# Best way to cut a wine barrel length wise



## nitro3421 (Dec 19, 2007)

I'm making a wine rack out of a wine barrel and i'm having a difficult time figuring out the best way to:

1.) Get a straight line on the curved barrel (I know it sounds easy but give it a try...
2.)Get the cleanest cut I can

As shown in the pictures, i've tacked a strip of OSB on and used a cut 4x4 with the contour of the barrel as a guide to make a "straight" line. It's not as straight as I want it to be.

I'm planning on using my skilsaw to make the cut, unless anyone has a better idea.

Suggestions on the best way to get a truly straight line and then the best way to make the cut would be greatly appreciated.

This picture shows the not-so-straight line i made using the jerry rigged system described above:









Here's a close up of the contoured 4x4 that I slid along the OSB to get a "straight" line:









Picture showing cuts at the top of the barrel already completed:


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## TomC (Oct 27, 2008)

How about snapping a chalk line?
Tom


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## woodnthings (Jan 24, 2009)

*You've got the right idea but..*

We need to drink all the wine first.:laughing:
You should cut with the length of the top sections so they won't all fall out in halves. You can use the attached strip as a guide for your saw if you account for the offset to the edge of the base to the blade, usually 1 1/2" or less. BUT I wouldn't cut through the metal banding with my new Circular saw blade...:thumbdown::no:. I would use a sabre saw/jig saw with a bimetal blade meant to cut metal or a handheld cut off grinder with a thin abrasive wheel. Those new counter rotating saws might be just the ticket? Rent one? When the banding is cut the whole barrel may want to come apart, so you will have to secure it with screws as you go. I donno? :blink: bill


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## nitro3421 (Dec 19, 2007)

TomC said:


> How about snapping a chalk line?
> Tom


This may work, however the heavy curve in the barrel's side makes things challenging. Good idea and worth a try. Thanks


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## nitro3421 (Dec 19, 2007)

woodnthings said:


> We need to drink all the wine first.:laughing:
> You should cut with the length of the top sections so they won't all fall out in halves. You can use the attached strip as a guide for your saw if you account for the offset to the edge of the base to the blade, usually 1 1/2" or less. BUT I wouldn't cut through the metal banding with my new Circular saw blade...:thumbdown::no:. I would use a sabre saw/jig saw with a bimetal blade meant to cut metal or a handheld cut off grinder with a thin abrasive wheel. Those new counter rotating saws might be just the ticket? Rent one? When the banding is cut the whole barrel may want to come apart, so you will have to secure it with screws as you go. I donno? :blink: bill


I might try this as well. I've got some crappy blades I could sacrifice, or I could try this:

http://www.homedepot.com/h_d1/N-5yc...splay?langId=-1&storeId=10051&catalogId=10053

It's meant for ferrous metals, does anyone know if this type of blade will do alright for wood as well?


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## rrbrown (Feb 15, 2009)

Bill your right this would be a good job for the Twin Cutter / Dual Saw. I need to find some barrels to cut so I can justify buying the Twin Cutter. :laughing:


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## frankp (Oct 29, 2007)

Am I misunderstanding this whole process? You want to cut around the "waist" of the barrel or along it's length in the direction the planks actually run? If you want to cut along the length, why not just cut at one of the seems, or better yet, just "split" it at a seem with a chisel? Around the waist, I could see there being issues but I think a chalk line would be easiest. Or perhaps a jig set up on a tablesaw like a cradle that the barrel sits in and then you just spin the barrel to cut through the side.


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## GeorgeC (Jul 30, 2008)

You want to cut the length, correct? That is what your picture looks like

The only thing that should need cuttings is the bands. Just be careful, as stated by woodsnthings, that everything does not start coming apart at that point. The only thing that should be needed to separate the staves is a chisel. or some other similar object. You probably will not even need that. I cannot think of any reason that adjacent staves would be stuck together.

The problem that I see is, what provision have you made to keep all of the staves together once the bands are cut. Maybe the barrel is made so that the ends keep all bound together?? It has been too long since I have seen a wooden barrel to remember. A couple of semi-curcular pieces of wood could be made to exactly fit the insides of the barrel. The staves would then be fixed to these to maintain integrity.

I think that the easiest way to cut the bands is with a metal cutting blade in the circular saw.

George


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## nitro3421 (Dec 19, 2007)

frankp said:


> Am I misunderstanding this whole process? You want to cut around the "waist" of the barrel or along it's length in the direction the planks actually run? If you want to cut along the length, why not just cut at one of the seems, or better yet, just "split" it at a seem with a chisel? Around the waist, I could see there being issues but I think a chalk line would be easiest. Or perhaps a jig set up on a tablesaw like a cradle that the barrel sits in and then you just spin the barrel to cut through the side.



I'm cutting parallel to the staves. I would "split" it but I want the end result to be an exact depth, which does not conveniently line up along the staves.


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## nitro3421 (Dec 19, 2007)

GeorgeC said:


> You want to cut the length, correct? That is what your picture looks like
> 
> The only thing that should need cuttings is the bands. Just be careful, as stated by woodsnthings, that everything does not start coming apart at that point. The only thing that should be needed to separate the staves is a chisel. or some other similar object. You probably will not even need that. I cannot think of any reason that adjacent staves would be stuck together.
> 
> ...



To keep all the staves together, I've already gone through and screwed each stave to the hoops. 

I'm thinking the metal cutting blade on the circular saw will be the way to go. It also seems like using the OSB as a direct guide for the skilsaw will be simple and effective.


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## gregL (Feb 1, 2009)

Mark your top and bottom points and use a laser line. Mark the laser line with a pencil or fine point felt tip pen for cut line. I have cut a number of barrels and this works. I made this barrell table around 1968. On this one i used a very thin strip of wood with a line down the center and then bent it along the area where I wanted the cut and clamped the ends. I scribed a half circle to fit the inside of the barrell in 2 places to help keep it from moving out of shape. Bands were fastened with ring shank nails before cutting staves.


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