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Cutting Techniques
There are three basic cutting techniques for sliding miter
saws, but only two are proper and authorized. These are
Chop-Cut, Push-Cut, and the improper method is a Pull-Cut.
Supplemental User’s Manual 17
Chop-Cut
A chop-cut is used for cutting narrow or tall stock, where
the front edge of the workpiece is behind the center of the
sawblade. For this type of cut, the saw head is brought
straight down into the cut.
Push-Cut
A push-cut is used for cutting wider boards, but is also
usable in most situations where a chop-cut could be used.
For this type of cut, the saw head is pulled out toward the
operator, plunged downward, and the primary cutting of the
workpiece occurs as the saw head is being pushed back
toward the rear of the saw (as shown in the picture below).
Pull-Cut (Improper Method)
WARNING! To reduce the risk of injury from loss
of control, never use the pull-cut technique.
The third type of cut, called a pull-cut, or climb-cut, should
be avoided for both safety reasons and for cutting
performance reasons. This type of cut is made by plunging
the saw head down, and then pulling it forward. The danger
of this type of cut is that the sawblade wants to self-feed
into the cut (called climb-cutting), and this can cause the
saw head to jump forward unexpectedly. The reason this
type of cut results in a poor quality cut is because it is using
two different actions for the same cut. It starts out with a
lunge-cut, and then finishes with a climb-cut. This means
that the sawblade is cutting the wood in two different
manners, and there will frequently be a rough edge at the
transition from one type of cut to the other.
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Tips for Successful Cutting
► For more accurate cuts, mark your cutting length with
a thin pencil line. A thick line will result in a less
accurate cut length.
► When fitting one piece to another, it may be helpful to
make the initial cut slightly long, and then trimming
the cut to final length after test-fitting the piece.
► When cutting a new board, cut off the original factory
end to ensure a square, fresh end, before measuring
for your final length.
► When cutting small trim, use a zero clearance fence
and/or insert to prevent small offcuts from being
thrown behind the fence by the windage from the
spinning blade (see page 23).
► When cutting multiple pieces of varying lengths from
a limited supply of stock, always cut the longest
pieces first, and cut the remaining pieces from the
leftovers.
► Do not force the blade through the cut. A cleaner
edge will be achieved with a steady, moderate feed
rate.
► A chop-type of cut yields the lowest tearout on the
front and top edges of the cut, but the most tearout
on the rear side of the cut.
► A push-type cut yields moderate tearout on the top
surface, but the best cut edge.
Diagram of Push-Cut Method