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I thought I would take pictures of how I go about the task of squaring and slicing a split hunk of Spruce. I use my slider table to get a true edge for resawing if a board is a bit wacky. I would love to see how everyone else goes about this, so post up pics of your method(I am always looking for better methods ).

The simple table I built to support and keep the wood straight. Is a board with a guide bar attached to the base(good snug fit in the miter slot), a pin I can tap into one end of the wood that can be locked in place, and a block of wood with a framing plate that has a couple holes drilled in it so I can use screws to suck the wood against the framing plate.


I find the best angle to slice the wood on quarter, and aligned with the split. Then I secure it to the nailer end of the table.


Then I align the other end of the wood and secure it with the locking pin.

and then I cut the face.

Then I flip it on the cut face, align with the split, and make the cut for the base.


After I make those cuts I check to be sure the cuts are straight and square.


Then I check both ends to find how thick the billet can be and still yeild usable sets. Set my fence and slice to size. The off cuts are usually good bracing stock.


Then I set the fence for sawing soundboards and slice away.


Sticker the sets and dry as usual(generally I keep a fan running to keep the air moving).


For Spruce like this that is a little wetter I like to use a blade with few TPI(The blade I am using on this is 1.3 TPI) which really seems to work nice.

Peace,Rich

Nice set up Rich!

And, a great pictorial showing the process!

How long do you leave them sticker-ed before you dead pack?

Robert

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I also like those 1.3 TPI blades for resaw. Since I started using them, no more drift or cupping. It leaves some deep scratchs but it's worth it to get a straight resaw. They're cheep too. I never use my expensive resaw king carbide tip blade anymore.

Robert, With the fan going the wood in the middle of the stack will have a reading of 6% moisture in about 2-1/2 weeks(with the fan going it goes pretty fast). Generally I leave them stickered for quite a bit longer, because I only stack them when I need space or more sticks.

Peace,Rich

That's a great, simple sled Rich. Thanks for sharing that!
Cheers, Danny