Carpentry and Woodworking - Double cutting

This is probably a basic question but I never thought of it before.

Is it possible/advisable to clamp two pieces of wood together and cut them at the same time in order to get an identical measurement on both of them?

If so, can it be done with more layers up to the maximum cutting depth of your blade?

Is there a more effective way of getting exactly the same length on multiple cuts without the use of a table saw (don't have one)? I'm using a circular saw, 8 foot straight edge, and clamps. I frequently have small differences in my boards that are supposed to be identical. Sometimes it makes a difference in the fit of the finished project and sometimes it's just me being overly anal.

Yes you can, and it's very effective.

One thing to keep in mind however is that as you stack more wood, you will increase the load on your saw, and you will have to make your cuts slower as the blade will be doing more work, heat up more, and be more prone to scortching.

I do this even with a table saw when making furniture, to make certain that all pieces fit the same.

My question to you is why do you want to build it up so much? What are you trying to achieve?

Mike,

Watched Norm this morning, as usual.

Feet (?) and arms on a rocking chair. He screwed two blanks together, for each, and cut them out on a band saw. Identical pieces.

Doesn't answer your question, but just a "For instance".... ;)

Tom

Thanks Tom and Vector. I'm cutting right now and so far, so good. Even if my cut is a tad off, the two pieces are still identical and that's all that matters for most of my projects.

thanks

mr,

Glad your project is going well.

(Sometimes I have to lower my eyeglasses a bit and give Mike one of those "You know darned well what he's talking about" looks. :D The kid spends too many hours working. No sense of humor. :))

Tom

Tom? Too much work? Oh by what do you mean. "Sarcasm" :)

Let me be the first to say that I'd buy a movie if they did it on Norm's Bloopers. He may be the god to a lot of people, but I'd sure like to see how many mistakes he makes doing those projects. Even when it's on the show, I've seen him miss the lines. The you hear him say, "Perfect Fit"



In the eyes of which beholder?

Mike,

It's kind of a joke at work with a couple of us that we'd like to see how many times it took Norm to do one thing or another before we see it on the show. :)

As for being a "god", nah, but he is good and a lot of his methods, at the level most of us are at, are a great deal better than the way we would approach it.

Of course, I also don't have paying customers critiquing my work like someone we know. ;)

Tom

I finished the cutting phase of my project today.

Clamping plywood together and cutting multiple sheets ABSOLUTELY makes the job MUCH easier. It cut my cutting time in half (at least).

It's been best improvement in efficiency that I've ever had in my woodworking. It does require a change in board layouts as it becomes necessary to position identical pieces in the same spot of a different sheet. I think it can be used in many cases though.

I also found that my circular saw will cut up to 3 layers of 3/4 ply without a problem. It is more work and it slows a bit but it does work exquisitely.

thanks for the help guys.

What are you making Mr Dove that you needed to build up the plywood like that?

Of course you've noticed that Norm always builds a "prototype" of his projects. Wish I had that luxury. :D

Dave,

When I finish a project, I've got prototypes lying everywhere. Probably not the same thing, though. :D

Tom

You mean that the cabinet in the shop that I made to go over a door is a prototype? The second one fit just fine. :D

Mr Dove -

The practice of cutting multiple pieces is called "gang" cutting and it's a very good way to speed up production and ensure exact duplication of pieces. It's also a good way to screw up a lot of material all at once if you do it wrong. :(

Measure twice (at least) and cut once.

Dave,

My "prototypes" aren't quite that useful. They're more of the sort that are used for bonfires. :rolleyes:

Tom