Porter Cable 3812 Manuel D'instructions page 17

Ripping is cutting lengthwise through a board (Fig. 35).
NOTE: Choose a workpiece that is seasoned, dry, and
flat. Use the rip fence (A) to position and guide the
workpiece with one edge of the work riding against the
rip fence and the flat side of the board on the table.
Always use the saw blade guard. The
guard has anti-kickback fingers and a splitter to
prevent the wood kerf binding the blade. Replace or
sharpen the anti-kickback devices when the points
become dull.
Always use a rip fence for ripping
operations. NEVER perform a ripping operation free-
hand.
1. Start the motor and advance the work, holding it
down and against the fence. Never stand in the line
of the saw cut when ripping. When the rip width is 6"
or wider, hold the work with both hands and push it
along the fence and into the saw blade (Fig. 35). Feed
the work through the saw blade with the right hand.
Use the left hand to guide the workpiece. Do not feed
the workpiece with the left hand. After the workpiece
is beyond the saw blade and anti-kickback fingers,
remove your hands from the work.
2. The workpiece will either stay on the table, tilt up
slightly and be caught by the end of the rear guard,
or will slide off the table to the floor. Alternately, you
can continue the feed to the end of the table, after
which you will lift the work is and bring it along the
outside edge of the fence. Leave the cut-off stock
on the table, do not touch it until the saw blade has
stopped, unless it is a large piece, allowing safe
removal. When ripping boards longer than three feet,
use a work support at the rear of the saw to keep the
workpiece from falling off the saw table.
3. If the ripped work is less than 6" wide, use a push
stick to complete the feed (Fig. 36). You can make
a push stick from scrap material as explained in the
section "CONSTRUCTING A PUSH STICK."
When the piece is too narrow for a push
stick to be effective - and if the workpiece is short
enough - use a push-board. When ripping material
under 2" wide, ordinary push sticks can interfere with
the blade guard.
Add the width of the pushboard to the width of the rip
fence setting. A flat pushboard can be constructed as
shown in Fig. 47. Use it as shown in Fig. 48.
NOTE: The guard was removed in these photos for
clarity. ALWAYS USE THE GUARD.
NOTE: Some special operations (when using the
moulding cutterhead) require the use of a push-stick
and the addition of an auxiliary wood facing to the fence,
as explained in the section "USING AUXILIARY WOOD
FACING".
A
Fig. 38
17
Fig. 35
Fig. 36
Fig. 37