# Getting straight cuts on MDF boards (no table saw)



## peps1

Hello guys, 

Want to knock up some MDF 12"x12"x12" module cubes for storing vinyl in.......akin to this: 










And was wondering the best way to cut down the board without a table saw. 

Was thinking clamping down a 2x1 as a fence and using a Jig saw......bad/dangerous practice?


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## fluffflinger

Rip a length off one of your mdf sheets and clamp down as a straight edge (guide) for a circular saw. No jigsaw I know of will give you anything like the accuracy of even a cheap circular saw using this method. Don't use a 2x1 as straight edge it's unlikely to be straight or resist flexing even if it it was straight in the 1st place.

Alternatively the B&Poo will cut to your dimensions for a nominal amount, actually I think you get a couple of cuts free.


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## Peter T

+1 for the circular saw.

Also get B & Q to do as many cuts as possible.

In the pics it looks like the edges have been rounded over with a router.

Good luck,


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## peps1

Well not owning a circular saw, that's not the answer I wanted!! :lol:


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## Steve Maskery

If you have just a jigsaw, buy some very good blades. I recommend the Bosch Precision ones. They are excellent. Cut close to your pencil line then finish with a hand plane. For a small project like that, that is a very viable methodology.
S


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## Nick Gibbs

Do you have a router? You could use that against a straight edge to produce what you need. Work out the offsets, and you could make a square template which you tape to the workpiece, having roughly shaped it with a jigsaw. Just remove the finest amount with the router.


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## peps1

Nick Gibbs":1djdsxje said:


> Do you have a router? You could use that against a straight edge to produce what you need. Work out the offsets, and you could make a square template which you tape to the workpiece, having roughly shaped it with a jigsaw. Just remove the finest amount with the router.



Good point, I should really have listed the tool I do have!!! 

Its a short list.....Bandsaw, plunge router, Jigsaw. 

The Router scares the hell out of me, only used it ones to cut some pick-up pockets in a guitar body.....what sort of bit would I need for using it to cut board (guess a bit is a cheaper option then buying a circular saw). 

Also like the idea of using the router, as Id like to build a little router table too!


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## Steve Maskery

Sooner or later you are going to have to get some hand tools!

S


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## peps1

Steve Maskery":tv2umbed said:


> Sooner or later you are going to have to get some hand tools!
> 
> S


But I have such soft delicate hands!!!  

But if it make you happy I'm looking at block plains now, and ordered a flush cut saw too! 
(as soon as iv built some storage, that will leave more room for tools!)


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## Benchwayze

peps1":3bfc54dp said:


> Steve Maskery":3bfc54dp said:
> 
> 
> 
> Sooner or later you are going to have to get some hand tools!
> 
> S
> 
> 
> 
> But I have such soft delicate hands!!!
> 
> But if it make you happy I'm looking at block plains now, and ordered a flush cut saw too!
> (as soon as iv built some storage, that will leave more room for tools!)
Click to expand...


See if you can find some soft, delicate hand-tools then! :mrgreen: 

Go to WoodMagazine online. Somewhere there was a video on making straight edge guides for use with a circular saw.
Alternatively, you could buy one of the plunge saws, instead of a circular saw. (This doesn't HAVE to be a Festool, but it helps if it is.) A plunge or track-saw is probably the most accurate way after a decent table-saw. 

I remember laying boards flat on 3 x 2 bearers, the floor, and cutting out panels with a tenon saw. That was when I was poorer but fitter than I am now! 

HTH


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## disco_monkey79

+1 for the circular saw & straight edge method. I appreciate you don;t own one, but it's a handy way of making neat cuts in sheet material.

I got mine cheap in the clearance sale from Argos (and I'm not afraid to admit it!) to cut our new worktops.

Just bear in mind what's on the other side of the board when cutting (sawhorses, your leg, the dog, etc etc)


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## Racers

Hi, Peps1

I made a load of them (10) for a mate from Birch Ply with solid backs.
I did have a table saw, spindle moulder, router etc.

You should be able to get away with a circular saw with a straight edge, router, sander.

Pete


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## Jacob

Or the improved straight edge known as a 'saw board'. Google 'saw board' there are dozens of offerings. 
Here is one http://www.popularmechanics.com/home/reviews/4283497


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## JakeS

Jacob":3gmdrzg5 said:


> Or the improved straight edge known as a 'saw board'.



Definitely worth doing. I suspect this is what some of the guys above were assuming everyone else was talking about!


I've done this now, and been perfectly happy with the results since. Before that I did the jigsaw-plus-cleanup-with-a-router a couple of times and the hand-saw-and-plane a few more times and they both work, they're just more hassle. I had grand plans to come up with some kind of sliding-on-poles clampable carriage for the jigsaw to ensure straight cuts, but threw it away 'cause the saw-board is just so much easier.

You can make the saw-board for your router as well, of course - just follow the same procedure, but when it comes to cutting the alignment edge of the saw-board, measure the distance from the edge of your router base to the bit, add 5-100mm and draw a line and jigsaw off, then clean it up with the router. In both cases try and use relatively thin material and low clamps to clamp it down with to avoid hitting parts of the saw/router as it goes past.



(And there's nothing necessarily wrong with being a bit scared of the router. The "I'm very aware that this thing could take my fingers down a few centimetres before I even notice" kind of scared is healthy and useful, it's the "quivering wreck" kind of scared that's dangerous!)


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