Wooden Boat People

By McKenzieDriftBoat.com

Track Saw?

What do you use for cutting long sheets of scarfed plywood? I am thinking of getting a track saw to cut plywood? Pro's, con's, thoughts?

Thanks! Gregg

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Permalink Reply by Rick Newman on July 28, 2014 at 6:30pm

A long aluminum straightedge made for such tasks and two clamps. Support the plywood securely and Do your cut and support the piece you are cutting off so it doesn't break off prematurely.

Rick Newman

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Permalink Reply by Phillip Westendorf on July 30, 2014 at 6:46pm

Greg,

The easy way out is a Makita Guide Rail they are on Yahoo, but not cheap.

Or you can just purchase a bar of 1018 Cold Rolled Steel from your local steel supplier. It comes in 11'-13' ft. random length bars (usually 144" lg.). A 1/8" x 1 3/4" wide would work with a couple of c-clamps. They are Flat and straight. Cost is about $ 20. It comes with an oiley film on it but cleans nice up with mineral spriits. You'd have to clamp a sister board along side it to maintain alignment as you move it along the plywood's long axis.

Here;s a reference: http://www.discountsteel.com/items/1018_Cold_Rolled_Steel_Flat_Bar....

Hope this helps,

Dorf

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Permalink Reply by Gregg Maddock on July 31, 2014 at 3:38pm

Thanks guys,

I will be building boat #2 14' Rogue and boat #3 17' Rogue in the next few months. I will post photos as I go along.

Gregg

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Permalink Reply by jeff robbins on September 28, 2014 at 4:47am

Gregg

I may be a little late to the party, but, I went track saw about 8 years ago, and it made dealing with big plywood, and fussy doors much easier. I went with a eureka zone system

http://www.eurekazone.com/category_s/2031.htm

and an 8 1/4 makita (with an 8 1/4 saw you can use the tracks on 2x stock) I replaced the blade with a freud diablo, and could not be happier. Because I already had a saw and could use the eureka zone foot on my saw, I was in for far less than a saw track set up.

The only bummer with the system is that the dust collection is not as great as the festo, dewalt makita systems.

as good as the tracks are, a dedicated table with a sacrificial surface makes the biggest difference, so that both pieces are fully supported throughout the cut.