BillFitzmaurice.info

Well, after ??? long years I have finally made a start.

Created lots of sawdust, but haven't cut one panel yet!!!
However I have made a 2400mm long saw guide and four "W" clamps.
The saw guide is absolutely brilliant. First time I've been able to cut straight cuts in my life!!!!!
Anyone contemplating a build with just a circular saw, MUST make one of these.
There are plenty of examples of how to make and use one in You Tube. I must apologise to all the members still using the ancient technique of measuring in feet and inches , but throughout this thread I will exclusively be talking in millimetres except to tell you that my T39s will be 27" wide internally. That's 686mm in real terms.

Tomorrow I start to rip the panels off my sheets.

Nordo wrote: I must apologise to all the members still using the ancient technique of measuring in feet and inches , but throughout this thread I will exclusively be talking in millimetres

Elitist europeans

Nordo wrote: I must apologise to all the members still using the ancient technique of measuring in feet and inches , but throughout this thread I will exclusively be talking in millimetres except to tell you that my T39s will be 27" wide internally. That's 686mm in real terms.

Hell, anybody can divide by ten. Takes a real pro to deal in quarters, eighths, sixteenths.

Check the history books. Napoleon lost at Waterloo. The metric system is a French plot to accomplish what he failed at, world conquest, one tape measure at a time. America remains the last bastion of the freedom to use a system of measurement that makes absolutely no sense whatsoever.

There are two types of countries in this world:

Those that use the metric system and those that have been to the Moon!

CoronaOperator wrote:There are two types of countries in this world:

Those that use the metric system and those that have been to the Moon!

If you must split up your subs, try to keep them at least three rods apart.....

David Raehn wrote:If you must split up your subs, try to keep them at least three rods apart.....

Yep, that's just about right....

Bill Fitzmaurice wrote:Check the history books. Napoleon lost at Waterloo. The metric system is a French plot to accomplish what he failed at, world conquest, one tape measure at a time. America remains the last bastion of the freedom to use a system of measurement that makes absolutely no sense whatsoever.

'MERICA! *fires off m-16 off onto the horizon*

I think this whole metric system thing could come in handy. The next time somebody asks how many 18s are in my subs, I'm going to tell them that there's just one 30. They don't need to know that it's 30 centimeters and I won't have to try to explain horns and sensitivity etc.

'Carn the Aussies

I love the metric vs. imperial banter. One of you had a very valid point, regarding division utilising fractions eg 1/16, 1/8, 1/4, 1/2 . . . 1/32 etc. It is my understanding that the 'base 10' system was developed to make life easier....

I propose that the Imperial system is actually the "Elite" unit of measure

I think evolution into man with 10 finger & toes is no coincidence

Wow!!!
So many wonderful responses.
I'd like to thank you all for your encouragement and advice on my first project.

Actually for some reason I haven't been getting email notifications of responses.
I'm not too sure if I've fixed that issue or not.

Today (Monday) I've finally managed to spend another hour on my T39s.
I have ripped 686mm wide strips off my four sheets of ply.
Not worth taking a photo, but I did a couple of things worth noting.

As I am using a 2400mm long saw guide to rip strips off 2400 x 1200 sheets, I measured and marked the 686mm at each end of the sheet to be ripped, and also at quarter points (can't get away from fractions ). I used a square when measuring the intermediate measurements to make sure all my measurements were true.
I also clamped each end of my guide to the sheet, then added a screw fixing at third points along the guide to make sure that I didn't push the guide off the straight when doing my cut.
Maybe I'm over cautious, but these details take very little time and they give me a bit more confidence with my cutting.

Next I'll be cutting the internal panels and front and rear pieces from the 686 wide strips I have cut from the 2400 long sheets.

To do these smaller cuts, I will be cutting my wonderful 2400 long saw guide into two or three smaller guides.
I also have a plan on how to cut the angled cuts using the same saw guides.

I feel somewhat privileged to have been brought up learning both ways of measuring to a point where I can flip between the two without thinking.

I think these helped:



Good luck on your build, man.

personnally i've also a double scale ribbon-ruler...nice tool 5$ on the bay...i don't need to deal with the 2,54 factor and my calculator anymore !

OK.
I've done a bit more cutting.
I have finished all the "rough" cutting of the front, back and internal panels.
I have also cut the sides.

A couple of tricks I've picked up already which might help first timers, like myself.

1. If using a circular saw, you MUST use a saw guide (or something similar).
I've previous built projects without a saw guide, and honestly, you are wasting your time without a saw guide. Simple to build and use.

2. When measuring and marking, use a fine tipped pen. I'm using a pen called a "Sharpie Pen". The very fine tip makes it easy to mark the timber on the exact spot against the tape/ruler. And then the pen also leaves a very fine line when drawing your cut line. I am also using a large square when marking a line to cut across a sheet (after I have ripped one side which becomes my reference straight edge).

3. When drawing a line against a straight edge, hold the pen at the same angle for the full length. This ensures that your line is truly following the straight edge.

4. When marking the width of a panel before cutting, mark in at least three spots (each end and in the middle). When lining up your saw guide with the marks, you can easily tell if one of the measurements is incorrect. I've mentioned this tip because it saved me from making an incorrect cut on one of the sides. Also, remember which side of the saw guide is the panel you're making. The saw guide should be sitting/clamped to the panel with the saw guide covering half the width of your marked line or spots.

5. And the tips that have been mentioned many times :- take your time, measure at least twice, and when you have the saw in your hand, hesitate and re-think everything before actually cutting.