Track Saws, silly question I think

[Paul Cofrancesco]

like my Stanley saw horses. They are height adjustable and they have two notches to hold a 2x4 firmly on edge
Simple interlocking 2x4 cutting table. Doesn't take up a whole lot of room and is easy to assemble and break down

Cool. Simple intuitive "I think I can do that" elegant solution. I bought those same saw horses years ago but haven't used them as much as I would like. Your idea shows me it's time to get them out. So nice to get out of the business of working off the ground. My main saw horses are the type you make out of 2x4's where you just buy the metal hinge holders. While they are heavy and lack adjustable legs - the have the advantage of being weather and theft resistant because I painted them with latex and they have no resale value. I leave them outside in my work area so they are ready to go at a moments notice. When I used them to paint I don't worry about trashing things or if I do I can hit them with a coat of latex. I also made a 2x4 bracket and the top pieces keep wood from slipping off. I never use them for cutting 4x8 sheets as I typically do that on the ground or on the TS .

An advantage is the width can be customized or the top bar replaced with a 2x6 and the height could be customized (very short, tall, multiple sets, mix and match, etc) also you can screw into almost any part and easily add what ever might be needed.

Sawhorses My Custom_1.jpg

[Jim Becker]

I know of one fellow who put the foam board on his dining room table and cut up sheet goods right there with his Festool rig. And he didn't have to sleep in the garage afterward since there was no tell-tale mess when he was done. LOL

Seriously, there are some great material support ideas in this thread!

[Wakahisa Shinta]

I really like my Stanley saw horses. They are height adjustable and they have two notches to hold a 2x4 firmly on edge

Simple interlocking 2x4 cutting table. Doesn't take up a whole lot of room and is easy to assemble and break down
Attachment 301361

John, your setup is the same as mine! I vote for this!

[Terry Therneau]

I use a simple table of 2x4s with banquet table legs. The 2x4s are on edge, and I made sure to put the construction screws in the lower 1/2. The table is 3.5 ft wide and 7 ft long, and fits in my vertical plywood storage rack easily. I can set it up and take it down in a few moments.

[Tom Clark FL]

Also too old and stiff to work on the floor, especially when I want to lay out a new project on a sheet before breaking it down to go to the table saw/ I can still drag a sheet of plywood out of the wood rack, and then lift one corner up onto my cutting table. By setting the blade to go through the wood less than 1/4", I just cut into the horse. By the way, made a cutting table like this 30 years ago, and used it for 27 years. This one is fairly new after a cross country move. Can't stand trying to get a full sheet up onto two saw horses. They kept falling over. Just not worth the aggravation…

My 8' version of my cutting guide is still in use after 30 years. This 4' version is used a lot more, but still works great. Guess it is a $4 version of a track saw.

[Curt Harms]

Hard to use a clamp when you're 4x8 plywood is sitting on a piece of 4x8 foam board which is sitting on a concrete driveway (usually).

Cut the foam a couple inches shorter than 8'. It'll still work just fine and there's room to get a clamp on each end of the rail.

[Scott Vigder]

I've had the EurekaZone EZSmart system for several years, and I love it's simplicity and performance. No need to repeat the cut on the table saw as it comes out perfectly every time. And it works on either a dedicated cutting table or the foam-on-the-ground method! Dino helped me several times during my newbie phase and I am delighted to have been able to help support his ideas.

[Scott Brandstetter]

Thanks for all of the replies. I have certainly a lot to think about. I am definitely not a guy to get on my hands and knees to cut. Thanks again for the information.

[Paul Cofrancesco]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t5YzIwK-g0E

Multifunction workbench, jump to 3 minutes ... 4x8 sheets. The plan is available on his website, http://www.benchworks.be/tipstricks.html.

Wild seeing the Festool track saw system. Easy to take in / out of the track and it looked like auto depth adjustment, amazing dust collection. Doesn't fully replace the table saw because the TS excels at long rips and cutting very small pieces.

[Rick Moyer]

http://www.sawmillcreek.org/showthre...-cutting-table

This question/topic comes up pretty frequently.

I made the table I linked to in the above thread probably 5 or 6 years ago and have been happily using it ever since.
My knees and big fat gut make crawling around on the ground using a piece of foam impossible to even consider.

Usually what I do is pick up the plywood w/the van and transport it home.
I set up the table in the driveway and use a couple of those cheap folding leg outfeed support stands to slide the plywood out of the back of the van, then right onto the table so I can cut it down to size.

100% agreement. Especially the knees and gut part

[joseph f merz]

i put a hollow core door on saw horses . lately i have been putting pieces of shag carpet on top of the table/dr whatever . drop the blade enough to clear what i am cutting and it passes through the carpet .the carpet is also used to sand on ,keeps the boards from moving,will scratch and faster then using clamps . But I will cut directly on the dr .the top gets small grooves all over it but will last a long time .

[Mike Holbrook]

I used the EurekaZone saw for a few years then switched to a Festool saw when I had to cut all the plywood to cover the floors & walls of a building I built. I have cut many sheets with a Festool saw and guide and never use clamps.

I wrestled with the sheet goods saw surface problem for some time and came up with a kinda odd solution that works a little better than saw horses for me. I bought 3/4" threaded water pipe ( they will cut it and thread it cheap at home stores). I used T pipe couplers to make H pattern legs for each end. I used round pipe flanges/discs for feet and for attaching the legs to the table. I reinforced plywood with clear yellow pine trim boards around all the edges, bottom & corners to make a top. I throw a foam sheet over the plywood top to saw on. Certainly not the steadiest leg system, but it has worked well for construction work and rough cabinets for many years. I can brake the legs down into easy to move/store pieces in just a few minuets.

I am now making plans for a top to go on a Noden Adjust A Bench base that will be a workbench/table, outfeed and surface to cut sheet goods on. I am making a frame with plywood, MDF and 1x3 clear southern yellow pine. I plan to mount a quick release vice on the front side or end. I am planing to use 1/2" MDF in the top of the frame so I can flip or replace it if /when needed.

[Brian W Evans]

I also have the Stanley sawhorses that hold the 2x4s. I highly recommend them but you really need to add cross pieces as others have said/shown. I use a Makita track saw with DeWalt clamps and it works great. I recently built some cabinets using only the track saw (I have both the 55" and 118" rails) and I didn't recut anything on the table saw.

On a separate but related note, I'd like to recommend the Cutlist software (no affiliation). I don't use a lot of plywood and, given the cost of cabinet-grade stuff, I wanted to make sure I laid out the parts efficiently and didn't make any mistakes. The parts diagrams and cutlists generated by the software made the process almost foolproof. Basic version is $89 and pays for itself if it saves you from buying even 1 extra sheet of plywood.

[jared sankovic]

Ive found its easiest to handle the sheets only once and just cut them before I unload.

[Keith Hankins]

I have been looking at track saws and other methods of cutting larger sheets. I have always used my table saw but as I get older the thought of wrestling larger items is not appealing. The silly question is this....how do you use the track saw. I don't mean how does it work, rather, do you lay the plywood on the ground, across a large table? I'm trying to envision me bringing a sheet good to the shop and then making it easier than using my TS.

I see the response count it high so you've probably had tons of good responses. I'll give you mine, since like you i'm getting older and don't like horsing around sheets of ply. Add to that my 2nd son is now grown and in college and the older boy is in the military. So it's just me now.

I love my festool TS55. I use a gorilla gripper to move the sheets and it works great highly recommend it. I must say seem's like ply is getting heavier (i know i'm just getting older but i like the other thought better)

I went to lowes and bought a 4x8 sheer of 2" solid insulation and when not in use it's leaning against the wall. When I need it, I just lay it on the floor, and put the ply on top. Set depth to cut through the ply into the insulation. Works great, and I'm still on the original pieces of insulation. Get the dense kind not the styrofoam with foil back. You can stand on it and it won't give.

I cut it down to close then final cut on the TS, but you can do a final cut with the TS55, done it before..

Good luck.