[mrsdunlap]

GO ahead and laugh, then answer my question pretty please? :smile:

I need to know the best and/or easiest way to accomplish this:

" 1x2 @ 11" with ends cut to point at 45 degrees"

I have a miter saw, but I used it for the first time yesterday. :surprise:

 

[MT Stringer]

Make an auxiliary base out of plywood. Attach a support piece at a 90 deg angle.
position the jig so the miter saw will cut the 45. Set your saw at 45, cut one piece, flip your workpiece and make the second cut. I just did this to make stakes for some yard art.

Hope this helps
Mike

 

[MT Stringer]

Here is my jig built from scraps out of the trash can.
I clamped it in place so it wouldn't move.

Damm iPad rotated the pic. Sorry about that.

 

[joed]

Turn the saw to 45º cut from the center line on the end of the board trimming the corner off. Flip the board over and cut other corner off at 45º.
No need for a jig. The will cut 45º on its own.

 

[mrsdunlap]

Thanks Joed. I tried that but it keeps being off ever so slightly. Would that just be due to inaccurate measuring? Or is there something else I should check?

 

[Ron6519]

Thanks Joed. I tried that but it keeps being off ever so slightly. Would that just be due to inaccurate measuring? Or is there something else I should check?

Try putting a mark in the middle of the board end and cut to that. That would be 3/4" for a 1 x 2 board.

 

[1acre]

Thanks Joed. I tried that but it keeps being off ever so slightly. Would that just be due to inaccurate measuring? Or is there something else I should check?

welcome to woodworking. I like to blame my tools, wood, wife and everything else, but 99.9% of the time it is operator error.

 

[mrsdunlap]

Well considering that I am a very inexperienced operator....

 

[joed]

Thanks Joed. I tried that but it keeps being off ever so slightly. Would that just be due to inaccurate measuring? Or is there something else I should check?

I'm not sure what part is off but if you put a center line on the board and cut to it then the point should be equal. ?the second cut is the important one to make it equal.
Also the stake will work fine even if one side is a bit bigger than the other one.

 

[mrsdunlap]

I'm working on the blue roof pieces on thishttp://www.ana-white.com/2015/10/free_plans/how-modular-stackable-dollhouse

Yes, it's the 2nd cut that is coming out wrong. The angled sides are not ending up the same length. I must not be marking the center accurately. Off to get a better ruler....

 

[1acre]

draw your lines using a square/protractor etc. once I draw my lines, i always mark with "X" on the sides that are to be cut away. It should be pretty simple, bring the miter saw down and make sure the kerf is on the correct side of the cut. the story of my life is making a couple cuts to get it as exact as possible - you can always take more off, but once you go to the other side of that line, it is game over.

the fast and quick way would be to clamp a stop onto your saw. once you get the pieces cut to the same length, it's a quick 2 cuts per side.

 

[joed]

The other option instead of a center line is to draw a square line across the board about half the width of the board up from the end. Then trim your angle so they both start at this line.

 

[SeniorSitizen]

the fast and quick way would be to clamp a stop onto your saw. once you get the pieces cut to the same length, it's a quick 2 cuts per side.

Yes Sir.
I would set the saw at 90° and a stop from the blade to the stop the required stake length. Swing the saw to 45 and cut. Flip the piece over and cut. Exact beginning length won't matter as long as there is waste.

 

[Msradell]

Put a stop on the table so you are sure that the piece is in the exact same place every time you put it down. Then with the song set at 45° you cut one side flip the board and cut another side. You know both cuts will be exactly the same because the board was in the exact same position relative to the other end.

 

[Mingledtrash]

First you have to get your miter skill up to level 10, then you unlock the power miter skill tree. :vs_no_no_no:

 

[mrsdunlap]

Haha! I messed around with it some more and it's getting closer.