Do not force the cut. Let the saw do the cutting at the rate of speed permitted by the type of cut and the material being cut. When the cut is completed, release the switch and allow the blade to stop before lifting the saw from the work. On through-cuts, be sure the lower blade guard is closed, before setting the saw down.

CROSS-CUTTING

Cutting directly across the grain of a piece of lumber is called crosscutting. Fig. 14 illustrates a crosscut operation. Position the work so that the cut will be on the right, as shown.

RIPPING

Cutting wood lengthwise is referred to as ripping. This operation is performed in the same manner as crosscutting with the exception of supporting the material to be cut. If material is supported on a large table, bench or floor, several pieces of scrap stock approximately one inch thick should be placed beneath the material to allow clearance for the portion of the saw blade that extends through the material. Large sheets of paneling or thin plywood supported on saw horses should have 2 x 4’s placed lengthwise between the horses and the material, to prevent it from sagging in the center.

For narrow rip cuts, the rip guide, available as an accessory can be used. The saw is guided by keeping the inner face of the rip guide, Fig. 13, tight against the edge of the board.

For making wider cuts, such as might be made in plywood and wide sheets, a wooden guide strip, against which the left edge of the saw base can be guided, can be tacked or

clamped to the work, as shown in Fig. 15. NOTE: The depth of cut must be adjusted to allow for the thickness of the wooden guide strip.

BEVEL CUTTING

Bevel cuts are made in the same manner as crosscuts and rip cuts. The only difference is that the blade is set at an angle between

0° and 45°, as shown in Fig. 16.

The bevel cut made at an angle to the edge of a board is called a compound cut. There are certain compound cuts, on which it may be necessary to manually retract the telescoping guard to allow the blade to enter into and/or through the cut.

Fig. 15

Fig. 16

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Porter-Cable 447 instruction manual Cross-Cutting, Ripping