Tool Basics?

[dromos]

Hiya.  

I'm in the process of building a cabinet and am getting relatively close to making my first cut.  However, I don't have much experience with woodworking.  

What are the best tools for doing most of the cutting?  Right now all I have is a circular saw and a router.  The design I am working from (Ultimate Arcade II) calls for some pretty specific angle cuts (ie. 20.1 degrees)...

How easy/possible is this going to be with a circular saw?

Any suggestions for making a steady, straight cut?  

Finally, what's the router best used for besides making the slot cut for the T-molding (if anything)?

Thanks all for your help!

-- Justin

[Tailgunner]

What are the best tools for doing most of the cutting?  Right now all I have is a circular saw and a router.  The design I am working from (Ultimate Arcade II) calls for some pretty specific angle cuts (ie. 20.1 degrees)...

How easy/possible is this going to be with a circular saw?

Your circular saw will do for the majority of the cuts, but a jigsaw would come in handy for some of them as well.

Any suggestions for making a steady, straight cut?  

Use a straightedge as a guide. Typically when cutting MDF or plywood I'll clamp a 8' level down on the sheet. Measure the distance between the blade and the edge of the the saw's base, and offset the level the same amount. You can then run the saw along the level and get a perfectly straight cut.

Finally, what's the router best used for besides making the slot cut for the T-molding (if anything)?

If your control panel will be MDF, you might need to recess your joysticks into the back of it. A plunge router is ideal for that, but you can drill a starter hole into the back of panel and do the job with a normal router.

[grafixmonkey]

I had problems with my jigsaw making uneven cuts...  the blade would bend out to the side a bit and not be cutting straight down at a right angle.  So, I only used it to start on the joystick holes, and then used the router and some hand files to finish them off.

If you have a plunge router, I bet you don't need a jigsaw at all unless you need to make a very narrow slot cut and keep both sides of the wood.

Power drill is nice to have.  If you have a circular saw and a router I bet you already have one, but thought I'd mention it for completeness.

I used my Dremel a lot.  It was great for shaving down tricky angles until the pieces fit perfectly.  Even began leaving extra wood when I cut with the other tools, just so I could shave it to perfection with the dremel.  (not very good at accurate cuts sometimes.)

I used a square and a level, to help me keep right angles at 90 degrees, and keep everything vertical and horizontal that was supposed to be.

The BEST tool I had by far was the table saw...   but I considered myself fortunate to have access to it, because my parents really built up their tool collection and let me mooch off of it.  It made very precise angle cuts, and can double as a slot cutter, router, drill press, and probably some things I don't know about.  If you know anyone who has one, see if you can convince them to let you use it.




Oh yeah, and use the 'quote' tag from the Add YABBC tags: row of buttons.  Bottom row, second from right.  like this:

Thanks all for your help!

-- Justin

It makes quotes happy!  

[TalkingOctopus]

Use a circular saw and guide whenever possible.  Use a jigsaw for everything else.

I used the jig saw to make the coindoor hole, speaker holes, fan holes and the curved part of my cab sides.  I went slow with the jigsaw, and used a blade with alot of teeth.  I would not recommend using a jigsaw for cutting lexan or lucite ect...

[Tailgunner]

Thanks for the tip, I started with "reply with quote" and then decided to answer the questions seperately. Typically when doing so I use the italics for the quoted sections, but at 3 AM I wasn't too worried about it.

My biggest use for the jigsaw (besides curved cuts) is finishing a cut started with the circular saw. Sometimes you can't complete a cut without cutting into a piece that you need for something else. In such cases I'll cut as far as possible with the circular saw, and finish the last little bit with my jigsaw.

Blade wandering is symptomatic of a few things. Usually it's using the wrong blade for the job or cutting too fast through the material. I'm a big fan of Bosch jigsaw blades, as they make different blades for everything imaginable.  With the proper blade and a steady hand, I've made curved cuts through 6" thick wooden beams and didn't have blade wandering problems.

Butch...