Tablesaw cove cutting

[Tool Nut]

I just have question about cutting cove molding on the TS. Is there a specific angle you do this cut?

Side note: I went to the tools show in Austin this past weekend. I went on Saturday and did not think there was a really great turnout, but this was my first show so I don't have a lot to base that on. Bought a couple of things from Steel Tool, that small portable dust control $89 and a tenon jig $59 due to a misquote from the rep., the manager found out and I don't think he was real happy because several heard it and all wanted the same deal. The 2 biggest vendors there were Woodcrafters and Lee Valley. I saw a lot of cool stuff though. Took less than 2 hours to see everything.

Chris

[cabinetman]

Cove cutting on the TS is really trial and error to get an exact width of the cove. The actual height depends on the blade height, and the cove is the outside curve of the saw blade. The width of the cove will be narrower the less of an angle it's fed in relation to the blade. It widens as the angle of feed increases.

The blade should be raised incrementally for the best cut. On some applications that the cove has been determined, like a pencil tray for a desk drawer, straight vertical cuts can be made prior to the cove cut. The cove is drawn on the end of the stock, and sawcuts are made across the stock short of the cove line, as kerfs. Then they can be chipped out with a chisel and the cove can be run which has less stock to cut.
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http://www.shopsmith.com/academy/tbl...es/F4-13LG.jpg

[deathwish2]

There are a lot of ways to go about it . . .

Our sponsor, Rockler, has a new jig for sale that will do the job with a little less trial/error. If you are handy, you can make your own . . . either way, reading their owner's guide will give you a lot of insight. }>

Manual:
http://images.rockler.com/tech/RTD10000352AA.pdf

Jig:
http://www.rockler.com/product.cfm?O...Select=Details
http://images.rockler.com/rockler/im...395-02-500.jpg

[beamerweb]

There's a software program to help you choose the angle, blade height and bevel angle to tilt the blade to for various profiles. It's called "covecut" and I think you can find it here:

http://www.woodcentral.com/bparticles/bpindex2.shtml

It also draws the curve shape so you can see the shape beforehand.

Works really well :)

[TDHofstetter]

You don't even need a two-piece fence... you can use a straight piece of scrap wood clamped to your table saw's top. I did some nice cove-style raised panels that way.

If you draw out your cove, you can take nearly all of the trail-and-error out of it. It helps a lot to find the dead center of your sawblade, directly above the dead center of the arbor shaft. From that, it's pretty easy to find the correct coving angle.

-- Tim --

Things are bad...
Last night my fantasy girlfriend
Dumped me
For an imaginary guy...

:)

[thestruuus]

I have always hesitated to do coves with a jig as you describe. It seams to me that doing it that way would put odd torques on the shaft bearings?

Am I just paranoid?

[Danford C Jennings]

Chris,

As mentioned, the angle is dependant upon the width and depth of the cove. A real simple yet precise jig to determine this angle is an adjustable parallelogram. You set the blade height for the depth of the cove, adjust the parallelogram for the width measure to the inside edges, place the parallelogram over the blade where the front and back teeth will touch the prallelogram, this is the angle of cut. I clamp a 4" wide strip of Masonite (with a hardwood "fence") as a guide to the table saw top at the determined angle.

As to any excessive forces placed on the arbor or blade; you will be (or should be) taking no more than a 16th off on each pass. I wouldn't recommend using a thin kerf blade; I use an 80T ATB with a slow feed rate...

Also, a few years back one of the members posted an outstanding step by step (with pics) tutorial on cove cutting with the table saw. Perhaps someone here has the link to it...

Cove cutting on the TS isn't one of the "safest" operations since the blade is "buried", knowing where your hands are in relation to the blade at all times is an absolute must when performing this operation.

Dano

[Sawduster]

Cove cutting, or more properly, 1/2 cove cutting is my preferred method for raising panels for doors and frame and panel stuff. I've got a page on doing it [link:www.sawdustersplace.com/Raisedpanels/Raisedpanels.HTM|here] on my website. Should be a link to that cove calculator at the bottom of that page on my site.

Man, you came all of the way from Lubbock to Austin for the show? I was there on Saturday, also. I spent quite a lot of time watch Frank Klause cut his famous no layout hand cut DTs and then watching the stuff at the Heritage Homestead booth. Oh, and shooting the breeze with Old Dowd at his Vintage Tools booth. First show I've been to also (first one in Austin in the 9 years I've been here) so really have nothing to compare it to. Hopefully there were enough folks there to get them back next time around.

[deathwish2]

Somewhat. ;)

The surface speed of the blade coming at you (assuming 10" blade at 3450RPM) is in excess of 100mph with each tooth hitting the stock nearly 60 times a second . . . as long as your feed rate is below a brisk walking pace :P . . . you should be fine. A lot less stress than using a drum sanding attachment on a drill press. Remember, you are only taking off 1/16" per pass at the MOST.

Definite NOT someplace to use a thin kerf blade . . . but other than that, no undue stresses.

I'm surprised no one makes a blade specifically for this yet . . . something with a full kerf and maybe round top teeth? Maybe even teeth set a little deeper so the sides can do more cutting.

[Sawduster]

Mark,
It seems to me that one of the companies with only letters in their name did come out with one specific to do cove cutting. It's been a couple years back. I'll have to check it out.