# Plunge cut with an angle



## Ivegotwood69 (Mar 13, 2019)

I want to cut a slot in piece of alder so I can join a slanted piece sticking out of it, but I don't want to go all the way through. Is it safe to do a plunge cut on a table saw with an angled blade?


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## woodnthings (Jan 24, 2009)

*Nope!*

What would you plunge, the blade up from the bottom holding the work piece secure OR drop the workpiece onto a spinning blade at a specific angle? The latter would be very unsafe, the former may work, but you better have it held down real well. I've done some risky things on the table saw and I would consider this like one of those, doable but risky. :wink:


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## mmwood_1 (Oct 24, 2007)

Nothing is SAFE in and of itself, especially in the wood shop. It can be done safely, if you use proper methods and PAY ATTENTION. But I don't know you and how you work and that means I am not going to be the person to tell you to go ahead and do this. I expect that at least a few others will be of a similar mind.


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## Tool Agnostic (Aug 13, 2017)

What is the angle? How deep is the slot? How wide is the slot?

Is there a reason why you cannot use an angle jig with a plunge router? That approach seems much safer to me, assuming that the answers to the above questions work out.


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## danrush (Oct 16, 2017)

Sounds like a biscuit joiner might be the right tool. Maybe a plunge cut track saw.


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## GeorgeC (Jul 30, 2008)

Having the blade at an angle means the "plunge" cannot be straight down.


My answer on this is to find another way to do the cut.


George


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## FrankC (Aug 24, 2012)

Depends if the slot is with or across the grain, if it is across the grain, if possible, I would make a cradle to hold the board at an angle and use my miter saw to make the plunge cut straight down.


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## epicfail48 (Mar 27, 2014)

Is it safe? Not particularly as has been mentioned, but it is doable. Honestly though, if you have concerns about it being safe it's probably best to find another method. It sounds a little harsh but asking is it safe is a bit like walking into a 5 star restaurant and asking for the prices; if you have to ask...

Making the plunge cut at an angle isn't particularly hard, the difficult part is getting the workpiece secured in a way to keep it from shifting under the forces and becoming a very large projectile. Again, doable, but not something I'll be recommending


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## NoThankyou (Mar 21, 2018)

I don't know if this would suffice but it is based upon an observation and experience.

I needed a zero clearance insert but at 45°. I put the blank in the saw. I clamped a 2x4 over the blank to hold it in place. Turned the saw on and slowly raise d the blade through the blank and into the 2x4. I have a ZC at 45°. There was nothing unusual, no smoke during the cut.

All I can say is a big:

*DUNNO*


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## woodnthings (Jan 24, 2009)

*Is it really a "plunge"......*

When the blade is raised into the work from below the table surface, just like making a zero clearance insert, all that needs to happen is that the workpiece CAN NOT move. :|
Having made a few inserts this way, I know I can do it, but depending on the size and shape of the intended workpiece, there may be issues with someone who has never done this before. That's why the hesitation in giving a direct answer, Yes or No, so you get "doable, but risky" from me.

:vs_cool:


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## FrankC (Aug 24, 2012)

The blade on both a table saw and miter saw, no matter the angle, travel in the same plane because they are moving in an arc from a fixed pivot, it is just a matter of establishing a method of making the cut you are comfortable with.


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## Ivegotwood69 (Mar 13, 2019)

*Figured it out*

Thanks everyone for your input! I ended up just routing the slot straight, and I'm planning on cutting the insert at an angle. Much more doable and straight forward. The piece is only about 13 inches long by 8 inches wide, and I don't have any feather boards, so getting it clamped in a way I was comfortable with was proving to be a little tricky. The insert is going in with perpendicular grain, so I don't think I'll be losing enough thickness for it to break on me.


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## Tool Agnostic (Aug 13, 2017)

Although I have done the "clamp it securely and raise the blade into it" technique before, I would not recommend it to anyone else for the same reasons as my friends above - safety is questionable. 

-> Just because "x" of us have done it without injury, there is no guarantee that it will work out safely for whoever tries to be "x+1". 

My objection to using a saw with a circular blade (table saw, miter saw, plunge saw, etc.) is the shape of the resulting non-through slot due to the curved blade. Perhaps it is not a concern for Cody (@Ivegotwood69). It would be a concern for me. 

Another concern with miter and plunge saws is that they will require multiple cuts to achieve a shelf-width slot. That compounds the difficulty and the risk. I have never seen one of those saws with a dado-type blade. 

That's why I suggested a plunge router, provided the angle and depth can be supported. With a router, Cody will need an angle jig of some kind. In addition, he will need to square up the corners, but the non-through slot should be perfect. Again, without knowing the angle and slot depth, it is hard to know whether a router will work.


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## FrankC (Aug 24, 2012)

Ivegotwood69 said:


> Thanks everyone for your input! I ended up just routing the slot straight, and I'm planning on cutting the insert at an angle. Much more doable and straight forward. The piece is only about 13 inches long by 8 inches wide, and I don't have any feather boards, so getting it clamped in a way I was comfortable with was proving to be a little tricky. The insert is going in with perpendicular grain, so I don't think I'll be losing enough thickness for it to break on me.


Glad you got it figured out, your method should work just fine.


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