How to cut with a circular saw without chips

circular, chips

Using this tool is the best option.

Before sawing, mark the cut line with a pencil, and then cut through the film of the laminated coating with a knife or an awl. Now we grip the board tightly (face down).

The rotational speed of the power tool must be high. You must try to cut smoothly enough, without jerking the jigsaw, so that chips do not happen. Having got used to it, it is possible to quickly and accurately saw laminate boards. over, an excellent result is obtained when cutting both along and across the board. It seems that the answer to the question, the better to cut laminate flooring, is clear. of course a jigsaw.

Circular Saw. Requires Experience

You can also cut the laminate with a circular saw, equipping it with a disc for metal work. At the same time, we put the board prepared for cutting and marked out on some flat plane. The laminated film should not be at the bottom, as with a jigsaw, but at the top. Slowly and smoothly moving the circular disc along the mowing line of the cut, we obtain a smooth and high-quality cutting surface. During operation, the disc does not get stuck in the laminate.

But for those who have never taken such an instrument in their hands, it will be difficult for habit. It takes a lot of effort and effort to achieve the desired result. Having acquired dexterity over time, it will be possible to saw the laminate very quickly and efficiently. But this process requires patience.

If you have not previously sawed other materials with this tool, then it is better to give preference in favor of a jigsaw.

We pick up a hacksaw

Laminate hacksaw, of course, sawn, but it is not very suitable for such work. After all, the teeth of a hacksaw, designed for woodworking, are intimidatingly large, and the top film of the floor covering is so thin. Just look. ugly traces will remain from these teeth. And it’s hard to cut the pressed laminate structure with a hacksaw. Hands get tired.

To get a better result, arm yourself with a fine-toothed hacksaw. For example, a hacksaw designed for sawing metal may well work. Chips on the cut can be avoided, but sawing with a fine-toothed hacksaw will be more difficult than a tool for woodworking. However, if you do not intend to cut the laminate in large quantities, then this method is fine. The quality of the cut, of course, is not perfect, but quite tolerable.

And here are the promised little tricks: before you cut, stick a piece of masking tape on this place. If you do this, then no chips are formed at the cut site. over, the laminate board must be laid face up. And in order for the cut to be smooth and clean, the hacksaw must have fine, frequent teeth.

Since the laminate is pressed using special mechanisms, then, of course, it is better to saw it not by hand, but with an electric tool.

For example, an electric hoe is quite suitable for this, (reciprocating saw), which is increasingly used by home craftsmen.

How and with what to cut the laminate. choice of tools and nuances of sawing laminated coatings

Many people like laminate. this inexpensive floor material is very practical and beautiful. But not everyone succeeds in carefully sawing off even pieces from it. And you will have to cut it, and more than once. at the end of each row, at least. So how and with what to cut the laminate so that the cut line is pleasing to the eye. consider methods and tools that can be used to cut laminate.

A cutter specially designed for cutting laminates

Such a cutter is a bit like a guillotine. The sharpest knife falling from above instantly cuts the laminate like butter. the cut line is perfect and as accurate as possible. But this tool can only cut across the boards. And if you need to saw the floorboard lengthwise, then again turn to one of the methods described above.

In addition, such a cutter is very expensive, so buying it can be beneficial only to professionals who are engaged in laying laminate flooring on an ongoing basis. If you just want to change the floor in a couple of rooms in your apartment, then you probably shouldn’t make such a purchase.

Important: with any method, it is better to measure several times, and only cut. then. As a rule, they buy a little more laminate than it was calculated. It is taken into account that you will have to cut some boards, and then dock them correctly.

Zero clearance technique

Carpentry craftsmen most often use the principle of finalizing the sole of the cutting tool, which consists in reducing the gap between the working body and the pressure pad. This is almost guaranteed to eliminate the crust breaking effect in the top layer of the material.

Zero clearance is achieved by attaching the cover plate to the tool base plate. The pad has only one narrow hole (or slot) that fits snugly against the cutting body. Because of this, even with a high feed force, the teeth are guaranteed to cut small chips, and not turn out the chips in the upper layer of the part.

When using pads, it is imperative that they do not scratch or damage the surface of the part. Therefore, most often they are made from a material that is inferior in hardness to the processed material, for example, MDF or drywall. Unfortunately, such an overlay is not enough for a long time, which is why it has to be changed every 4–5 meters of the cut.

durable pads can be made of sheet plastic (PVC, fluoroplastic), fiberglass or metal. In the latter case, the surface of the pad should be carefully polished and soft metals such as aluminum or duralumin should be used to reduce vibration.

How and what to cut plywood and chipboard without chips: straight and curly cut

It is believed that a high-quality cut of wood or sheet materials cannot be performed without a professional tool. Today we will tell you about ways to make a clean, even cut without chips, on our own and without using expensive equipment and consumables.

  • Cutting tools and mechanics of their work
  • Choice of saw blades and blades
  • Zero clearance technique
  • Using adhesive tapes
  • Ensuring a perfectly clean cut

Cutting tools and mechanics of their work

Apart from stationary sawing machines, there are not many alternatives for manual work. Of the available tools, you can offer circular and pendulum saws, in the common people referred to as crosscutters and jigsaws. It is also possible to perform a sufficiently high-quality cut using an angle grinder, on which a saw blade for wood with victorious teeth is installed. But this is not the most effective and, moreover, not the safest option.

In the process of cutting with any type of power tool, the working bodies move at a very high speed, and therefore the machining mechanics remain, as it were, behind the scenes. However, understanding it is the key to getting a clean, chip-free edge. The simplest principle is the basis for the work of pendulum saws. The cut is carried out with the direct movement of the saw blade, while the size of the removed fragments completely depends on the size of the tooth and its setting.

Chips appear due to the heterogeneity of the processed material, in particular due to the hard crust of laminated sheet materials or due to the fact that the fibers of solid wood have different densities. Chips can form on different sides of the product, depending on the shape of the tooth, feed force and the speed of the tool. When working with a jigsaw, the appearance of chips is due either to the fact that the teeth pull out large fragments from the seamy side, or due to the pushing of the upper layer, in which it is not cut off, but breaks out in large fragments.

The work of the teeth of a circular disc is in many ways similar to a jigsaw, with the only exception that their movement is directed strictly in one direction, and they move at a very high speed. Also, a significant factor is the direction (angle) of the applied force: if the jigsaw saw moves strictly perpendicular to the surface, then the circular cuts at an arbitrary angle, depending on both the diameter of the disc and the thickness of the part. This can play into your hands: oblique immersion of the tooth contributes to a more accurate cutting of chips, but from the back side, due to the tangential movement of the cutting edges, large fragments can be pulled out. Of course, a circular saw will only be able to make a straight cut.

Choice of saw blades and blades

When cutting, cleanliness and processing speed are inversely related. It is worth noting that chips on the cut will appear in any case, so the main task is to reduce their size to such a value where they can be easily eliminated by subsequent processing. The size of the chips will be the smaller, the smaller the size of the tooth and the closer to the right angle at which the cutting edge touches the surface of the material. These are two of the three most important factors for choosing a circular saw blade.

The third can be called the amount of setting. the offset of adjacent teeth, which is quite simple to determine by attaching a ruler to them. To ensure a clean cut, the wiring should be minimal, but do not forget that in this case, when you try to cut a thick board or a sheet of plywood, the disc can be trivially clamped or the end will burn from strong friction.

Jigsaw saw blades are more varied. For a chip-free cut, a series of clean-cut saws are used, for example, BOSCH has a line of blades called CleanWood. Their main difference is their small size and the absence of a pronounced orientation of the teeth. They are usually in the shape of an isosceles triangle and cut in both directions of travel.

Also saws for a clean cut are distinguished by the almost complete absence of setting and the opposite direction of sharpening adjacent teeth. In order to ensure the possibility of a curly cut with small wiring, the files have a very small width, which makes them quite fragile.

For fine cutting of sheet materials, blades designed for working with metal products can also be used. These saws have the smallest tooth size known, so the cut is slow, but with the highest quality. Due to the considerable width of the canvases for metal, a fine figured cut can be carried out only with a significant bending radius, on average about 60-80 cm.

Note also that the dullness of the teeth, which is characteristic of low-quality saws with a “run” of 3-5 meters, also leads to the formation of chips. Therefore, do not skimp when purchasing consumables if the quality of processing is really important to you.

Ensuring a perfectly clean cut

For most parts, it is sufficient to reduce the chip size to 0.2–0.5 mm. Such small irregularities of the cut edge are not striking, if desired, they can be easily eliminated by chamfering with an emery bar or covering with a wax corrector pencil. It is also possible to grind the end face with emery paper if a sufficient allowance was given during cutting.

Nevertheless, even at home, it is possible to achieve a cut quality comparable to that of a saw with two high-speed discs. This is possible only when the tool moves along the guide rail, in extreme cases. along the temporary stop bar.

First, you need to make two cuts about 0.5 mm deep on both sides of the part to indicate the thickness of the cut. Along the edges of the mowing line of the cut, two grooves must be scribbled under a straight ruler. This is done either with a segmented or oblique boot knife (for chipboard and uncoated wood) or with a sharpened drill or victorious cutter (for laminated materials).

The depth of the grooves should be at least half the thickness of the outer layer, which is inhomogeneous with respect to the main body of material. This method requires high precision matching of furrows and mowing line of the cut, but this is the only way to ensure a perfectly flat cut edge that does not require additional processing.

Using adhesive tapes

The same principle can be used to protect the back of the material to be cut. On the mowing line of the cut, tape should be glued to protect against pulling out large fragments. Pasting surfaces is one of the few ways to ensure the cleanliness of a figured cut with a jigsaw. Unfortunately, masking tape is not suitable for this in the best way due to its low strength.

The best quality cut can be obtained by pasting the part with aluminum or fiberglass-reinforced tape-tape. It should be wide enough to cover 15–20 mm on each side of the cut line. The density of the sticker is also important: the tape must be well pressed with a dry rag swab and by any means to exclude the formation of folds.

Tapes with very tenacious glue should be avoided. In the process of tearing off, they can carry along with them small fibers and fragments of the laminated surface, dissected by microcracks that form during cutting. Also note how easy it is to remove glue marks and whether the adhesive adhesion is good enough for rough materials like raw plywood or OSB.

Festool. the tool for professionals

Promyshlennoe Oborudovanie LLC is an official dealer of Festool. Buy German quality on individual terms!

Why does it chip when sawing with a circular saw?

Again, plywood is just a glued multi-layer veneer. Veneer layers in different layers are directed alternately: a layer with one grain direction, a layer with a perpendicular grain direction. If you are sawing plywood along the grain direction, then you most likely will not have problems. But if you cut across, the top veneer layer is chipped off. The disc rotates so that the teeth move from the bottom up, and they just tear up the top layer of the veneer.

As seen. the length of the chips reaches 2 cm.Sometimes even more.

In the case of a circular, this is due to the fact that there is a gap of a couple of centimeters between the disc and the sole (platform) of the circular. It is precisely because the plywood layer does not press anything from above and these chips occur. Thinner discs (for example, for laminate) did not suit me either. the result is exactly the same.

How to cut with a circular saw without chips

In our workshop, one of the technological stages is cutting 1.51.5 meter plywood sheets into blanks for further processing. We use plywood in three thicknesses: 4, 6 and 10 mm. We do not have our own panel saw. It was not planned to buy it due to the fact that cutting is an auxiliary function and, in fact, takes little time. We are not yet ready to spend 50 or more thousand rubles on a formatting tool, so we use hand tools.

Those who have ever sawed sheet material (especially plywood) with a jigsaw or hand-held circular saw know that when cuts are of poor quality. the edges are chipped off. This problem would be solved by the same formatter, since it has 2 saws. a scoring saw and a main one. But for now, we use what we have. How to cut without chipping with a jigsaw. read this article. But the jigsaw is not very convenient here. everyone saws 1.5 meters. with a jigsaw it will take a very long time, so we decided to use a manual circular (frog). Our circulars are of the Metabo brand, but the principle and appearance of them all are about the same.

We also have a circular saw, which is an order of magnitude smoother. But he has a small working field, and it will not work to complete a large table for him. there is simply not enough free space to place a table on which you can saw a sheet of 1.51.5 meters. Those who think that you can put a sheet of 1.51.5 meters on a small table and saw it on it, holding the sheet in weight with your hands (even together). you are very mistaken, take my word for it.

Refinement of the circular for chip-free sawing

The solution is simple enough. to make a lining on the sole, which will press the plywood on top. Most likely such ready-made pads are on sale, but I didn’t have much time to look for them. over, although different manufacturers make similar tools, they still have their own sizes, so a lining is needed for a specific model of a particular brand. It was decided to make the lining yourself.

Initially, I wanted to take plexiglass as a basis, but the required size was simply not at hand. So I used 6mm plywood. You can take 10 mm, but 4 mm will obviously not be enough.

First, I sawed off the plywood to fit the foot (platform) of the circular. I made a slot for the saw blade and screwed this lining to the sole.

So far at hand were self-tapping screws such as “bug” for drywall. fixed the plywood on them. I made a slot for a saw blade on a circular machine, but an electric jigsaw can easily handle this.

In the case of a jigsaw, it seems like you can put the same lining on double-sided tape (only made of plexiglass. the tape does not hold normally on plywood). But on the frog I did not risk it. it is heavier and you have to make some effort, plus press down. The scotch tape may shift and the plywood will jam with a disk. I do not need her to be sausage when working. therefore, only fix it rigidly.

When I screwed everything in, I first started the saw with no load. so that the disc itself finished the necessary clearances for free rotation. The teeth are slightly wider than the thickness of the disc itself, so they themselves “chose” their place.

We make a trial saw and get the result

I specially put a drill next to it so that the scale can be seen. Drill 8 mm. As you can see, the result is obvious! Chips are small, but their length does not exceed 2 mm. In rare cases, 3 mm. 10 times smaller than unlined. I repeat. if you need a more perfect saw, you need a formatter with a scoring disc. But since I only have blanks for further work, this is more than enough. And if necessary, you can just walk along the edge with a sander. just chamfer the corner, and there will be no such marks.

But in this state, I do not like how the new platform looks. the protective casing is not worn. First, it is not very secure. Secondly, when the saw stops, the blade stops for a long time due to inertia. And in view of the design and habit, we put the saw with an unstoppable disc on the table without waiting for a complete stop (the disc hides under the casing and it is safe).

Therefore, we will make a small addition. we will increase the gap on one side under the casing.

As luck would have it, there was no jigsaw at hand (I left it at home), so I had to turn on the CNC router. I didn’t write a control program for it. I just cut the required hole in manual mode at 10% speed. For those who don’t have a router. don’t be discouraged. it’s also easy to do with a jigsaw.

The desired hole did not work right away. the casing did not close normally. Therefore, then I cut it several more times and adjusted it to the place.

While I was checking how much it would work in principle and making a test cut, I put a splinter in my hand from this plywood lining. Now is the time to process it with a sander. so that there are no burrs and the surface is smoother.

Now let’s add the self-tapping screws. Last time I fixed only 2 pieces diagonally. But here it is obvious that they should be in all corners, maybe later I will add more intermediate ones in the middle. It is done simply. we take a drill for metal and drill through the plywood along with the sole.

The holes in the sole will not affect anything, there are enough regular ones. You can always remove the sole and work as usual. if there are burrs, just clean the chamfer with a file.

And then we just drive the screws for metal into the holes. The diameter of the drill should be slightly less than the diameter of the self-tapping screw. so it will create a thread for itself and will hold. It is not always possible to drive it into place the first time, but in a couple of stages the shura succeeded.

I also replaced the self-tapping screws with semicircular caps with self-tapping screws with countersunk ones. Round ones scratch the plywood that you saw and interfere with free movement.

Yes, the solution is not super pretty. But:

half an hour of work (it would be faster if you immediately know what to do and how to do it)

How to cut plywood without chipping with a hacksaw?

For this, the material must be securely attached to the workbench. It is also recommended to process the place of the future cut along the entire length:

  • with PVA glue, using a brush 1–2 cm wide (sawing can be started after it is completely dry);
  • with a sharp knife, making two parallel grooves.

To speed up the process, PVA can be replaced with a sticker of electrical tape or masking tape.

When choosing the option “two grooves”, they are applied with a sharp knife, under a metal ruler, in three steps. The cut is made between parallel lines to prevent chipping. The load of the hacksaw blade must fall on the plane of the plywood sheet.

How to cut plywood without chips?

Plywood is several layers of wood veneer, bonded to one another with an adhesive. If you do not follow the technology of cutting such material, then the teeth of the cutting blade will tear off pieces of the upper layer. Flaws, called chips, are obtained.

You can cut plywood with any of the following tools:

  • hand or electric jigsaw;
  • circular saw;
  • hacksaw.

Each of these tools is recommended for use under certain conditions.

How to cut plywood without chipping with a jigsaw?

There are several factors to consider when working with such a layered material. Including this:

  • selection of tools with fine teeth and the minimum amount of their setting;
  • feeding the cutting blade at low speed and at right angles to the plane of the processed sheet;
  • sawing across the veneer grain.

The problem of how to cut plywood without chips with a jigsaw has been partially solved by the tool manufacturer Bosch. They have a line of special “clean” canvases CleanWood.

Feature of such products:

  • small size of teeth;
  • lack of their pronounced focus;
  • their minimal wiring.

If it is problematic to purchase CleanWood, then you need to use a blade for cutting metal.

When cutting material with an electric jigsaw, it is not recommended to work by weight, but only on a special workbench table. Otherwise, skew is inevitable and the cutting blade may break.

How to cut plywood without chipping with a circular saw?

It is recommended to cut on a flat floor. A sheet of plywood is laid on wooden blocks of equal thickness, placed perpendicular to the cutting line of the cut. Full support from below ensures that no corner of the sheet breaks off at the end of the cut. A metal or wooden guide is installed on top, which is fixedly fixed with clamps.

In order to cut the laminated plywood accurately and without chips, you need:

  • Setting the minimum cutting depth. On the opposite side of the sheet, the teeth should protrude 2-3 mm. With this setting of the cutting depth, the blade does not cut, but neatly cuts the wood.
  • Choosing the right circular saw. For a gentle cut, a blade with a minimum size and a large number of teeth is selected (for example, No. 140).
  • Low feed speed of the cutting blade when moving without stopping. In this case, the teeth do not chop, but gently cut the wood without chipping. In order to properly cut the film faced plywood, it is also recommended to set the blade speed to maximum. Disadvantage of the method: the carpenter runs the risk of overheating the canvas.
  • Placement of adhesive tape in place of the cut. For this, it is recommended to use masking tape that does not leave marks on the surface of the sheet. At the end of the work, the tape is removed at an angle of 90 ° by moving towards the cut.

If laminated plywood is to be processed, it is recommended to also tape the sole of the circular saw with tape. This avoids scratches on the face of the sheet.

The better to cut plywood with a thickness of 9 mm?

Both an electric jigsaw and a circular saw are suitable for cutting such material. The first option is indispensable in the case of a curly cut path.

To cut thick plywood without chipping with an electric jigsaw, it is recommended to use any of two types of blades:

  • clean series CleanWood (Bosch);
  • for metal.

A conventional circular saw is also suitable for smooth cutting of plywood. It is enough to install a blade with a fine tooth (for example, No. 140), adjust the cutting depth within 12-13 mm and lay the sheet on even wooden blocks. Cutting is recommended to be done along the guide, with a low feed rate of the tool and without interruptions.

If the front surface of the sheet is laminated, then the place of the cut is pre-pasted with masking tape.

Anyone who doubts which saw is better to cut plywood, we recommend contacting a specialized company with laser cutting and professional equipment for cutting.

Special equipment

Of course, the best option is to use a special sizing machine. With it, you can get any cut. But for private needs such a tool cannot be bought, and at a manufacturing enterprise that provides sawing services, such a procedure will cost good money. A cheaper way is a circular saw. There are even special saws for chipboard. But they will also require the use of special tools. However, many in the arsenal should have a milling machine that will correct a rough cut with a milling cutter. If you have experience with such a machine, it will not be difficult to obtain a satisfactory cut appearance.

What can not be sawed

Chipboard cannot be sawed with an angle grinder, which is also called an “angle grinder”. When working with this tool, there is a high probability of injury, especially when using large diameter discs. You can also get injured when the protective cover is removed from the tool.

Handy tools

You can cut chipboard with a jigsaw, but this will be a rough cut. The edges may not turn out straight, but sinusoidal, and in the worst case, the edge will come out non-perpendicular to the front surface.

In the course of cutting, you must be prepared for the fact that the jigsaw file begins to “walk” because of the bend. You need to saw with a margin of 4 mm, and then level the edge.

Sawing chipboard at home using a jigsaw, reduces the formation of chips. When cutting, it is necessary to increase the speed and reduce the feed, setting the pumping to 0. Only sharp saws should be used, intended for special cutting of chipboard. Only by observing these rules can you achieve a good result. After cutting, the butt, which will be in sight, can be earned with sandpaper. Additionally, before cutting, as already mentioned, you need to cut through the line along which the sawing will take place. But we do not cut the file along this mowing line, but near it. then the chips will not touch the limits you need. In the end, all that remains is to finish the edges with sandpaper.

Offsets from the contour can be up to 4 mm. Then these few millimeters are removed with a cylindrical cutter using a hand-held electric milling cutter with a bearing. The bearing is guided along a long level fixed on the back of the sheet.

In order to avoid problems with chips, it is recommended to use (where possible) a flexible invoice P-profile. It covers chips well.

In addition, if the chips are in a non-working, hardly visible area, they can be masked with a marker or felt-tip pen matched to their color.

The most undesirable way to cut laminated chipboard is with a file (oddly enough, in old textbooks a lot of material is devoted to this method). You can use a plane, but preferably electric and with carbide knives. But here it must be borne in mind that dust from under the plane will scatter throughout the room.

And the most comfortable way is with a hand-held router along the guide. The end should be flat and under 90 grams, there will be no chips, and when the vacuum cleaner is turned on, there will be almost no dust.

What else do you need to know?

When it is planned to saw off everything without chips on one side, it is permissible to use saws with both upper and lower teeth. Most craftsmen prefer small, straight-toothed files. Such devices chip less material, but at the same time they work pretty well. After the saw cut, it is best to process the ends with emery stretched over even bars. If there is no ready-made crayon of a suitable color, you can mix different crayons, like paints in the artist’s palette, and get a new color.

To cut without errors and moreover quickly, you must always take into account the brand markings. There is no universally binding standard for designations yet, but almost all companies strictly follow the classification developed by Bosch specialists. Or at least indicate it along with their own abbreviations and terms. For cutting wood and wood-based products, CV files (sometimes referred to as HCS) are well suited.

Some inscriptions indicate in which mode the tool works optimally:

basic. a simple blade that allows you to make a high quality clean cut;

speed. a device whose teeth are set apart (this allows you to cut faster);

clean. a canvas that has not been diluted (usually gives the cleanest cut).

If the workpiece is relatively thick, preferably a saw blade with large incisors that have not been set, then there will be minimal deviation from the vertical. The longitudinal (in relation to the fibers) cut is most often made with helical saws. For a transverse, a straight blade is better. When you plan to make a blank for furniture, it is advisable to choose a less productive, but more accurate tool. Since most of the saws now produced cut the material when retracted, the workpiece will need to be processed from the inside out.

Sawing with a panel saw

For cutting by the machine, the workpiece is placed on the left stationary table up to the adjustable stop. The required length is measured. The saw unit starts up. When the disc reaches the required speed, the table moves forward.

The workpiece along with the table is fed to the disc for sawing off the desired piece.

saw melamine | no chip | woodworking | dave stanton | how to basics

Basic machine settings:

  • position of the workpiece;
  • the depth of the cut;
  • cutting angle.

There are three types of machines:

  • lightweight (designed for a workload of five hours);
  • medium (8-10 hours);
  • heavy (16-20 hours).

Manufacturing

Manufacturing begins with the main components and ends with smaller ones.

Stages of making a machine for cutting chipboard with your own hands:

  • Manufacturing of the bed. You will need square or round pipes. They are cut and fastened to each other with clamps. After checking the dimensions and correct positioning of the components. welding.
  • Manufacturing of a movable carriage. Install guides, best of all, a beam or two circular pipes connected to each other. The carriage must be equipped with rollers for smooth sliding.
  • Making a desktop. The base is made of steel sheet with a thickness of at least three millimeters, the working surface is made of chipboard sheet, measuring rulers are attached to it.
  • Production of clamps for sheets, for example, from a lever mechanism of any configuration.
  • At the end, the cutting unit is connected to the chip suction.

The quality of finished products produced on our own machines is higher than that of products created entirely by hand tools, but still lower than on industrial machines.

no chips.

Click to view

Click to view

Click to view

Click to view

Click to view

Click to view

Click to view

Click to view

Click to view

Click to view

Click to view

Click to view

Click to view

Click to view

Click to view

Click to view

Click to view

Click to view

Using masking tape

Before sawing, masking tape can be glued to the plywood for a cleaner cut. It is better to use masking tape rather than regular tape. It leaves no sticky residue on plywood and is easy to remove. Make sure the tape is well adhered before cutting.

This method is not so bad. But personally I don’t like this method.

First, the tape often breaks off during sawing and chips appear in these places.

Secondly, if you want to saw off plywood, on which a picture made on the Pyroprinter machine has already been burned, there is a risk that small details of the image will remain on the masking tape.

Splinter-proof liner

This is a special pad for a specific brand of jigsaw. It is simply inserted between the jigsaw legs and is not secured in any way. The insert adjoins the nail file, so it does not allow the pile of the top layer to rise (which is why chips occur), so the saw turns out to be smooth. At the same time, craftsmen advise using files of the same manufacturer as the jigsaw. this way the quality of the cut will be better with the use of an insert.

The earbuds are sold in sets of 3-5. They are not eternal. they have to be changed from the periodical ones.

There is an insert for example on a Bosch jigsaw about 400 rubles.

If you didn’t find an insert for your jigsaw or don’t want to buy it, then there is a small life hack from the masters. stick ordinary scotch tape in the place where you will cut. After that you need to iron the adhesive tape well with your fingernail. Then cut straight over the top of the tape. After that, delete it. The result will be similar to the liner.

You can also make such a sole yourself. Here is an example of how our client made a jigsaw backing from a thin sheet of tin.

But it is more convenient to make such a platform from a plexiglass sheet. And glue it to the bottom of the jigsaw with double-sided tape.

Prevent Tearout on a Circular Saw

With a homemade insert, you will also get a clean cut.

Pruning with a construction knife

There is also a way to cut the place of the future cut with a construction knife. This will trim the top layer of the veneer and it will break at the point of the notch, not further. For trimming, use a metal ruler to make a straight line. The kerf is usually 3 mm.

The result is pretty good. I use this method a lot. If, when cutting, I just need to cut off a piece of plywood and discard the second part, then I make only one cut. from the finish side. This option is good to use when cropping a portrait.

The causes of chips

Chips often appear because a jigsaw file that is not suitable for these tasks is used. If you take a saw blade with teeth directed upwards, then such a file will strip off the top layer of veneer. This is because there is space between the jigsaw foot and the saw. The top veneer breaks at this point.

What to do to get rid of chips:

  • Disable the pendulum motion on the jigsaw
  • Use a suitable, high-quality file
  • Always cut plywood from the rough side
  • Purchase a splinterproof liner (or make one yourself)
  • Additionally, choose a method convenient for you from the “clean cut” experiment

Let’s consider all the points in more detail in this article.

Jigsaw pendulum stroke

The pendulum motion or in another way is called “pumping” is needed to increase the speed of cutting wood, to be able to work with soft materials and for the production of complex cuts. The pendulum movement of the jigsaw is carried out according to the swinging principle. It significantly impairs the quality of the cut and because of this, chips appear on the surface.

We recommend disabling the pendulum stroke to reduce chipping. On the Makita jigsaw, for example, they showed where it turns off. Find out if your jigsaw has this feature and how it can be disabled. When the function is off, the jigsaw makes standard movements, thereby achieving uniform cutting and improving the quality of the cut.

We cut plywood without chips or burrs

People who are just starting to burn portraits have a question. “How to cut plywood so that there are no chips?” Typically, this difficulty arises when plywood is cut across the grain. Then the top layer of veneer is chipped off and forms chips and burrs. The most unpleasant thing is when this is formed when cutting off excess empty fields already at the finished burnt work. Chips can appear for several reasons and most often they cannot be fixed or masked. Below in the article, we will consider the reasons for the appearance of such chips and burrs. And also consider what to do so that chips do not appear next time.

Jigsaw blades

If you have previously worked with a jigsaw, then you know that if you use the wrong file, you can ruin the top layer of the material, especially for laminated material. Plywood is a laminated material. it is wood veneer glued together.

HOW TO MAKE A CLEAN CUT WITH A CIRCULAR SAW

In this section, we will look at how saw blades affect the quality of the cut and what they basically are.

Files come in different sizes and shapes of the tooth, the length of the file, the material for which they are intended, the direction of the tooth, the material from which the file is made and for what task it was developed. For example, a blade with a large tooth is designed for cutting wood at high cutting speeds for rough cuts. And files with a shorter tooth will make a smoother cut. Thin (narrow) blades allow you to cut radius and other irregular shapes, while wide ones help to keep a straight cut.

The letters “A, B, C, D” mean the size of the teeth, the letter “A” means that the file has the smallest teeth.

The numbers indicate the length of the file 1, 2, 3, 7, the length of the blade, the longer the file, the thicker material it can cut.

For example, Bosch saws are marked like this:

In addition, the files also differ in the geometry of the cutting edge.

Personal experience of an engineer about jigsaw files:

In production, there are tasks both for a smooth saw when working with ready-made portraits, and the need to dissolve a large sheet of plywood when speed is required and quality is not so important. Most saw blades are designed for speed, not cut quality. And even files with a medium tooth will tear up the surface of the material, i.e. spoil the top layer of plywood. Not as strong compared to large-toothed files. Therefore, the engineer adapted for himself to use metal files with a fine tooth up to 1 mm for an even cut of plywood. When working with such a file, speed suffers greatly and these files get very hot. But when you need a responsible sawing job, the time spent is justified. The engineer uses these files when he needs to work with an already burnt portrait.

Saw from the rough side

The fact is that standard saws have teeth away from the jigsaw (as opposed to files with a reverse tooth). These saws “eat up” the tree as it moves upwards. When a tooth clings to the top layer of the veneer, it often splits and chipped. This often leaves the underside with a very good edge. Hence, the craftsmen made a simple conclusion that for a clean saw, it is enough to turn the plywood upside down and cut from the “wrong” side. The method gives the best result, so feel free to use.