Question
How do I go about getting square material without a jointer or a thickness planer? I have a table saw, circular saw, and various cordless tools. Thanks in advance for any help.
Submitted via email
Answer
This is a great skill to have in your bag of tricks, as it will come into play on nearly every project. Here’s a video that walks through the process: Post Haste Project: How to Square a Board. It’s tough to do this without a jointer and planer. The key is to establish one square face on a jointer first, then use that face as a reference for each of the next steps where you will square up the remaining sides. Then you will simply cut the ends square on a miter saw, or if you don’t want to add one of those, you could easily do this on a table saw.
Without investing in a jointer or planer, you will have to start by choosing lumber that is at least flat to begin with. Then you can use a table saw and a sled as described in this article to establish a straight line on one edge, then flip that over and rip as normal on the table saw to square up the other edge and make it parallel to the first.
Hope this helps,
Paul
Related:
Post Haste Project: How to Square a Board
Jointing on the Table Saw
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