CROSS-CUTTING
Cross-cutting requires the use of the miter gage to position and guide the work. Place the work against the miter gage and advance both the gage and work toward the saw blade, as shown in Fig. 42. The miter gage may be used in either table slot. When bevel cutting (blade tilted), use the table groove that does not cause interference of your hand or miter gage with the saw blade guard.
Start the cut slowly and hold the work firmly against the miter gage and the table. One of the rules in running a saw is that you never hang onto or touch the part of the workpiece that will be cut off. Hold the supported piece, not the free piece that is cut off. The feed in cross- cutting continues until the work is cut in two, and the miter gage and work are pulled back to the starting point. Before pulling the work back, it is good practice to give the work a little sideways shift to move the work slightly away from the saw blade. Never pick up any short length of free work from the table while the saw is running. While blade is running, never touch a cut-off piece unless it is at least a foot long.
For added safety and convenience the miter gage can be fitted with an auxiliary wood-facing (C), as shown in Fig. 43 that should be at least 1 inch higher than the maximum depth of cut, and should extend out 12 inches or more to one side or the other depending on which miter gage slot is being used. This auxiliary wood-facing (C) can be fastened to the front of the miter gage by using two wood screws (A) through the holes provided in the miter gage body and into the wood-facing.
NEVER USE THE FENCE AS A CUT-OFF GAGE WHEN CROSS-CUTTING.
When cross-cutting a number of pieces to the same length, a BLOCK OF WOOD (B), can be clamped to the fence and used as a cut-off gage as shown in Fig. 44. It is important that this block of wood always be positioned in front of the saw blade as shown. Once the cut-off length is determined, secure the fence and use the miter gage to feed the work into the cut. This block of wood allows the cut-off piece to move freely along the table surface without binding between the fence and the saw blade, thereby lessening the possibility of kickback and injury to the operator.
WHEN USING THE BLOCK (B) FIG. 44, AS
A CUT-OFF GAGE, IT IS VERY IMPORTANT THAT THE REAR END OF THE BLOCK BE POSITIONED SO THE WORK PIECE IS CLEAR OF THE BLOCK BEFORE IT ENTERS THE BLADE.
A