Power Tools

BrutulTM

BrutulTM

Good, bad, I'm the guy with the gun.
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Intrinsic_sl said:
Don't misunderstand my goal though. I'm basically just looking to put together a bunch of plain rectangles in some form resembling a box with some shelves. Screw up a bunch along the way, make too many trips to the store, and spend money on tools I'll use once and then just keep buying from Ikea. But I enjoy that whole process and giving it a try. And since I'm not working I have nothing but time to kill and fingers to lose.

I would really like to get in to it though. It's the only activity that had ever appealed to me and I'm constantly running in to things around the house that we need for little spots that it's be amazing to just do it. I'd like to get back to being creative.
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Get some sawhorses and you can do it, even the major cuts. You can cut pretty straight with a circular saw with a little practice but if it really has to be straight you can use a saw guide as Borzak said. You can also buy a rip fence for that saw for like $16 if you aren't cutting things real wide. I have ripped sheets of 3/4" plywood lengthwise with my little battery powered circular saw so that corded one definitely won't have an issue with it. You will want to get some clamps as well, probably some C clamps and some bar clamps will come in handy along the way. It's a perfect excuse to buy a cordless impact driver/drill combo and start down that rabbit hole as well. You will probably screw some things up along the way if it's your first time building something but it's fun to say that you built it yourself and it will save you money if you don't need it to be totally perfect (and you don't count the price of all the tools that you buy because you're totally going to use those again).
 
Borzak

Borzak

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Soygen_sl said:
So I think I've settled on a miter and circular saw. What are the advantages of a sliding miter over a compound? There's a well reviewed Hitachi 10" but it doesn't slide.
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A compound miter saw is used to make a compound cut. If you don't need to make compound cuts you can just get a regular miter saw, either regular or sliding. Sliding lets you make a cut into wider material like a 2x10, 2x12 or whatever the saw is rated for instead of just a 2x4, or 2x6.

Compound cut below, so material cut on a meter and a bevel. All kind of things use a compound cut with a miter and bevel, but the most common would be something like crown moulding. If all you need is stuff cut at a 45 or some other angle you don't need a compound miter saw, but I don't think there's a lot of difference in price. A sliding saw is the same exact the blade/powerhead slides so you can get more than something 6" wide in the bed and cut it.

You can make a compound cut with a circular saw as well, but wouldn't want to do it on something like moulding or more than something you have to do more than once or twice. Set the bevel with the saw, and the miter with a straight edge on the material to be cut and follow that.

sliding-compound-miter-saw-reviews-3.jpg
 
Izo

Izo

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Vrrrrrrr, vrrrrrrrrr. What brand is it? Looks fancy, display and such.
 
Soygen

Soygen

The Dirty Dozen For the Price of One
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Thanks, Borzak. I want to be able to cut trim like that, so I'll go with the compound.

Concerning the circular saw, should I even waste my time with cordless? I have cordless DeWalt drill that's been great, but other than that I've mostly used corded power tools. I like the convenience, but having a cord isn't a big deal to me.
 
BrutulTM

BrutulTM

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The cordless ones are nice if you want to use it far from an outlet or are going to be crawling around in the rafters with it but if you're going to be in the shop using saw horses I'd go corded for more power.
 
Borzak

Borzak

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I have a cordless with a smaller blade. It works ok for breaking down a sheet of plywood or working on a ladder/roof and such. Not something you would use to make a finish cut. For that I use something else. Because it's smaller it has a smaller base to sit on the work piece as well. So easy to get sloppy cuts, but like I said works ok on breaking stuff down or above ground, or something you're not going to see.
 
mkopec

mkopec

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You can get excellent cuts with your circular saw in all sorts of shit, even furniture grade plywood but you have to get the right saw blade set the blade to be exactly 90 and use a guide. Plus they sell tracksaws now that even pro furniture makers are using. They are that good and tons easier than trying to maneuver a 30lb sheet of 3/4 ply over a tablesaw. Unless of course you have shit set up to cut plywood, like side and rear extension tables off of your tablesaw.

Makita | SP6000J1 | 6-1/2 Plunge Circular Saw w/ Guide

Of course the best is the festoool tracksaw which I think invented it, but fuck that price, lol.

Festool TS 75 EQ Plunge Cut Circular Saw with 75-Inch Track - Power Circular Saws - Amazon.com


This is my dream tool though... fuck mortise and tennon, just get one of these and you can join anything, even make your own chairs, doors, all sorts of furniture, tables... They are that strong and like 1/16th the time of a true mortise and tennon plus accurate as fuck. But that price though...

Festool 574447 Domino XL DF 700 Joiner Set | Festoolproducts.com
 
BrutulTM

BrutulTM

Good, bad, I'm the guy with the gun.
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How does the guide rail work? You just clamp it onto your plywood somehow?
 
mkopec

mkopec

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YEah you clamp them, but different manufacturers have different systems but usually the kit comes with 2 short pieces that can be attached together, use one for the short cut on sheet of ply, use them both for the long cut. And the cuts those saws make are like glass smooth too. No tearout, no sanding and super accurate and straight cuts.

 
BrutulTM

BrutulTM

Good, bad, I'm the guy with the gun.
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That's cool. Certainly easier than dedicating half your shop to a table saw with enough room around it to rip sheets of plywood.
 
Borzak

Borzak

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Unless you do it a lot just easier to buy a straight edge and clamp it. I have one that is made in two halfs that you put slide one into the other and then clamp it down. Works the same but instead of having a saw run "in" in the guide you just hold it up against it. If you just want to do it a few times just do that, I think I paid $10 for it.
 
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