Cutting 45 degree angles

[ltorcida]

Originally Posted by pski

No. A 1/32" will work. Nobody can do a ten thousandth of inch on a table saw. The angle accuracy is as important as the x-y.

P

Actually, to get to any level of accuracy you always need to start with the best calibrated tool you can get. Adjusting the table saw to a 0.0001" accuracy is not impossible and using a dial caliper is the usual method.
You start with the blade and then the fence. Once all is adjusted, you check the angle accuracy of the blade. Finally, your cutting material must be as flat and even in thickness as possible.
If you minimize the variables you will probably end with a nice 45 degrees cut.
I do woodwork as my main hobby and have no idea about speakers (want to learn and that is the reason to be around here...) but if you feel I can help you in any way with the "wood" part of your project, please count on me!

Regards!

[ODougbo]

Welcome Itorcida, you came to the right place!!

The adjustment most people take for granted is the trunnion, the assembly that holds the blade, you have to get that as precise as you can, before you move on to the fence.

I’m pretty new also; woodworker (and PT electrician). I’ve been finding the full range speakers a very interesting build: they (the full range folks) like to use Baltic Birch. I always used it for “drawers” never thought it would be good for speakers.

You’ll really enjoy building these, of course they sound great; the simplicity and the imaging are the highlights.

As far as plans, jump over to the full range page, say hello, somebody will help you out.

I hope kornnylike won’t mind a few “off topic” pics on this thread… These are called Fonkens and Onkens

I’m finishing up a pair today.

[Wish I was down south today; old man winter is rolling in here today]

[chrisb]

Yes, while a handheld circular saw can cut bevels, a well tuned table saw will make much quicker, accurate and repeatable work of them.

Depending on the quality of the saw, the trunion may not be adjustable at all, and don't forget another factors affecting accuracy of cuts - the parallelism of machined slots for sliding miter square. We have an 40 yr old Delta Unisaw that is "right" on one side, but not the other (i.e. the machined grooves are not parallel to each other), so even if the blade and rip fence are aligned perfectly the same miter square on the other side will be out almost 1/4 degree - far more of a problem than extreme dimensional accuracy to "a thou" . For repetitive cutting of small parts with or without bevels, the time invested in a sled is well worth it.

Unless you have a left tilting blade, Doug's suggestion of using a sacrificial strip on the rip fence is certainly the easiest way to get clean accurate bevels of any angle on a table saw, but be wary of kick-back of the small scraps stuck between the fence and underside of blade - don't stand in the path as they can be spit out at an uncomfortable speed.

The quickest way to confirm accuracy of the tilt gauge on the saw is to cut two test pieces, join them together and check the squareness of closed joint.

[ODougbo]

I bumped into this article on cutting 45s, interesting.

Small Parts Mitering Jig | Products | Store | Woodworkers Journal

[kornnylike]

Originally Posted by ODougbo

I bumped into this article on cutting 45s, interesting.

Small Parts Mitering Jig | Products | Store | Woodworkers Journal

ODougbo thanks for the article.

[chrisb]

great for small parts, but many of the panels for larger speaker enclosures could get very awkward - for cutting those re-assembly I think a well tuned rip fence and feather-boards to maintain pressure on workpiece would be as accurate and less time consuming

[puppet]

Originally Posted by chrisb

great for small parts, but many of the panels for larger speaker enclosures could get very awkward - for cutting those re-assembly I think a well tuned rip fence and feather-boards to maintain pressure on workpiece would be as accurate and less time consuming

Absolutely correct. The point of contact (blade and work) is all that is important. Here the work must be firmly pressed to the table (with feathers preferably) and held to the fence. Doesn't matter if the work is bent (or bowed for that matter) fore or aft of the blade area.

More critical actually is the cut itself. (difference between a blunt mitre and one that finishes to a point) You may find that getting an exact blade/fence/work thickness relationship with the "finished mitre" kind of tough. Run the panel in a ways and check to see if (or not) that the finished point is contacting the fence after the cut. (if parts came out of different panels, it may not be "finishing" on all) Better to allow for this on purpose .... add a thin veneer/laminate to the "outfeed" section of the dummy fence to make up for the cut and to keep the blade from "sniping" the last few inches of the cut ... ruining the mitre.