Kreg Circle Saw Straight Edge Guide
George VondriskaDescription
It’s common to use a circular saw to cut sheet goods down to a manageable size. The challenge can be getting those cuts straight. In this video, George Vondriska demonstrates how Kreg Straight Edge Guides can help. Their adjustable aluminum straightedges provide a perfectly straight path that guides your circle saw for an even cut every time.
Capacity
There are two versions of the Kreg Straight Edge Guide. The classic Straight Edge Guide spans material up to four feet, while the Straight Edge Guide XL spans material up to eight feet. Two-foot extensions are also available that allow you to extend the guides to the length you need.
Integrated Clamp Design
Toss your clamps aside! Both Kreg Straight Edge Guides feature an integrated, low-profile clamp system. With their integrated clamp design, nothing will get in the way of your circular saw as you’re making the cut.
Easy Alignment
Kreg Straight Edge Guides also feature a clever cut alignment system. Align the indicator arms with the layout lines on your material, push them out of the way, and accurately make your cut.
Versatility
The Straight Edge Guide isn’t limited to use with just your circular saw, but can also be used with a router to make dadoes or grooves, or with a jig saw.
Advanced Options
Kreg has a wide variety of solutions for accurately cutting material to size. Check out their Adaptive Cutting System that uses a track and track saw, along with a task-specific bench to make accurate and repetitive cutting a breeze.
More Info
For more information on the Kreg Straight Edge Guide or Straight Edge Guide XL, visit their website.
When you're working with sheet goods and you need to cut 'em down in order to use 'em in your projects, or buck 'em down to a smaller size, doing that freehand with a circ saw, and getting a good, straight cut can be very challenging. So that's the benefit of the Straight Edge Guides from Kreg. Couple of things going on. This one is long enough to allow us to rip an eight foot sheet, this one to cross cut across four feet, common sheet dimensions, four by eight. We can also add that extension to further increase the capacity of this unit and give us more dimension. Now, cool things going on here. When we put this on, we need to know where it's gonna cut. And the way that that nut gets cracked, the way that that problem gets solved is with these guides right here. So in your world, one of the things you're gonna do is set this up so that the amount that this guide projects indicates a distance from the edge of your sole on the saw to where the blade lives. Once you do that, then there's a stop block so that every time we project, we come out to the same amount. This is a stop on this end that's adjustable, depending on the width of what we're working with. On this end, we're spring-loaded. And that, combined with the stop is what's gonna hold us tight on the sheet. So it's cool, they're low profile to make sure that they don't interfere with your saw as you're making the cut. Here's how this all comes together. We're gonna push the guides out to the stop-block. And then, bring the stop back so we know we can span the sheet. And then, use those guides aligned with the pencil line. There. Same thing on this end. Now here, what I'm gonna do is, I'm gonna pull and push against that stop to get it against the edge of my sheet. At the same time, I'm looking at my alignment here. That looks happy. Double-check on that end. Make a small adjustment. And then last step, we wanna push those guides outta the way, make sure your saw blade doesn't hit 'em. So the nice thing with those guides is it gives you a preset line of cut indicator. It shows you where the saw blade is gonna be so that when we put the guide on, the straight edge guide, we can do that with predictability, and make sure we're cutting accurately. It's a great way to get your sheet stock cut down to size, and get a nice straight edge for your projects.
I see how this guide maybe easier to use and some positive aspects of this item, but what are the negative concerns?
I just don't see those alignment extensions surviving in my shop very long.
Although it appears to work really well on the 4 foot length I find that on an 8 foot length of the center of the guide will bow from the pressure of the saw blade may be up to an entire blade with so you’re not getting a perfect straight hitch. Supplemental bracing is often used. The question is will this Craig straight edge
Big change from the older version. No more cradle for the circular saw, no more edge for it to cut into. One question or issue I would point out is that if you don't have both guides are not set same, your end cut is not going to be squared off properly. Going by your Cutting Plywood for Accuracy that uses the old Kreg Track.