A tabletop with extensions available for most brands that are at least 3’X3′ and may be larger than 4’X6′.
- The table rests on a stand or a metal cabinet and is often made of cast steel or cast aluminum.
- Most table saws are regarded as fixed power tools, but portable models with foldable legs are available.
- A blade that can be adjusted in height using a crank
- A rip fence, a guide bar set parallel to the saw blade.
- a miter gauge for crosscuts that aids the user
- Push sticks that let you feed the material through the saw without your fingers coming too close to the moving blade.
- Blade guards that enclose the blade while it is cutting provide some protection in case your fingers get too close to the blade.
- Depending on the saw you select, you can have extra accessories like clamps, rollers, or table extensions to support extended lengths of wood.
Making the Cuts:
Although you can perform specialty cuts like dado cuts, compound angles, and rabbet joints using tools like clamps, stops, and jigs, woodworkers mostly use table saws for two fundamental cuts.
The most frequent use of a table saw is for ripping, which entails cutting material to a certain width. Cutting anything to a specified length is referred to as crosscutting.
Below are detailed instructions for making each of these typical cuts with a table saw.
Staying Safe:
Put on safety goggles or a hard hat with a visor when cutting boards on your table saw. It is critical to wear proper ear protection because saw blades can be quite loud and damage your eardrums. If you’re ripping thin boards, use an insert to keep your fingers away from the blade.
Any boards that have been water damaged or warped should not be used. If the blade guard is no longer installed, replace it with one purchased from the manufacturer or reinstall the one that came with the table saw when it was new.
Never begin the saw while the material being cut is in contact with the blade. When making “rip” cuts, use the rip fence (it does not provide adequate support).
Avoid wearing anything that could get caught in the saw, such as long sleeves or a tie. Read the manufacturer’s safety instructions and always wear goggles and ear protection when using a table saw.
If not handled properly, the material being cut can become tangled and kicked back, either throwing the material at a high velocity toward them or violently jerking it and pulling their fingers toward the blade.
Choosing a Blade Height:
There are two schools of thought on how to set the blade height. The first step is to position the blade just slightly higher (1/8 inch) than the top of the material to be cut. This is done for your safety because if you slip, you will most likely only receive a cut that deep.
I have a coworker who still has his thumb as a result of this practice. This configuration may cause slightly more tear out on the bottom of the board and may increase the chance of kickback because the teeth are contacting the wood at a horizontal rather than vertical angle.
Unless you need to prevent a tear-out, this is the method I recommend for everyone. The second school of thought holds that the blade height should be set far above the top of the material to be cut. This can reduce fraying and tear out on the bottom of the workpiece slightly, but it is more dangerous.
If you slip, your blade will be exposed to do much more damage. This can still be done safely if proper procedures are followed but be cautious and use the other method if possible.
Angled Cuts:
Table saws can make two angled cuts at the same time. The first is done by setting the miter gauge relative to the plane of the blade. To make this cut, set the miter gauge to the desired angle and cut as you would any other crosscut, as described below.
The second angle is measured in relation to the plane of the table. This is done by tilting the blade over. The wheel for changing the angle of the blade is located on the machine’s side, with a reference indicator on the machine’s front, behind the height adjustment wheel.
It should be noted that the markings on the miter gauge and the front of the machine are intended for carpentry-level precision. If a higher tolerance of the angle is required, a protractor and bevel gauge should be used to check the angle directly to the blade.
Fence Adjustment:
The setting of the fence is a little more involved. The fence is used to accurately cut pieces of wood length-wise. The fence is controlled by the dog or lever at its front. To make an adjustment to the width of your cut lift the lever and the fence will slide side to side.
Slightly raise the blade of the saw so you can measure it. Arch reactors fence has an unusual quark to it in that if the lever is all the way up the fence can become very unsquared to the blade. Simply lowering the lever partially relieves this, so position the fence in the approximate location and lower but do not firm down the lever.
This will take most of the angle out of the fence. Another quark that is common to many table saws is that the fence does not naturally stay fully square to the blade. The best practice to correct this is to take measurements from the fence to both the front and back of the blade to make sure they are the same.
If the readings are not the same gently rap on the fence with your knuckles at the front or back of the fence until both measurements read your desired width. After both measurements read the desired width, place one hand on top of the fence to hold it in place and with the other firmly snug down the lever.
Changing the Blades and Inserts:
Table saw inserts from Arch Reactor come in three varieties. The standard insert is used for ripping and cross cuts, but it must be used when the material removed by the cut is thin and could fall into the gap and jam the insert.
The zero clearance insert cannot be used for cuts that necessitate changing the blade angle. The final insert is meant to be used with the dado blades only for trenching cuts. Dado blades are used to cut precise notches or trenches in your material.
The wobble blade works by slanting the blade relative to the plane of the table. The stackable dado blades are the second type. These are assembled on the Arbor until the desired height is reached.
Maintenance:
Members will have to perform very little general maintenance on the table saw. Before you begin, check the drive belt in the rear for wear and the teeth of the blade for chips. Wear on the belt or a few carbide teeth missing from the blade do not indicate that the saw is unsafe to use, but that these components should be replaced as soon as possible.
Many missing teeth will become a safety concern. Finally, as always, there is cleaning. Vacuum or sweep any sawdust from the table’s top and check the sawdust catchment bin in the back to ensure it is not overflowing.
Dos and Don’ts: How to Use a Table Saw for Beginners
Do:
- Check the metal content of your material. Members use a lot of recycled wood, and a nail in the wood is not unheard of. Table saw blades and metal do not mix. It is hazardous, and even if you escape unscathed, the tool will be irreparably damaged.
- When finished, retract the blade into the table. It conceals the blade in case someone trips into the shop and lands on the table saw. There is no reason why this cannot be done.
- Push sticks and blocks should be used. There are times when using a push stick/block is unnecessary, and there are times when using them can be dangerous.
- You must clean up after yourself. It is not only good shop etiquette but having measuring tools or scrap wood vibrating around on the table or on the top of the fence while cutting is potentially dangerous.
Do Not:
- Do not place your hands over or in front of the blade.
- Do not use the fence and the miter gauge simultaneously. The board will most likely bind, jump, or kick back as a result of this.
- Do not force the material into the fence. It is not required, and it also springs loads the fence. You will not get an accurate cut and you will greatly increase your chances of the board jumping or kicking back.
- The push sticks and blocks should not be sawed. It’s better than your fingers if it happens; that’s why they’re there. If you are hitting them, you are not using the correct one or are using it incorrectly. These, too, require materials and time to create.