How YOU Should Be Cutting Plywood
How YOU Should Be Cutting Plywood
In this video I show you the process that I go through to break down plywood and achieving perfectly square cuts every time.
Cutlist Optimizer
https://cutlistoptimizer.com
The TSO Products Items I was using in this video can be found:
https://tsoproducts.com?aff=5
#cabinets #plywood #sheetgoods
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Another great instructional video. I like the process of using parallel guides, MFT, and tablesaw. Fortunately I have all 3. Justifies the expense. The MFT was my last purchase and I wished I had bought it ages ago. All the plethora of shop built tables are fair enough but the MFT still rules I think.
Good vid Jason. One little marking I like to add once I make reference to cross truly square, is a little quarter circle in the corner. You know the one to denote a right angle? I find it helpful if I set down parts and don’t keep track, I know those two faces are square.
Nice Vid Jason, but I need to comment. As you predicted, I’ve an conflict between tools and method. Your method hangs on having an 9′ track initial cut. Pricey and I’d be wary of the precision being damaged in common shop use. i find a 1×6 or other clamping stait edge no better than the factory edge. T track couplers are problematic. i have the 54" track, so must do a panel crosscut, then the rips. We all wish we had that Festool set up, but the TSO track square on a clean fresh edge is pretty damn good
All of those Festool makes me drool.
TY, Jason! Two thoughts. 1. I mark the factory edge with an X to remind me to remove it. 2. After removing the factory edge with the first long cut, and then after the second long cut, why is the second edge of the first panel not a reference edge? Both long sides are straight and parallel. TY!
Thanks I hadn’t considered that the factory edge wouldn’t be necessarily straight and have been referencing from there until now.. just been out to the workshop and checked with a number 8 handplane could see lots of daylight between factory edge and plane.. I’ll be following this fantastic advice from now on, I can see how it is going to improve my woodworking 😁
Amazing insight but only if a guy has a super high quality and accurate set of tools like you do in this video. Tried this method today and it complicated everything for me and ended up not working well. I think if someone is just a hobbyist and has basic at best tools, then buying high quality lumber and relying on factory edges is a good approach. I buy good plywood and it’s always square across the board.
Thanks for the advice, never trust factory edges , I’m a bit of a perfectionist so I’m in agreement of making your own, cheers from Scotland.
YOu waste alot of wood- at todays prices this is NOT good advice.
very informative. I thought the factory cut was perfect for ref edge. I now know why my panel is not square!
Very well explained. This has always been a problem for me using a regular circular saw. I’ve just invested in a track saw so hopefully true 90 degree cuts are in my future.
Great advice,thanks! I’m about to tackle building a complicated shelving & drawer storage unit, and this was very helpful.
Great stuff, thanks!
Did you calibrate those TSO parallel guides first? If so, do you have a video? I’ve found they need calibration with the track since all the variances add up to give non parallel cuts. I tried the calibration method from TSO website using carpenters square and I’m not getting parallel cuts.
Great information!!
I use same process
I’m getting frustrated as I’m new to Mft tops. I purchased some equipment. I want to make some van racking for storage. I viewed a video of a guy who has a table saw here he make long cuts, and then turns the wood over thats been cut back to the fence so he has parallel pieces of wood. I have an issue where I can’t get heis. https://youtu.be/D0Gt4Jj6b9c
Typical seppo full of it yet full of himself
If you understood how panels are prossed in s factory youd know that the factory edge is clean and stright enough to use, chances are mating that edge to a wall youll have to shim it out or fit it to the wall, becuse the walls not true.
This is the reason we use trim boards on the ends of cabnits so you can skip trying to fit it to a wall. This is becuse framing lumber is not stright I doubt even engineered lumber is stright or metal studs are perfectly stright. So walls are always going to be out slightly.
Fixing a factory edge is a waste of time
Also as the sheet exits the press it enters 2 spinning blades set parallel trimming off the edges at the same time so the width is set at 49" or what ever size it is and the length is trimmed in the same way. At most it might not be perfectly squar but your track saw is more likely to be off becuse you measured its placement.
I dont think I’ve ever seen a crowned or cupped factory edge. Maybe dinged up at the lumber yard becuse of shipping straps or fork truck dammage.
You want to test my theory after you make your first cut to trim the edge grab a ditigtal micrometer and mesure the cut off at the ends and sevral center points
Keeping track of each point of measurement on paper compare the cuts thicknesses youll find its all inside of a few thousands of an inch but way less then 1/16" of an inch oh no mic set to use use ditigtal calipers or dile if thats what you have.
New to this channel. Dumb question… sponsored by festool?
How would you finish, if you didn’t have a table saw? Awesome vid & series
Thanks!
(1) You make an example that you find a factory edge on a plywood sheet that hasn’t been broken down… wouldn’t all 4 edges be factory edges assuming no cuts yet? (2) Also, I don’t understand why you need to trim off the factory edge… won’t your new cut (reference edge) now be the same as the factory edge was?
At first I thought it was going to be all about the tools but those techniques I learned when I was in woodshop back in the 80s.
Might have mentioned correct blade to avoid veneer blowout.
What is the model and make of that circular saw? mine basts the plywood into pieces amd leaves more than saw dust
You were doing so well 5-6mm, was music to my ears, then you went 12 inches….🤣🤣
(explains something)
"It’s unimportant."
(makes a measurement)
"That’s irrelevant."
(shows a technique)
"This doesn’t mean anything."
(I joke!) Your videos are excellent and I so appreciate your expertise. I’ve been having the hardest time keeping things square and I can’t wait to try out your techniques.
I’m a bit late on the scene here having just found you. I found your methods and presentation style very interesting and engaging. I learned a lot here to tweak my accuracy. I don’t have or want a table saw but I take your main point that it’s about the process so I can still use this to get more accurate results. Any more videos using track saws will be welcome here. Thank you so much and subbed! Greetings from 🇬🇧.
Why wouldn’t the rip sides be parallel with the parallel guides/ Those guides aren’t cheap.
Did some cuts yesterday and figured a perfect cut can only easily be obtained on a table saw. There’s always some slight deviation without table sawing
What is the name of the guide you use the folds down?
Great video, thanks for the link to the cutlist optimiser, great website
Great tips, very useful to me, learned new professional way of doing work. Thank you very much
Careful with your method of checking if the panel is square — the method you showed in this video is prone to error. This method only shows that your panel is symmetric about the horizontal axis. Example: your panel could have edges left side 10, top 8, right side 6, bottom 8, and if you have symmetry about the horizonal axis, your cross corner measurements will be the same. Your panel is obviously not a good rectangle…
How many years did it take to pay off that Festool wall?😂😂
I’m glad I kept watching, I figured it was a Festool centric video, great info on work flow. I learned something about panel cutting workflow I can use with my unistrut / track clamp bare bones panel cutting system ! Great video as always, thanks !
Great information. Thanks. I just really appreciated that you used millimetres in your video as a measure of accuracy.
Having just started my own business thanks for this video, excellent for helping me get best practice processes in place. thank you so much!
Woah woah woah…what is that flip-up track holder? Anybody?
Question: On the short end of your fence, what prevents the blade from cutting the fence? (I’m not comprehending that part.)
This was really helpful. I wrestled with this. Seems so obvious after seeing it. Thanks a ton!
#festoollife am I right or what 🙂 jk, excellent tutorial!
@ 3:30 you mention how: ‘If the reference edge is not parallel to the other (reference) edges it does not matter at this point and this is where people become confused’ and you’re correct. Since we are talking about building boxes it would naturally seem that perfectly parallel and perpendicular are two things that, you know, matter. So, can you elaborate on why ‘it does not matter’? That would be immensely helpful ~ Thanks Jason…
This will help me building a garage cabinet for my wife!.. thanks 🙏🏼
Have you used the Makita track saw and How it compares with Festool?
I love this. Thank you!
Holy shit, sponcerd by Harvey with a festools fanatic and the holy grail of festool behind him
You’d think festool would sponcer this.
Good job
What is the blade thickness of the TS55 cordless track saw?