Your saw fence needs to be accurately cut to fit the length of your specific table. If you’re looking for more clarity, the depth of your saw is the measurement than runs parallel to the table saw blade. Simply measure from the front of the table saw to the back with your tape measure. To ensure you have the correct dimensions for your table saw fence, you will need to determine the depth of your table saw. (1) screw-threaded rod with accompanying nut.(1) 2×4 (longer than your table saw depth).You will need the following materials to build your table saw fence: Making sure you have everything you need before you start will ensure the building of your table saw fence goes off without a hitch. You will only need a few simple supplies to make your table saw fence. Purchase the Supplies to Make your Table Saw Fence
We’ll use the terms “table saw fence” and “rip fence” interchangeably in this article. Often known as a rip fence, a table saw fence allows you to safely and accurately cut and rip wood using your table saw. Table saws are perfect for ripping wood, and are typically measured by their rip capacity. Many of these saws come with a rip fence, but a lot of cheaper table saws don’t have a rip fence included. Racking (explained in more detail below) can cause serious injury, and using a fence helps to prevent this from happening. You must stand in the proper place, keep your hands clear of the blade, and make your cuts carefully.Īdditionally, the saw fence prevents the wood from racking.
Knowing how to use a table saw safely is vital. If you used your hands instead of the fence guide, you would be dramatically increasing your risk of hurting yourself. A saw fence does a lot of the guiding work that you would otherwise rely on your hands for. So, for accuracy purposes alone, you need to have a rip fence for making rip cuts. For starters, it is practically impossible to rip wood straight without some sort of guide. Since these are very long cuts, you need a hefty guide (or fence) to ensure that the wood is cut straight accurately. Ripping wood is the most common use of a table saw, and is a type of cut that severs or divides a piece of wood parallel to the grain.