Posted on 12/30/2006 10:03:26 AM PST by rudy45
My daughter needs to cut a silhouette out of a 4x8 plywood sheet. In other words, she will draw the figure, then I need to cut the outside pieces of the sheet.
Someone lent me an auto scrolling saw.
I have no workbench or vise. Of course, I will wear my shooting/safety goggles and earplugs.
What else do I need to cut the plywood safely?
Can I just borrow or rent two sawhorses? If so, how do I clamp the sheet to the sawhorses? Thanks.
I have no idea, but I'll be interested in learning, too! We'll be making a beanbag-toss game out of plywood for our church fair next fall :-).
Get somebody who knows what they are doing to cut it. Remember: Safety First.
Not much of a tool guy, hey, Rudy??
Don't need a sawhorse. If your front (or back) porch is flat and of the appropriate size, just lay it flat with the part to be cut hanging over the side. Kneel on the sheet and cut. You will have to make several adjustments during the process but it will work.
This isn't a very dangerous job. Hell, I'd just lift the thing off of the garage floor with bricks or blocks and cut away. The weight of the plywood is such that it won't move much, and you can stabilize it with your leg.
In all seriousness, let someone with some experience do it. You need to support the scrap during the cut. Use the right kind of blade (a sharp one) in the saw and don't rush the cut by pushing too hard.
Rent or buy a really good quality (like Bosch) and buy some extra blades, since you will probably break a few.
Support it on some 2 x 4's ( or thicker). Be sure the blade isn't hitting the support Sawhorses are easier for your back. Have a helper support the drop off. Have the supports close to the cut to lessen vibration. Test your cutting tool handling on scrap before you start on the good sheet.
Or just have a milling or cabinet shope cut it for you.
Don't try to do this without the proper tools and staging equipment.
If you have a neighbor or janitor who has a workshop, take the project
to them.
Power Tools and Power (ful) tools like saws and knives are dangerous.
Wear goggles and use gloves.
-- Rejoicing Jo --
And reattaching fingers is not always successful.
No problem here Rudy. Use your deck or a couple of 2 x 4's in the garage. Just don't try to cut out the entire silhouette without cutting off the scarp at intervals and you'll do just fine.
Get a grip people!
This is really a simple job. You won't need the ear plugs, the glasses may keep sawdust out of your eyes, the really careful would say use a mask to prevent inhaling any sawdust, but for God's sake...people have been doing simple projects like this forever...and surviving.
Sheesh!
If you don't do this, then the unsupported secion will sag as it's being cut loose, which results in binding the saw blade and then all manner of unpleasant things tend to follow.
do not think that you have to do it in one continuous cut, remove managable sections
You can, but how often you have to remove the secions will depend on how heavy the unsupported part is. Once it gets heavy enough to sag under it's own weight it's time to stop and cut it loose. If you have to stop and do this too often it gets tedious, and you tend to start "pushing your luck". The final procedure usually ends up being some combination of the two.
As something of an aside, I think you're going to find that the sawdust will tend to obscure your view of the line as you work. Having a helper with a vacuum can make things much easier, and the final result much better.
All of this is simply MHO, of course.
ssshhhhhh. Don't let them know. It's part of the magic....
Use two sheets of plywood, on a flat surface. Draw your picture/pattern on the top sheet. The bottowm sheet might get scarred, but bettter it than your front porch or table. Set the depth of your router to the depth of 1 sheet of plywood. Using a cutoff bit plunge it into the sheet of plywood on the outside of your pattern and then follow the pattern you have drawn. Pull the router don't push. Use a steady slow motion.
Always use saftey. Don't let the router get away from you.
Use a Skil saw to plunge cut most of the material out of the middle. Then go through with the sabre saw to remove the rest of the material.
Plunge the bit on the waste side of the pattern. inside or out depending on which side you wish to keep.
If I understand the situation correctly, rudy45's availble selection of tools suitable to the task is limited to a borrowed jig saw.
IMHO, for someone unfamiliar with power tools this task is better approached with a jig saw. Freehand pattern routing on that scale doesn't seem like a good choice for a first woodworking project.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.