Clamping The Workpiece; Support For Long Pieces; Cutting Picture Frames, Shadow Boxes And Other Four-Sided Projects; Cutting Trim Molding And Other Frames - DeWalt DW718 Instruction Manual

Keep both feet firmly on the floor and maintain proper
balance. As you move the miter arm left and right, follow
it and stand slightly to the side of the saw blade. Sight
through the guard louvers when following a pencil line.
CLAMPING THE WORKPIECE
i_, WARNING: Turn off tool and disconnect from power
source before attempting to move it, changing accesso-
ries or making any adjustments accept as written in laser
adjustment instructions.
WARNING: A workpiece that is clamped, balanced and
secure before a cut may become unbalanced after a cut
is completed. An unbalanced load may tip the saw or any-
thing the saw is attached to, such as a table or workbench.
When making a cut that may become unbalanced, prop-
erly support the workpiece and ensure the saw is firmly
bolted to a stable surface. Personal injury may occur.
i_ WARNING: The clamp foot must remain clamped above
the base of the saw whenever the clamp is used. Always
clamp the workpiece to the base of the saw-not to any
other part of the work area. Ensure the clamp foot is not
clamped on the edge of the base of the saw.
If you cannot secure the workpiece on the table and
against the fence by hand, (irregular shape, etc.) or your
hand would be less than 6" (152.4 mm) from the blade, a
clamp or other fixture must be used.
For best results use the DW7082 clamp made for use with
your saw. Another type of clamp may be supplied with
your DW718. To purchase the DW7082 contact your local
retailer or DEWALT service center.
Other aids such as spring clamps, bar clamps or C-clamps
may be appropriate for certain sizes and shapes of mate-
rial. Use care in selecting and placing these clamps. Take
time to make a dry run before making the cut. The left or
right fence will slide from side to side to aid in clamping.
TO INSTALL CLAMP
1. Insert it into the hole behind the fence. The clamp
should be facing toward the back of the miter saw. The
groove on the clamp rod should be fully inserted into
the base. Ensure this groove is fully inserted into the
base of the miter saw.
If the groove is visible, the clamp will not be secure.
2. Rotate the clamp 180° toward the front of the miter
saw.
3. Loosen the knob to adjust the clamp up or down, then
use the fine adjust knob to firmly clamp the work-
piece.
NOTE: Place the clamp on the opposite side of the
base when beveling. ALWAYS MAKE DRY RUNS
(UNPOWERED) BEFORE FINISH CUTS TO CHECK
THE PATH OF THE BLADE. ENSURE THE CLAMP
DOES NOT INTERFERE WITH THE ACTION OF THE
SAW OR GUARDS.
FIG. 14
FIG. 15
FIG. 16
_ WARNING: A workpiece that is clamped, balanced and
secure before a cut may become unbalanced after a cut
is completed. An unbalanced load may tip the saw or
anything the saw is attached to, such as a table or work-
bench. When making a cut that may become unbalanced,
properly support the workpiece and ensure the saw is
firmly bolted to a stable surface.
_ WARNING: The clamp foot must remain clamped above
the base of the saw whenever the clamp is used. Always
clamp the workpiece to the base of the saw-not to any
other part of the work area. Ensure the clamp foot is not
clamped on the edge of the base of the saw.
SUPPORT FOR LONG PIECES
i_ WARNING: Turn off tool and disconnect from power
source before attempting to move it, changing accesso-
ries or making any adjustments accept as written in laser
adjustment instructions.
ALWAYS SUPPORT LONG PIECES.
Never use another person as a substitute for a table
extension; as additional support for a workpiece that is lon-
ger or wider than the basic miter saw table or to help feed,
support or pull the workpiece.
For best results, use the DW7080 extension work support
to extend the table width of your saw. Available from your
dealer at extra cost. Support long workpieces using any
convenient means such as sawhorses or similar devices
to keep the ends from dropping.
CUTTING PICTURE FRAMES, SHADOW BOXES AND
OTHER FOUR-SIDED PROJECTS
To best understand how to make the items listed here,
we suggest that you try a few simple projects using scrap
wood until you develop a "FEEL" for your saw.
Your saw is the perfect tool for mitering corners like the one
shown in Figure 14. Sketch A in Figure 15 shows a joint
made by using the bevel adjustment to bevel the edges of
11
the two boards at 45 ° each to produce a 90° corner. For
this joint the miter arm was locked in the zero position and
the bevel adjustment was locked at 45 °. The wood was
positioned with the broad flat side against the table and
the narrow edge against the fence. The cut could also
be made by mitering right and left with the broad surface
against the fence.
CUTTING TRIM MOLDING AND OTHER FRAMES
Sketch B in Figure 14 shows a joint made by setting the
miter arm at 45 ° to miter the two boards to form a 90 °
corner. To make this type of joint, set the bevel adjustment
to zero and the miter arm to 45°. Once again, position the
wood with the broad flat side on the table and the narrow
edge against the fence.
The two sketches in Figure 11 are for four side objects
only.
As the number of sides changes, so do the miter and
bevel angles. The chart below gives the proper angles for
a variety of shapes.
(The chart assumes that all sides are of equal length.) For
a shape that is not shown in the chart, use the following
formula. 180° divided by the number of sides equals the
miter (if the material is cut vertically) or bevel angle (if the
material is cut laying flat).
- EXAMPLES -
NO. SIDES ANGLE MITER OR BEVEL
4 45 °
5 36 °
6 30 °
7 25.7 °
8 22.5 °
9 20 °
10 18°
CUTTING COMPOUND MITERS
A compound miter is a cut made using a miter angle and a
bevel angle at the same time. This is the type of cut used
to make frames or boxes with slanting sides like the one
shown in Figure 16.
NOTE: If the cutting angle varies from cut to cut, check that
the bevel clamp knob and the miter lock knob are securely
tightened. These knobs must be tightened after making
any changes in bevel or miter.
The chart shown on page 16 will assist you in selecting
the proper bevel and miter settings for common compound
miter cuts. To use the chart, select the desired angle "A"
(Figure 16) of your project and locate that angle on the
appropriate arc in the chart. From that point follow the chart
straight down to find the correct bevel angle and straight
across to find the correct miter angle.
Set your saw to the prescribed angles and make a few trial
cuts. Practice fitting the cut pieces together until you devel-
op a feel for this procedure and feel comfortable with it.