: Jay-A circular saw mounted under a table-an intriguing idea, and I happen to
: have a good Makita circular saw; how would I go about doing it? Thanks,
: Greg

Hi Greg

Paul's idea is sound, but I would add a couple of things that we have used on job sites when we had to cut/rip plywood or whatever.

We either used a 4' x 8' sheet of plywood, or in this case, a 16" x 8' piece would suffice. Pick the side you will have for the top and lay a good straight board ( or a couple of straight strips of plywood cut from the same sheet that you made the table top with. Mark out, on top, where the fence will be and transfir that to the other side ( bottom ) with lines on the ends of the ply. Put the fence on the bottom ( temporarily with screws ) and locate where you want the saw blade to protude. You can loosen the set screw for lowering the blade and run it through the plywood. ( remember that the saw will be reversed when you turn the plywood table over so do it in the right direction ) Before removing the saw, draw a line on the plywood where the fence is, as a reference to align the saw. When you have your slot ripped in the table top, remove the saw, fence and turn the plywood back over. Relocate your marks and install the fence where it should be.

It is critical that the saw and fence be aligned properly as the cuts will not be good or smooth if they are off even a slight amount. Good enough for rough-cutting house materials, but not boat strips. Attach the saw as Paul Mentions and the make a few test passes and check your cut. When it's off, you can adjust the saw by loosing the screws and moving the saw a tad one way or the other.

If possible, try to get some plastic laminate for the top so your material will move easily. Or, use some melomine for the table top. You want that wood to move as easy as possible. By taking a little extra time here, you won't have to plane or do extra sanding to the finish cut strips.

Oh, and I'd mount the saw in the center of your plywood, front to back, and in so doing creat some infeed and outfeed surface. You may want to lengthen it with another piece of plywood on some stands as well. Be sure to put some solid wood ( maybe 2" x 4" boards/studs ) under your ply table to keep it solid and straight.

Oh, be sure you turn your saw so it's cutting toward you or you may impale the neighbors kids or dog across the street. Lessons learned!! Don't ask.

Rehd