G5959Z 12" Left-Tilting Table Saw -27-
5. Thin-kerf: Most types of saw blades are
available in a thin-kerf style. Used primarily
to minimize stock wastage. It is recommend-
ed thin-kerf blades be used in conjunction
with a blade stabilizer to reduce blade wob-
ble. Note: Most blade guards/splitters are
thicker than most thin-kerf blades. Make
sure the stock will pass by the guard/splitter
before beginning a cut.
6. Dado Blades: There are two types of dado
blades: stack and wobble. Stack dadoes are
expensive and time consuming to set up but
leave a clean and smooth finish. Stack
dadoes are used for fine furniture and cabi-
net making. Wobble dadoes are inexpensive
and easy to set up, but leave a rough finish.
7. Moulding Heads: A moulding head is a cut-
terhead that attaches to the arbor and holds
individual moulding knives. We do not rec-
ommend their use. They are very danger-
ous and require training beyond the scope of
this manual.
This section on blade selection is by no means
comprehensive. Always follow the saw blade
manufacturer's recommendations to assure safe
and efficient operation of your table saw.
Figure 36. Various saw tooth cutting profiles.
Flat
Top
Blade
Alternate
Top
Bevel
Alternate
Top Bevel
And
Raker
Triple
Chip
Blade
Crosscutting
Crosscutting means cutting across the grain of
the wood. In wood products without grain (i.e.
MDF, particleboard) it simply means cutting
across the width of the stock.
Crosscuts can be made with the miter gauge or a
crosscutting sled. The miter gauge that is includ-
ed with the table saw can make safe and accu-
rate cuts with small and medium sized work-
pieces. A crosscutting sled is a shop built jig that
can also provide safe and accurate crosscuts,
especially with large workpieces.
To make a crosscut using the miter gauge:
1. Inspect the board for soundness.
2. Inspect the miter gauge. Is it properly set and
tight? (See Section 5: Adjustments for
miter gauge set up.) Move the rip fence com-
pletely out of the way.
3. Turn on the saw and allow it to come to full
speed.
4. Hold the workpiece firmly against the face of
the miter gauge and ease it through the
blade as shown in Figure 37.
5. Turn the table saw off and allow the blade to
come to a complete stop before removing
the cut-off section of the workpiece.
Figure 37. Crosscut operation.