For me, this was a weekend project. It helped that I have a farm supply store behind my house (I can hit it with a rock… and a sling shot), therefore it didn’t take long the find the bearings, pillow blocks and rod. The motor was easily borrowed from another of my shop-made tools.

Here is a link to the plans for the drum sander I built for my small shop. I made my first set of doors on a project I call, The Judge. See more about the project, The Judge, on my page in Kreg Jig Owners Community.

Here is the link to the plans for this homemade drum sander.

About the “Backwoods Cowboy” sign. Someone recently made a comment on one of my posts calling me the Backwoods Cowboy. I just so happened to like it so much I made it my own!

Using my New Homemade Drum Sander

Radius Equation

Someone once told me that everything we experience in life can be calculated, in some way or another, by a mathematical equation. I am NOT a mathematician by any means, however, I find it fascinating, intriguing and necessary to learn and experience some of the deeper rules of calculation when it comes to creating and building projects.

Here are a few links and notes that I have encountered along my way in woodworking. I am certain they will come in handy for many.

Arc Finder-

Radius Equation Sketch

Find the radius of an arc or segment. I found this when I was researching how to calculate arcs for cabinet doors and other decorative features in my work. Figuring out the equation manually is now my preferred way of doing it.

I posted the equation on the wall in my shop.

Find the Radius of an Arc

Area of a Drum/Cylinder- In the following forum in regards to building a drum sander, calculating the area of the drum is helpful in determining how much sandpaper is needed. In this post, Pat Hawley said, “How much you need depends on the size of the drum you made. You need to calculate the area of the drum and get the same area of velcro. For example: if your drum has a 6″ dia and is 20″ wide then its surface area is 6 X 20 X 3.14 = 376.8 square inches divide the drum surface area by the width of the velcro (say 4″) and you get 376.8/4 = 94.2″ length or about 8 feet. In this case I’d get 10 or 11 feet to allow for trimming on the ends.

Find the Area of a Cylinder

Do you use a mathematical equation for your woodworking hobby or business? Please share it here.

Shh, don’t tell her, but I have been working on this anniversary gift for my wife all morning.

So, it’s almost lunchtime and today (today as in today, the day you are reading this and not the actual date of this post), my wife has suffered with me for 13 years and I was trying to figure out a way to do something special for her, really special, special as in nobody-ever-did-this-special special, but I wanted to use your money to do it. So I have stolen a few images, manipulated them, made them my own and created a coupon just for her (and, of course, for me, too). Here is the anniversary wish come true that I created for my wife’s 13th anniversary dinner gift that you, too, get to participate in! Imagine that: you can make this gift your own! You enjoy the image; we’ll enjoy consuming what you are about to share with us because you are such a wonderful, kind and giving person, yes you are! Thanks in advance for your generous gift that we are not truly requesting, but we’ll take your dough and make some bread with it anyway.

WARNING: For entertainment purposes only, but this is a real offer.

Mad Cow, Crusty Crab and Mr. Potatohead
Our 13th Anniversary Dinner on You
NO EXPIRATION

DISENCOURAGEMENT: This is a real offer. If you donate to this fund, we will be forever grateful (and full for a moment), but you don’t have to. This is for our personal use and enjoyment and is not a charitable contribution on your part. No, you cannot claim this on your tax return.

We promise, we are not attempting to psychologically twist your arm or trying to con you in any way to give us your money (so that I can take my wife to Outback Steakhouse for her 13th anniversary). No, not at all; we know you are generous and are willing and able and going to give anyway, because you can, right?

Please do not donate if you feel guilty in any way as a result of looking at the image above. We do not wish to contribute to your personal desire to consume such a dainty and delectable dish. If you have an obsession with giving and absolutely feel this little funny was worth it to you and we have earned your applause, than, by all means, indulge in your giving practice; you have our blessing. Don’t worry, we will not be so inconsiderate as to make you feel like your gift is not good enough for us. We love you, but only if your donate.

:0)

Apply an odor sealer before installing a new floor to prevent any previous odors from seeping through.

If you are a pet owner as I am, you know that when you are not around to let your pets out to do their duties, they often find a nice place on the carpet or wood floor to make a spot or two… or forty. The end result is usually an indefinite stench lingering almost what seems forever. It doesn’t end there, however, in that the wasted liquids travel through the carpet, through the padding and into sub-floors which often allows the stench to become strong, like ammonia.

Unfortunately, getting those stains and odors out with even the most powerful of suction devices doesn’t always work. That only means one thing: replace the floor covering.

Before replacing your flooring, ensure the soiled stain spots are dry and cover the entire floor with an oil-based stain blocker and odor sealer, such as B-I-N®2 PRIMER STAIN BLOCKER – ODOR SEALER or KILZ® Original Primer, and not just over the affected areas. This will ensure that even the freshest and least visible areas get covered. I happened to have an almost full gallon from a previous project.

Rolling on one generous coat seemed plenty, but allow the sealer to dry and apply an additional coat if desired. Let the sealer dry overnight and proceed with your new floor covering as planned. Have something to wipe your feet on just in case; don’t want to track oil-based sealers and primers around the house. Use mineral spirits or whatever the instructions on the container recommmends to clean up spots and spills that may have slipped past your careful eyes.

Have fun with your project!

To see the outcome of this project, please visit www.cherrywoodcustom.com.

Also visit on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/CherrywoodCustom, like us and get periodic updates including, ideas, tips, tricks, DIY plans and plenty more to come…

Sharon & John's Creation

I am in Kentucky; Sharon and John are in Northern Illinois. I can’t wait to take a trip to meet them.

Elegant Entertainment Center Plans

Order plans online at CherrywoodCustom.com. And no worries, I am here to help you through your project, not just gonna leave you hanging.

When you are finished creating your project from my plans, send me photos of your finished project for submission on the Cherrywood Custom Projects page.

Good luck and remember, I’m here to help.

Ryan

P.S. If the measurements shown for TV openings are too big or too small, plans can be “formatted to fit your your screen.”

Ooh, those are all pretty words, but what exactly do they mean? Well in terms of style they refer not necessarily to “style” itself, but more so to an era of a period of time in which the resulting styles became real.

The following is my collection of articles that I have encountered across the web, although the nuts and bolts, meat and potatoes and true grit are underlying and more present in the books of knowledge where most of this history has been captured.

Mission or Craftsman? I found this article (and many other fine documents) at The Arts & Crafts Society website. True story, last night I recieved an email from one of the community forums I am a member of that a new member, Ralph, has joined the group. He had posted some photos of one of his latest creations which featured the exact same McIntosh cabinet hardware that I had used the year before on a beaded face frame project.

So the next morning I wake up and check my email. A post came across about an Arts & Crafts Kitchen project that one of my community buddies had finished. I grabbed my coffee and went about exploring the subject of Mission style furniture and found this quite interesting Origins of Mission Style article. As I am clicking around the website, I quickly come across a forum and low and behold, the first user image I see is Ralph. Now I don’t know about you, but here lately I’ve been following those mysterious and subtle leads and some pretty neat things have been happening. I’ll fill you in on the details later, but for now, enjoy the Origins article and the Arts & Crafts society website.

This report will be updated as I conduct more research on the subjects of style.

Have a nice day!

Ryan

When I have a place for everything it is easier to stay focused on the tasks. Ease of consistent access to common tools and supplies, such as drills, bits, screws, sandpaper, pencils and notebooks, etc. is primary; those are items used on a regular basis: ALWAYS .

Second, not so common but often used items like jigs, extension supports or routers should also be easily accessible yet have a home away from the working area, not on the table, in the walkways, etc. When using vertical space, small custom-made racks, shelves or cabinets need not be enormous in size, but must be able to bear the size and the weight of the items to be placed upon them. You will, in time, upgrade your working environment. There is nothing like that personal touch!

Everyone, including me, gets the best my team and I can deliver. Being organized allows us to perform at such high standards and being able to perform like that is awesome.

Utilizing your space for more than one process at a time is also to be of focus. Constructing large cabinets hogs up an exorbitant amount of useable cubic feet. It is imperative that we keep our “Finished Worx Department”  away from our unfinished processes…

Short and sweet, those are just a couple of the working characteristics of our workshop. I was going to include a few photos with this report, but I decided to just let you use your own imagination for your own operation. Yours will be yours, not mine. We don’t try to work with what we need; it’s not there. We work with what we have; it is all ready for adaptation and active use.

My goal is to assure that your project will flow more easily than what it would have if you just tried to wing it with everything scattered about. Here is a link to my first couple of videos on my website. Watch whenever you want how ever many times you want. I will add more as I create it, but rest assured, I have a lot of visual material to edit and share.

This is my gift to you, my contribution to your progress.  You are already in the classroom at this very moment. Attend my classes; it’s free. I am up to bat; I hope you can catch! Enjoy the game.

I look forward to meeting you.

Ryan Bruzan

• Download the Plugin
• Create and Properly Label a Sample Project
• Create a Detailed Parts List and Cut List

The program I work with for designing my projects is Google SketchUp. It is, hands-on, an amazing program.

Hi, Ryan Bruzan here, www.CherrywoodCustom.com.

I downloaded the Cutlist 4.1 plugin, but found that one important feature was missing: an Introductory Tutorial. There are many good notes about using the program, but I could not easily locate an in depth, detailed instruction manual on how to get the program up and running, so I created one! This is it.

I downloaded the program, dug in and learned the basics and took detailed notes along the way, but with the mindset that my notes needed to be in pinpoint detail so I could not only come back to them for reference, but also to share them with everyone.

It was and is a group effort to make this project what it is today. This tutorial is my small contribution. This program is definitely worthy of continued development. Once I figured out how to use it, I realized that creating cut lists and cut sheets got a heck of a lot quicker, easier and accurate, HOURS quicker! That’s why this plugin is important, especially for a professional custom project designer, woodworker and cabinet/furniture maker. It is a tool I will use on every project from this point forward and I am certain you will too.

Secondary Benefits: If you are not aware of the many other programs out there, the price tag and ongoing support costs are ridiculous for a small operation like mine. Those programs are great in their own rights, but Cutlist 4.1 only costs the time it takes to learn how to use it. Not only will this program produce parts and cut lists, it will also help you refine your labeling methods. This plugin is FREE. It’s easy to take the time to come back and let everyone know how this program has helped you and what else you would like to see. Add a comment below and I will make sure to deliver the message to Steve; your support keeps him busy improving the program.

Big thanks to the Cutlist 4.1 creator, Steve Racz. Great job; you just made my life easier! That said, let’s get right to it.

Using Cutlist 4.1.4 Plugin in SketchUp 8 for Windows 7  (It will run wherever SketchUp runs, not only in these current versions that I use)

If you’re a cabinet and furniture maker like I am, you are always looking for ways to tweak your operation to make things easier and make the many processes quicker. You do not even need to be a professional woodworker to use this program. Even if this is your first project, this SketchUp plugin will help you tremendously. It will compile detailed parts list and cut sheets to take to your woodshop for processing. A professional woodworker, cabinetmaker or designer knows precisely how much time those lists take to create.

Step 1: Download the Plugin

The first thing we want to do is download the Cutlist 4.1 plugin Cutlist 4.1.4 Update and put it in the SketchUp plugin folder. Download the plugin from the link provided. NOTE: If you have a previous version, you will need to remove the old version files and folders replacing them with the new. Mac users follow these instructions.

1. Click the link. A pop up will open. Pay attention to the icon and file name where it says “You have chosen to open…” Select “Save” and hit OK
2. If your Downloads window does not pop up, then open Win Explorer, select the Downloads folder and find the file (remember the icon and filename?) Double-click to unzip and open the file location. Or double-click the recently downloaded file in your popup. One or the other.
3. The file folder will still be in the Downloads menu. You need to move it to the Google SketchUp Plugin program file folder. This is the easy way.
4. Right Click on the file(s).
5. Select Cut.
6. On the Locations/Folders list on the left of the screen, under Computer double-click C:
7. SketchUp program will likely be in the “Program Files (x86)” folder. Double-click this folder to open.
8. Locate and double-click the “Google” folder and open it (double-click).
9. Locate and open Google SketchUp 8 folder.
10. Locate and open the “Plugins” folder.
11. Place your cursor under the last item in the list (not on a folder or item) and right click.
12. Select “Paste”. If you do not have anything to paste, then the downloaded materials folder was not selected and cut properly. Use your Back button arrow to go back to the file in the Downloads folder.
13. Right click and cut the folder.
14. Use the forward button to go back to the Google SketchUp 8 Plugins folder or follow the process listed above to get back to it.
15. You might get a popup that says “Provide Administrator Permission.” Select Ok or Continue
16. That’s it. Open the SketchUp 8 program and look in the Menu Bar under “Plugins” to view the Cutlist 4.1 plugin.

Open SketchUp 8 and begin creating your masterpiece, but before going Gung Ho, you will need to setup your components to be recognized by the Cutlist 4.1 plugin.

This is a little different than simply creating components. You will have to nest the many components under one complete component. Follow this example to familiarize yourself with the process.

Step 2: Create Your Project

1. Let’s create a component. First select your SketchUp dimension output. The Cutlist 4.1 plugin recognizes metric and imperial outputs. For this example I will use inches.
   

   Figure 1. Draw component

2. Let’s create a panel. Starting at the default axis center point, sketch a panel that is ¾” wide x 12” deep (Figure 1).
3. Triple click the sketched item to highlight the entire part.
4. Right click.
5. Select Make Component.
6. This is important. We know that this part will be cut out of a sheet of Birch Plywood. We need to describe the part accordingly. The Cutlist 4.1 plugin will identify default words, but you can add your own. We’ll touch on this shortly.
7. We will label this primary component as a finished module and name it “Base Cabinet 01″. In the description box of the component popup, type in a detailed description using whatever codes or identifiers you commonly use, but be sure to add “Birch Plywood” in there somewhere.
8. For example, I create all of my modules from a starting point in the room and go clockwise around the room. I will describe this module as “Base Cabinet 01, Wall A, Birch Plywood” Select Create.
9. Now we need to nest each individual component within the primary component we just created. Double the component to work on it (Figure 2).
   

   Figure 2. Component Working Mode, Nested Component

10. Triple click the component to highlight it again.
11. Right click.
12. Make Component.
13. Call it “BC-LP-S1-A”. To me that means that this component is Base Cabinet (BC)-Left Panel (LP)- Section 1 (S1), Wall A. I know where I am starting in the room.
14. Describe the part as “Base Cabinet-Left Panel-Section 1-Wall A-Birch Plywood”
15. Create.

Now let me show you what we just did. Click outside the part we are working on so that we are outside the component editor. Click the part once. It now appears to be a component. Double click the visible part to go into the component for editing. Click the part once again and it still appears to be a component. That part is now a nested component (Figure 2). All the components that we create inside the primary component will be nested components for this module, therefore it is important to create all other component for this module under the primary component, “Base Cabinet 01, Wall A, Birch Plywood”. You can create separate modules with nested components or create all nested components in one component module.

Figure 3. Duplicate panel

Now let’s create a few more components and make the module case. Let’s duplicate the component instead of creating another of the same (Figure 3). Click the Move tool, hit the Ctrl key (shows a ‘+’ over the Move cursor to signify duplication) and move the new component to the right slightly on the red axis and type “23.25” and hit Enter. Measure from outside panel to outside panel to make sure we have 24”. NOTE that we described this component as a Left Panel, therefore when we duplicate the component we will have two Left Panels. We are going to want to label it as a Right Panel.

1. Right click the new panel.
2. Click “Make Unique”.
3. Right click again.
4. Select “Entity Info”.
5. In the “Definition Name” box, change ‘LP’ to ‘RP’ and delete the # and anything after it.
6. Close the “Entity Info” popup.
7. Click the ABC tool. Place the cursor on the left panel. Click once and move the cursor away. Notice that the component is identified as “BC-LP-S1”.
8. Press the Esc key; we are not going to show the label at this time.
9. Now with the ABC tool still selected or select it again if you closed the tool, place the cursor on the Right Panel. Click once and move the cursor away. Notice that the component is identified as “BC-RP-S1”.
10. Press the Esc key; we are not going to show the label at this time.
    

    Figure 4. Raise the panels

Now your parts are properly identified and described to be recognized by the Cutlist 4.1 plugin. Let’s go ahead and raise the panels to their proper height (Figure 4).

1. Click on the left panel all the way into component working mode.
2. Select the Push/Pull tool. Select the plane to be raised and raise it up a bit.
3. Type 36 and press Enter. This will bring the panel to 36” height.
4. Repeat the process for the right panel.  Panels are done.

Let’s create a few Euro Shelves (ES), or butt-joint shelves (Figure 5).

1. While inside the primary component, select the Rectangle tool.
2. Draw a shelf between the two panels diagonally from corner to corner.
3. Triple click the part to highlight.
4. Right click and “Make Component”.
5. Name it “BC-ES-S1”.
6. Describe it as “Base Cabinet-Euro Shelf-Section 1-Wall A-Birch Plywood”.
   

   Figure 5. Make the top ES

7. Create.
8. Open the component
9. Select push/pull tool, select the plane, lower the surface and type “.75” and press enter.
10. Exit the component working mode for that component, but stay inside the primary component (Base Cabinet)

Duplicate the part (Figure 6). We want the top of the bottom ES to be at 3” from the bottom of the panel. Using the Tape Measure tool, mark the location accordingly. We are now going to duplicate the top ES creating and moving it into place, but we also want two adjustable shelves in this module.

1. Select the part. Select the Move tool, press the Ctrl key. Click the top corner of the part on the same line where you placed your measure mark.
2. Move the part to its reference point and left click once to set in place.
3. (Figure 7) Immediately press the ‘/’ key and the number of openings between the shelves (in this case there will be three openings in this module so we will press ‘/3’ then press enter).
   

   Figure 6. Duplicate ES

Now that the case components for the module are done, but just before we are ready to open the Cutlist 4.1 plugin, we need to select a material and paint all of the parts accordingly. Paint each individual part within the primary component. If you paint the entire module at once, the plugin will not recognize the materials.

Figure 7. Add shelves; Ready for Cutlist 4.1

Step 3: Open the Cutlist 4.1 Plugin

1. Now that our project is ready for cutlist, highlight the primary component (in this example the Base Cabinet module) and open the Cutlist 4.1 Plugin from the SketchUp 8 menu bar at the top of your screen.
2. In this example we will only be working with sheet goods. When the plugin opens, under the “CutList” tab, uncheck “Parts”.
3. The “Sheet Material Words” box includes default words. Clear the box and type “birch plywood” in the box. Clear the “Part Words” box as well since we are not working with parts.
4. Click the “Layout” tab.
5. We do not want to split and parts so uncheck the first two boxes (Split Wide Parts & Split Thick Parts).
6. Check Layout by Material box.
7. Uncheck “Display unplaced parts” box.
8. Type “1” in the first box next to “Saw Kerf Size:”. Select your blade kerf size (usually 1/8”).
9. Select the “Sheets” tab.
10. Select the sheet sizes you are working with. In my case 4’ wide x 8’ long.
11. At this point, if the materials you are working with are most common, you can select “Save Settings.”
12. Click run. Two windows will pop up. One will be the optimized cut sheets, the other will be the detailed list. Print both lists and take them to the workshop.
13. LABELING NOTE: Depending on how you label your parts, you may have to cross reference the two files to determine the rip and cut sizes. Otherwise, label your parts similar to “BC-LP-S1, 12W x 36L”. When labeling your parts, only use general labeling, i.e. “plywood,” “board,” “MDF,” etc. Do not label parts with specific material or they will not show in the lists, such as “¾” finger joint poplar,” or ½” cherry stock. (Update Jan. 15, 2012)
14. NOTE: If you have worked with other cut lists or have laid out hand drawn cut sheets, when you see the final cut sheets created by the program, review to make sure the sheets are optimized for the way you process your sheets. If you wish to make modifications, you can but I am not aware of how that can be done in the program. You can also check and uncheck “Minimize waste” and “Line up parts to cut lines” under the Layout tab to reconfigure the program outputs, although I recommend leaving them checked.
15. LABELING NOTE: If you are using various materials in a single project, group all like-material parts into single components nested in the entire unit component. Example- I am building a mantelpiece and my columns are poplar face frames and sides, my arched frieze and mantle top are MDF, and my column face panels are ¼” plywood. With all my parts exploded as individual components, I will highlight all the MDF parts and combine them as one single component. I will do the same with my MDF parts, plywood parts, etc. The Cutlist 4.1 plug-in will automatically separate parts of various thickness, thus it is not necessary to make separate components for various thicknesses of materials. (Update Jan. 15, 2012)
16. CSV NOTE: If you are going to export as a CSV file for spreadsheet such as Excel, do not use commas to separate words in your descriptions as they will skew the CSV input dividing each comma-separated word into separate cells .  (Update Jan. 15, 2012)

Figure 10. Cutlist 4.1 Detailed Parts List

Figure 11. Final dimensions and labeling

Now you have a general understanding of how to use the plugin. As your proceed with various components and other materials in your creation, the program will recognize those parts and components. You just have to label and identify them accordingly. Credits and SourcesThe Cutlist 4.1 Plugin for Google SketchUp, Steve Racz (http://www.steveracz.com/joomla/)  (Original post location) http://lumberjocks.com/daltxguy/blog/5143

Dave Richards is a contributor to finewoodworking.com and has plenty of useful reports for using and playing with Google SketchUp.

Ryan Bruzan wrote the instructions in this blog post.

SHEETS NOT SHOWING? It seems that by default, the Cut List 4.1 plugin identifies parts as board parts. Add the word “Plywood” to your plywood parts descriptions. To do this, left-click each part. Click “Entity Info” at the top of the popup. In the “Description Name” box, add “Plywood” after your label. Duplicate parts will change automatically, but verify that all you parts are accounted for.

The Cut List 4.1 plugin also accounts for part thickness and distributes sheet parts accordingly, so be sure to label any and all sheet parts with “Plywood.” If you have various types of materials (i.e. Cherry and Walnut), be sure to paint those parts accordingly. In plugin, under the “Layout” tab, be sure the “Layout by Material” box is CHECKED!

DISCLAIMER: YOU ARE RESPONSIBLE FOR YOUR SAFETY. READ AND USE MY TIPS AND INSTRUCTIONS AT YOUR OWN DISCRETION AND YOUR OWN RESPONSIBILITY.

Ripping/Cutting Full Sheets of Plywood

Before making the first cut, there are a few preparations you will need to make. You do not have to do this exactly how I do it, but these are some ideas to help you through the process.

MAKING RIP CUTS

This method assumes you will be using a circular saw and not ripping on a table saw. Considering that you will be working on a large table of sorts, start by building up your working surface using sacrificial or scrap materials for clamping and cutting clearance. 2 x 4’s work well, but will more than likely be good for C-clamps only. You may have to build-up a bit more for quick-grip type clamps. In that case attach some 3/4” scrap plywood strips to the bottom side of the 2 x 4’s.

Make (4) build-up boards 4’ long so that you will not have to cut different sizes as you process and cut the parts to size. These boards can be set aside and used for future projects if desired. Use the second and third boards as catch boards placing them near, but clear of the cut line to prevent the boards from falling and pinching the blade after the cut is made.

Lay a full sheet of the plywood on top of this built-up surface. Now you are ready to mark and rip your plywood sheets. The factory edges on finish grade plywood are usually straight enough to make a good initial rip cut. For economic purposes, to get a good first cut, use another piece of plywood as a straight edge to make your first rip cut. Use your first ripped panel as a straightedge for all succeeding rip cuts.

• On your circular saw, the base, or shoe assembly is the flat, rectangular part of your circular saw that glides across the material surface and keeps the blade angle correct. Set and check the angle using a combination or speed square and set your saw stop bolt accordingly.
• Determine your blade offset on your circular saw for the cut[i]. In other words, depending on how you intend to pass your saw across the materials to make the cuts, how much will you have to add or subtract from your final cut measurements to achieve the straight edge placement measurement? This offset will be the same for every similar cut to be made using that particular circular saw.

o   NOTE: Always cut using the same process as your first cut. I.e. if you cut from right to left and on the inside, for instance, make all the other cuts the same way.

• The blade cutting depth should be no more than 1/8” past the bottom surface of the plywood. 1/16” is even better, but your working surface must be straight. You will NOT have to tape the cuts before cutting as tear out will be minimal assuming that your blade is sharp and the power output on your saw has not been compromised. Try to plug your power tools into an electrical socket that in not overloaded with wattage from other electrical items in use.

o   VERY IMPORTANT: If your circuit breaker trips while making a cut, STOP the cut, hold the saw firmly in place until the blade stops, then remove the saw, turn the power off, unplug the saw, turn the circuit power back on and make temporary adjustments to the power being used on that circuit either by unplugging or turning off other devices or use a different electrical socket on a different circuit. To continue the cut, tilt the saw on the front edge of the base assembly, start the power then gently lower the blade back into the cut while holding the saw firmly and finish the cut.

o   VERY VERY IMPORTANT: Make sure that your separated pieces will not fall after any cuts are made.

• As your sheet shrinks as a result of ripping, it will become difficult and dangerous to make other rips. At that point the sheets are more manageable to rip in your table saw.

MAKING CROSS CUTS

For cutting parts from the panel sections that you previously ripped to size, you should have a few pieces left from the rip cuts (96” long or the sheet length); use those pieces as sacrificial build-ups for making your crosscuts. Again, these pieces can be set aside if desired for future projects.

Lay the two pieces across the build-up boards used for the rip cuts. Lay a ripped board on top and you are now ready to measure and make your cross cuts.

If you made a crosscut jig like the one I use, follow the same procedure for determining your blade offset. Add or subtract that measurement to or from the final cut measurement and check to ensure the cut is true.

Here is a video I made on how to make a crosscut sled. The results are pretty doggone accurate.