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Years ago I used a Bosch table saw for just about everything you could.

I just jumped back into woodworking. I bought the mist expensive saw I could find at my Home Depot, a $579 Heavy Duty Skilsaw table saw https://tablesaw.skilsaw.com/unbouncepages.com/6a0e251e-be4c-450c-aa21-4badcce7be7c/index.html

It seems to be missing a really basic feature though.

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I want to cross cut 1ft off a 10ft 2x4...basically the simplest cut imaginable. The old Bosch let you extend the table so you could support the board over 4ft or so. The Skilsaw lets you extend the table for the fence, but there's no support between the prongs like I had before.

Am I missing something in this table saw? Is there a name for this feature? Is this a common?

Edit: here is an example of what I am thinking of https://m.sears.com/craftsman-cm-craftsman-10-in-portable-table-saw/p-00941503000P

Paul Draper
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  • The handle on the left is a workpiece support fwiw and if you stick the board out to the left, you’ll have a lot more support. For a 10 foot board stick a sawhorse over there although tbh id just lean it on a rock or something and do it with a handheld circular saw. That’s a potentially iffy table saw cut with that much leverage. – Jason C Aug 26 '18 at 18:07
  • Clamp your speed square to the board, and use it as a guide for your circular saw. I do this all the time for things that are too large or unwieldy to fit onto the table saw. For piece wider than my square, I clamp an aluminum guide to both sides of the piece, using the square to get it aligned with both side, then use that as a guide for the hand-held saw. – 3Dave Aug 26 '18 at 21:25
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    Do you have other tools more suited to this cut? This operation really doesn't lend itself to a tablesaw, in my opinion. First on my list would be a circular saw or a miter saw. Alternates include a jigsaw or a handsaw. – Aloysius Defenestrate Aug 27 '18 at 01:11
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    For me this is a prime example of why every shop should have at least one hand saw in it :-) – Graphus Aug 27 '18 at 11:02
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    And a prime example why most expensive is not a good idea. This is a jobsite saw which main feature portability. While it sounds like you really needed non-portable tablesaw which would have more options with regards to supporting the stock. – ratchet freak Aug 27 '18 at 14:25
  • As a general rule of thumb, the distance from the fence to the blade should never exceed the length of the wood touching the fence. It is a very unstable and unsafe cut that is prone to kickback. – JohnFx Mar 09 '20 at 03:25

2 Answers2

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The comments on your post are correct, the table saw is not the best tool for this type of cut. You'd be better off with a miter saw (with material supports), circular saw with square, or hand saw. In a pinch, even a jig saw would work.

Even if your table saw had the type of support you're talking about it still wouldn't work very well because the support would be at most 3' from the blade, and the center of gravity would be 4' 6" from the blade on the cut you mentioned. So the board would still be tipping off the machine. (Also, you'd have the issue of keeping the board square with a relatively small miter gauge.)

If you are determined to use the table saw for this type of operation I'd suggest getting a 3-in-1 outfeed roller stand with a roller, a fixed top, and material handling "ball transfers" on it. (It will also be useful for the more normal operation on a table saw, ripping long stock, as an outfeed support.) For crosscutting narrow stock use the flat surface, for wider stock use the roller balls. For outfeed use the large single roller.

Example of a 3-in-1 roller stand

I would also put an extension fence on your miter gauge or make a crosscut sled if you anticipate doing this often.

SaSSafraS1232
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Am I missing something in this table saw?

Different saws have different features. Your saw has a lot of very nice features, but an extendable table isn't one of them.

One thing to look at is the height of the handle on the left side of the saw. From the photo, it looks to be at or nearly at the height of the table. If it's even with the table, you could use it to help support the work to the left of the blade. If the top of the handle is below the table surface, then you could drill holes through it and bolt on a piece to extend it up to table height. You could even use the handle to support a larger table extension that meets the table and extends perhaps a foot beyond the handle.

Another option is to build a crosscut sled with a runners that slide in the miter slots. You could make the sled larger than the table, so that you get more support. And you can also build clamping into the sled, which will help when you don't have as much support as you'd like (though that's still important).

I want to cross cut 1ft off a 10ft 2x4...basically the simplest cut imaginable.

Cutting a foot off the end of a 10' piece really isn't the domain of any table saw. Even with a large miter gauge and plenty of support, you're basically trying to move a beam laterally while holding only the end, and that's not a recipe for square cuts. With such a large workpiece, you'll be better off keeping the work still and moving the saw. A chop saw or miter saw is good for this, as is a hand-held circular saw.

Caleb
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