# Straight line ripping 14 foot long boards ... how?



## woodnthings (Jan 24, 2009)

I'm making a deck for a trailer that's 14 feet long. I have 10 boards from the saw mill that are "almost", straight but I need to cut 1/2" from the width. I want to straighten one edge and then rip them to 7" wide from 7 1/2". 

OR use the straightest edge and a rip guide for the circ saw.... :sad2:

I don't have a 14 ft straight edge, but I could piece one together from two 8 ft pieces.
I have a 10 ft straight edge.
I have a circular saw.
I have a job site table saw with a 24" fence.
I could attach the 10 ft straight rail to the 24" fence.

I have used the 10 ft straight edge carried along the fence, but the planks were only 7 ft long.
I have a chalk line to follow free hand, not my first choice.


Table saw with straight edge "carried" like this:










Any better ideas? :bangin:


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## Catpower (Jan 11, 2016)

Could go to a steel yard and get a 14 foot chunk (or just a whole stick of it mostly 20 feet) of 1 1/4x1 1/4x1/8 angle it would be straight and should be strong enough not to deflect when cutting


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## Catpower (Jan 11, 2016)

Or 1 inch sq tubing in 10 ga, it also would be pretty stiff


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## gmercer_48083 (Apr 9, 2016)

I would use a string line tacked on each end to indicate a straight line, then fasten 8' plywood or masonite segments onto the face using the string for reference, then use a circular saw against the plywood to cut the first straight edge. Once the first edge is cut you could use a guide on your circular saw to reference off of your straight edge to cut the other edge parallel, or your table saw. As a matter of fact...I have used corner bead for drywall doubled up then fastened to the face to provide a straight edge for a circular saw and it worked great.

If this is being used on a 14' non enclosed trailer, I would think you can bow the boards to be straight enough as you bolt them down using a jack or a fulcrum to force them to be straight enough.


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## DrRobert (Apr 27, 2015)

How about join two 8 foot lengths of plywood together. Make sure the edges are perfect 90's..


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## Terry Q (Jul 28, 2016)

I needed to do something similar a while back. Not sure it was the best solution, but it doesn’t seem to be any worse than other options offered.

I used a chalk line to mark the board. Rough cut it using circular saw. Clamped a string to the board as straight edge. Used a jack plane and eye to get a fairly straight edge.


In woodworking there is always more then one way to accomplish something.


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## John Smith_inFL (Jul 4, 2018)

are those boards freshly cut from green trees ??
if so, won't they shrink a considerable amount ?
when I redecked my 16x6 utility trailer, the fresh P/T
wood shrunk 2 whole inches total width during the hot summer.
then I put a filler strip on the edge. (that was over 20 years ago).
it is time to redeck again, and I know what to expect with the fresh
P/T lumber this time.
just something to consider.

.

.


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## woodnthings (Jan 24, 2009)

*That is true, however .....*

They are 1/2" too wide per board. I doubt if they will shrink that much, but I'm not screwing them down yet, if ever. They will be captured front and rear by SS angles and on the side by the stakes. They will just float for now.


I found some aluminum tubes 1 1/2" square, one is 10 ft long, the other is 6 ft long. That will give me 16 Ft of straight edge. I made an Oak center section about 12" long that slides into the tube. It's almost a perfect fit, but with a layer of painters tape it will be a snug fit. I'll assemble it tomorrow to see how straight it is. I can always back it up with an other straight section.


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## Tony B (Jul 30, 2008)

This is what I do for SLR. I used this idea about 30 years or more ago.

STRAIGHT LINE RIP JIG

I have several of these in various sizes. They rarely get used but when they do, they sure make life simple. I use them for straight line ripping bowed boards and sometimes for special occasions when a piece is too large for my angle/leg jig. 

Here goes…

Photo 1: Just a simple jig. Two pieces of MDF, plywood or whatever you have handy. 
The length should be determined by the job at hand. The width should be determined by the job at hand. The height is 2 fold. The height of the actual jug should be determined by the your Table Saw fence. The height from the table saw to the horizontal ‘wing’ should be just slightly higher than the thickness of the wood you will be cutting. 
The joint used is a dado to set the ‘wing’ into. It is glued and brad nailed in place. It can also be secured by counter sunk screws. 
Once the wing is glued and secured, it can be used immediately. No need to wait for it to dry.

Photo 2: Clamp the jig against your fence. 
I also write notes on the jig like how far from the jig to the blade, the height from the table to the wing, etc. It just makes life simpler. 

Photo 3: Set you’re your fence so that the edge of the jig is directly over the “outer edge” of the blade. This means that the left edge of your blade is flush with the jig. Record this width as explained in the previous step for fast and easy resetting in the future. 
Raise the blade so that it touches the jig and cuts into it just a tad. 

Photo 4: Turn you work piece upside down. With a sharp pencil, draw your ‘cut line’ using get a straight edge. Nail or otherwise secure a straight board to it perfectly even with your drawn line. 
What you have done is to make a false fence (jig) for your Table Saw and also a fence for your work piece (the straight board). 

Photo 5: Line up your pieces and Rock ‘N’ Roll.
Just push it through the blade like you normally would make a cut.


The last 2 photos shows me cutting an angle. 
For deck boards, I'm sure you wouldnt mind a few nail holes in it.


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## woodnthings (Jan 24, 2009)

*I have several but ......*

I would need one that's 14 ft long, at least. :sad2:


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## Tony B (Jul 30, 2008)

not necessarily. You only tack down the temporary fence to your boards. You ca get away with 2 6' pieces tacked down with a space in front and center
Once you make the jig, then tack a "fence" to you boards where you want the cut to be. Your temp fence goes on your boards. The MDF jig stays in place. Just draw a line on your board and tack some straight edges down. Then run them through

It's actually quicker than you think


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## woodnthings (Jan 24, 2009)

*Thanks, but that ain't gonna happen....*

I would need 28 feet of run for that setup and supporting a 14 ft board on both ends of the table saw just doesn't seem manageable. I'm gonna use a straight edge guide as I posted above and a circular saw. I may end up doing this myself, and I can run a circ saw without help....... :vs_OMG:
I will post photos on the day of the event.


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## hawkeye10 (Feb 18, 2015)

If it were my trailer I would use pressure treated deck boards. They will last for a long time. In years (77) I have bought several trailers and this is what I have done on all of them. I also like to come up a foot or so on three of the sides, plus a rear ramp.


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## Stevedore (Dec 28, 2011)

At my age & condition, I'd never be able to muscle 14 ft long boards across a table saw. (Nor could I get them into my basement shop!) I'd probably snap a chalk line along one edge, cut as accurately as I could close to the line, then finish it with a handheld power planer. Or, if the edge were straight enough to begin with, I might skip the saw part & plane the edge straight.

Then use a rip guide for the circular saw to do the other edge.


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## woodnthings (Jan 24, 2009)

*Update ......*

After assembling a 16 ft long aluminum straight edge, I ended up using a 3/4" X 1 1/2" steel bar about 12 ft long to use as a saw guide. 

I did have to move it twice for each pass, but no big deal.


Here's the issue. The base on the saw is greatest under the motor for maximum stability. You can't lower the blade fully because of the thickness of the saw guide, in this case 3/4" AND you can't clamp it down because the clamps end up in the way, but you can move them along as you go. So, the distance to set the guide over from the blade ended up at 4 1/4". The saw in the photo, a PC 6 1/2" would not work over the steel bar thickness. 


I needed one straight edge to start from to measure for my guide bar. I used the aluminum straight edge to establish a line and then a power planer to ease down to the line. The steel bar was heavy enough so it didn't move while I used a 18 V Milwaukee circ saw to cut the boards to width, about 7 1/8". I got 5 boards done before all 8 of my batteries were depleted.:sad2: I have 5 more to go ......


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## Scurvy (Apr 12, 2013)

Shoot, I wish I had seen this post before you got started, as I’ve been down this road. 

1) That aluminum tubing is expensive and not nearly stiff enough for anything other than light setup — any other piece of straight material, like a straight stick of wood, is about as reliable. 

2) I used an old drafting trick for straightedges that are too short: I made the cut to the extent of the straightedge, pause the cut, use a 2nd straightedge against the 1st edge to span forward, secure the 2nd straightedge, then slide/walk the 1st straightedge forward along the 2nd straightedge’s face so that it extends beyond the 2nd one. Rinse and repeat as needed. 

3) Some people use hot melt glue to temporarily secure the straightedges

4) “Shopnotes” has a DIY track saw/straightedge fabricated from a factory edge of 1X affixed to a strip of over-wide Masonite, whose excess edge gets trimmed off the way a track saw’s rubber edge is trimmed to size. This is very low profile, but the 1X could be 3/8” plywood or Masonite or anything that is thick enough to control the circ saw’s shoe. 2 of these tracks could be double-stick taped (or hot glued) to that aluminum reference tube to achieve the required 14’

5) I bet you were missing that TS-75!

6) Don’t forget to apply wood preservative to those cut edges or you will lose the benefit of the PT and you will soon develop rot. Leaving a gap between the boards is also a good practice so that the joints can dry. 


— Bradley


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## woodnthings (Jan 24, 2009)

*The job is almost done!*

The aluminum Bar was made from 3 pieces of tubing with a wood center block to stabilize it and a backer of another piece of aluminum all taped together with packing tape. It acted only as a means to draw a straight line. It was picked up slightly at the center and dropped like a chalk line where it became straight enough to draw my reference line.

At first I use a 1 1/2" X 3/4" thick steel bar as the saw guide which was located at saw base width from the desired cut and parallel to the reference line. At that time, I had a neighbor who could help locate the heavy bar. He worked at one end while I adjusted the opposite end. 

However, I finally ended up using a 10 ft piece of straight 3/8" plywood screwed down as the saw guide, because the saw's motor would clear the top of it while making the pass. Obviously, I needed to move it one time for each pass since it was too short. The steel bar was too heavy and awkward for one person to make the numerous cuts.

The final test will be to stack all the White Oak boards side by side to check the parallelism of the gaps. If need be, it will easier to trim them since the edges are "parallel" at least in theory .....


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## woodnthings (Jan 24, 2009)

*The final ripping method ....*

After trying several alternative guides and saws, I settled on this combination. I had a 10 ft X 3" piece of 3/8" plywood as the guide and my trusty PC 6 1/2" circular saw. White Oak even at 3/4" thick is tough stuff to rip, but a slow and even feed pressure worked. I did have to move the guide board which I screw right onto the plank ione time per cut to make a complete pass:


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## sancho57 (Oct 23, 2011)

Looks like Im a little late for this. But if it were me, Id find a freind who has a track saw. 

A track saw with some rails (you can join the rails together) is made for this sort of thing.

A easy thing to do.


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## woodnthings (Jan 24, 2009)

*Lol ......*



sancho57 said:


> Looks like Im a little late for this. But if it were me, Id find a freind who has a track saw.
> 
> A track saw with some rails (you can join the rails together) is made for this sort of thing.
> 
> A easy thing to do.



I have no friends that have anything close to the tools I have. I have some friends that like to play golf and pickle ball. They don't do any woodworking or other things that involve critical thinking or work. I did own a Festool TS75 and a 120" track but sold it because I never used it. This setup was not a PITA to create or to use and that's how it evolved to be the "system of choice" in this unique case. I also made a setup for straight lining 14 ft boards a few years back, but that has long been dis-assembled:




















My time machine is broken so I can't go back to that one. You just have to walk in the boots you wore sometimes, there's no other way if you are going to get there on the day you started. :vs_cool:


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## woodnthings (Jan 24, 2009)

*A few questions on this jig .....*

 


Why not just tack your guide boards to the right side of the board you will need a straight edge on the left side? You still need a straight line to tack to AND about 28 ft of "run" for 14 ft long boards, which I don't have in my upstairs shop. I ruled out the table saw right away, since I'm working outside and the boards were 14 ft long. My Bosch Job Site table saw may have worked, but it's not all that stable even in it's good portable site stand. When working with long or heavy material, in this case 14 ft White Oak I always try to move the saw, not the boards. 

Now that I have a board(s) with a straight edge, I will use them as a saw guide to saw the others to the necessary widths. I just thought of this as I was responding. I don't need to go back to the previous setup if the boards I straight lined are indeed "straight"...... :| Maybe I should have thought of this before. :surprise2: LOL.


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