whether you're edge gluing several narrow boards together to make up a wider panel or you're building something like maybe a window casing you need straight boards the best tool for that job is what we call a jointer here in the united states we call it that because one of its main functions is to prepare edge joints but what if you don't have a jointer available there are ways to straighten the edge with a router table or a table saw but they usually involve a special jig today i'll show you a fast and easy way to joint an edge with no special jig you'll only need a table saw and a scrap of plywood things you probably have in your shop or on the job site so let's start with the plywood it doesn't have to be a large piece this one's about six inches wide but really three or four inches would be enough and it's about three feet long it doesn't even have to be plywood it can be mdf or melamine or particle board any sheet good what you do need is one factory cut edge so you know that at least that edge is straight because unlike solid wood manufactured cheat goods are relatively stable each edge is much more likely to remain straight after it's cut at the mill then a solid board's edge will that's why we're using a piece of plywood to straighten our solid board run that factory edge against the table saw fence and skim the other edge now you know that both edges are straight next bump the fence over just a little bit you want an amount that's equal to the thickness of your saw blade's kerf it's usually an eighth of an inch or a little less if you're using a thin kerf blade i recommend just cutting a little bit on the end of the plywood and then making small adjustments to your fence until the side of the tooth is cutting flush with the edge of your plywood once you have that position continue to skim the edge for about two feet then stop and turn off the saw now without moving the fence flip the board end for end and slide it back between the fence and the blade so that the point that remains on the edge is as close to the riving knife as possible clamp it down and you're ready to joint your board this one has a little bit of a concave edge i'm going to run that edge against the edge of my plywood making sure i maintain contact throughout the cut it should only take one or two passes and the edge should be nice and straight you can now run that newly straightened edge against your table saw's fence and rip the opposite edge straight and parallel to the first one keep in mind that you should straighten the concave or hollow edge of the board first if a board has one hollow edge the opposite edge is probably crowned a crowned edge will rock as you run it through the saw a hollow edge will always give you two points of contact so you can make a stable cut that's why you joint the hollow edge then you use it as a reference on your rip fence to rip away the crowned edge a few weeks ago we featured the mpower sbs sharpening system in our cool tools video series a lot of our viewers were really excited about it so i talked to empower into giving us a temporary discount code it's stumpy 40 stumpy 4-0 all caps i'm going to put it below the video there's also a link there that you have to use and that will save you forty dollars which is quite a bit off the purchase price it's only good for one week so use the link in the code below the video while you can if you didn't see that cool tools video segment here's a quick review the mpower sbs sharpening station is an idea that was four years in the making designed to provide everything you need right in one place so you can sharpen and strap your tools quickly and get right back to work it begins with three diamond plates there's 300 600 and 1200 grit after sharpening you pop back on the magnetic stropping plates which are color coded to accept three levels of honing compound including 1800 2500 and 5000 when your tools razor sharp everything including the compound sticks the lapping fluid it all goes back in the case you can even add a little honing jig in there if you wanted to it's really a great idea i like the simplicity of it no more hunting around the shop for what you need it is all in one place in fact i think it'll be just the thing to take with me when i travel i like to carve when i'm on the road i've made plenty of videos about diamond stones in the past there are a lot of good diamond systems out there and i'm not saying you should toss the ones that i've recommended before and buy this one but if you're looking for a new system or a second one for working outside the shop the mpower sbs system is something you should at least take a look at i'll link to it below this video
