Straight line rip saw

A cheaper alternative may be a track feeder on standard table saw.
My buddy has an older one and it's massive. I'm sure they come up in auctions. I had a large mill saw some 14' Cypress boards on their straight line machine a while back and they were not very straight. I made my own from a RAS with a 28 ft long table and a 20 ft long fence. It worked great. http://www.woodworkingtalk.com/f2/evil-machine-28461/

That sort of commercial machine is not what most of us here use or have access to ...FYI.

"Evil Machine"

LOL!

I'll never live it down, will I? :no:

Nope

:no::laughing: you started it pal......:laughing:

woodnthings said:

That sort of commercial machine is not what most of us here use or have access to ...FYI.

Click to expand...

When I worked at a shop that did 3 to 4 kitchens per day - That sort of thing was 'somewhat' useful...

Assuming that you got a 'good' machine that can reliably crank out the size you want with ease. Does NO good if the thing is not accurate. These machines are for mass production and when doing something like 'doorstock' on them - A mere 'sixteenth' will MATTER a LOT when ripping your stock.

In my exerience - shops that use these do not worry so much about planing the edges afterwards... :no:

They aint so much worried about stuff like 'accuracy'.

Why do you think you need one? Are you a production shop [owner]. If you're just a small shop a Festool with the long track will get you straight line cutting for a reasonable cost. A lot slower than a production machine.

As a part time business/hobby I started building and selling bird houses for wood ducks. Over 1200 sold in the last 4 months. A perfect edge is not necessary but real close would be nice. I would like to straight line saw a full 8 foot board and eliminate the jointer. I am no expert cabinet maker and have lots to learn. My one man shop is for sure a production set up.

consider this

An old Foley Belsaw or a Woodmaster has a gang rip assessory that will cut your board to size. http://woodmastertools.com/save_big_now

Much less than $8000 ! under $2000 for the 18" wide.

I get lumber from a Frank Paxton outlet. I have to special order hardwood that isn't straight line ripped. If you want a really good straight line rip saw, Mattison Machine Works has the best reputation for that machine. The company hasn't been in business since 1971 but there are two straight line saws on ebay right now.

According to vintagemachinery.org replacement parts are available for Mattison equipment from a company called Bourn & Koch.

Buy lumber with one edge ripped and then buy a large table saw with a stock feeder and start shoving lumber through it.

I doubt you have the needed power available for a real SLR.

The power requirements are big for the straight line saw. Most I see have 15 HP motors which would require me to purchase a phase converter. A stock feeder on my table saw would be great if I could figure out how to push the board straight without the use of a fence.

can't do that

need the fence! Why don't you want the fence? Did you see the Woodmaster I posted? perfect for your application. find a used one if possible, everyone loves theirs, so none are for sale...

Why would you not use the fence? What is the price difference in buying s4s and the lumber you currently use, and how long would it take to break even after purchasing a straight line rip saw?

It costs me about .10 a bf to order lumber with one edge ripped. There is your straight edge to work off of.

You want real fast, get a gang rip saw.

I order 8000 BF of White cedar at a time from a small mill in northern MI. They cut the trees, rough saw and deliver it green. I then sticker and air dry the product. After it dries I could deliver it to a local wood shop to have it straight lined but that is a lot of handling. I am considering having it done but I would rather saw it myself.

That's a real good reason. Used would probably be the best for your situation.
Do you have enough power to run a 10-15HP motor? Even if you can convert the single phase to 3 phase you still need the current the motor will draw. Especially the start up current which can spike 3-6X more than full running current.

Wonder if you could convert it to a gasoline motor and run it that way?

I have 220 volts in my barn. Not sure if a phase converter would be efficient in that application. Not sure if It could handle the spike you mention, It is definitely something to look into. Thanks for the info.

any comment?

woodnthings said:

need the fence! Why don't you want the fence? Did you see the Woodmaster I posted? perfect for your application. find a used one if possible, everyone loves theirs, so none are for sale...

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Did you see how well this works?
http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_detailpage&v=Cx2mnQd606g#t=225s

Why are you still thinking about huge 3 phase machines when this will do...I don't get it.

I looks to me that machine would require a straight edge to start with. Am I wrong? What keeps the board feeding straight? As you know the straight line rip saws have a conveyor track system that guides the board straight, If a straight edge is not needed the machine would be the ticket,
Thanks

gpeck said:

I looks to me that machine would require a straight edge to start with. Am I wrong? What keeps the board feeding straight? As you know the straight line rip saws have a conveyor track system that guides the board straight, If a straight edge is not needed the machine would be the ticket,
Thanks

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A staight line rip saw has a fence but it's more for aiming the board into the conveyer. Once the conveyer has hold of the board you could take the fence off. The conveyer will pull the board through in a straight line. If it was operated off the fence it wouldn't staighten the wood any more than using a table saw.