: I'm concerned to see such support for using a circular saw to cut strips in
: this line of posts is such a public forum.

: Yes, you can force a tool designed for another purpose, to do what you need
: done.

: AND YOU ARE DRASTICALLY INCREASING THE POTENTIAL FOR INJURY!

I appreciate your point, but I disagree. In fact, I think this would be safer. Like yourself I, too, am greatly concerned with safety. Since circular saws are already made for both ripping and crosscutting, I don't see this as a situation where the tool is being forced to do something different than it was designed for.

: Also, it will not give you the same results as a tool designed for that
: purpose, in this case
: a table saw to cut strips.

: No one wants to contribute a suggestion that would result in an injury.
: Woodworking is dangerous! I have many woodworking friends who do not have
: all their fingers.

: Why do you think you’ve never seen a “Let’s make a circular saw into a
: tablesaw kit” at the hardware store?

Actually, I own such a device, and used it for years. Sears made a couple of models in the 70's, and I bought the less expensive one with stamped steel extension arms. The top of the line had a cast aluminum table with cast aluminum extensions. In the 60's my father made a table for an old 6 1/2 inch circular saw when he found the need for a portable table saw, and such things were not on the market at that time. Just recently I've seen two devices which convert circular saws into radial arm saws and chop saws.

Basically it is the same thing as a router table, and I personally compare the adaption of a router into a shaper to be analogous to converting a circular saw into a table saw. In both cases we are mounting a hand-held tool rigidly so that the tool sits still and the work moves past the fixed-position cutting edge.

A few years ago I considered loaning it out to anyone who might ask, and made that suggestion on this board. I was turned away from this plan by people who thought I might become a target for lawsuits.

: How do you mount the circular saw firmly? How do you adjust the fence? How do
: shut off the power in an emergency? You’re expecting someone who hasn’t
: used a table saw to make one from a circular saw??

Actually, yes. And I do so beause I totally agree with you about the need for safety.

I assume that if they already have a circular saw they have used it. Mounting it firmly so that it stays in one place is, in my belief, safer than moving the saw. You know where the blade is. And for ripping strips, you can easily make blade guards and kerf splitters -- two safety items which you can't fit to a handheld circular saw.

In addition, with any kind of a table you an clamp on featherboards, or fingerboards as some call them, to hold the work in line.

Panel-cutting saws which are fairly common at lumberyards and Home Depots use off-the-shelf circular saws which are clamped or bolted to the sliding platforms. There does not seem to be any problem with the integrity of this design.

: And if you haven’t worked with a good table saw with the right blade, right
: fence set-up and feed tables how are you going to begin to know what the
: end product should look like or how easy it is to cut accurate consistent
: strips?

Well, we know what the end product is supposed to look like: a 1/4 inch wide strip. And the fence I propose has no need to be adjusted -- just screwed down -- as this is a jig for cutting strips. After all, I'm not trying to make furniture here, just strips. As for feed tables, well, by working with a long board as I suggested, the need for extended feed tables is greatly reduced, as adding another board at either end (or both ends) is a fairly simple operation.

What you end up with is a custom tool made just for this job.

My previous post (of a few years ago?) on building such a mounting for a circular saw included directions for mounting a shutoff switch in a convenient location. The fence doesn't need to adjust. And using a 3/4 inch thick board as a base helps limit the amount of the blade which is exposed. I believe I also suggested a simple but effective blade guard in the earlier post.

: Other places to get a saw or have strips cut for you include;
: Tool rentals, tag sales, buy a used saw then resell it, school shop classes,
: local wood shops, local carpenters and there are probably others.

: Work safe!

Absolutely! Your warnings on safety are right on target, and a rental or borrowing a table saw might save a few hours of effort.

But I do not believe that a rented table saw is inherently less dangerous than one which is home made. They are both powerful sharp tools which demand safety and respect.

PGJ