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

stand slightly to the side of the saw blade. Sight through
the guard louvers when following a pencil line.

CLAMPING THE WORKPIECE

Turn Off and Unplug 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" 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 retail-
er or D WALT service center.
E
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 degrees 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 workpiece.
NOTE: Place the clamp on the opposite side of the base
when beveling. ALWAYS MAKE DRY RUNS (UNPOW-
ERED) BEFORE FINISH CUTS TO CHECK THE PATH
OF THE BLADE. ENSURE THE CLAMP DOES NOT
INTERFERE WITH THE ACTION OF THE SAW OR
GUARDS.
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

Turn Off and Unplug Saw.
ALWAYS SUPPORT LONG PIECES.
Never use another person as a substitute for a table
extension; as additional support for a workpiece that is
longer or wider than the basic miter saw table or to help
feed, support or pull the workpiece.
FIG. 14
FIG. 16
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
the two boards at 45 degrees each to produce a 90 degree
corner. For this joint the miter arm was locked in the zero
position and the bevel adjustment was locked at 45
degrees. 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 degrees to miter the two boards to form a
90 degree corner. To make this type of joint, set the bevel
adjustment to zero and the miter arm to 45 degrees. 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 vari-
ety 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
10
formula. 180 degrees divided by the number of sides
FIG. 15
equals the miter (if the material is cut vertically) or bevel
A
angle (if the material is cut laying flat).
NO. SIDES
4
B
5
6
7
8
9
10

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
ANGLE "A" 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 secure-
ly tightened. These knobs must be tightened after making
any changes in bevel or miter.
The chart shown on page 14 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.
Example: To make a 4 sided box with 26 degree exterior
angles (Angle A, Figure 15), use the upper right arc. Find
26° on the arc scale. Follow the horizontal intersecting line
to either side to get miter angle setting on saw (42°).
Likewise, follow the vertical intersecting line to the top or
bottom to get the bevel angle setting on the saw (18°).
Always try cuts on a few scrap pieces of wood to verify
settings on saw.
CUTTING BASE MOLDING
ALWAYS MAKE A DRY RUN WITHOUT POWER
BEFORE MAKING ANY CUTS.
Straight 90 degree cuts:
Position the wood against the fence and hold it in place
as shown in Figure 11. Turn on the saw, allow the blade
to reach full speed and lower the arm smoothly through
the cut.
CUTTING BASE MOLDING UP TO 6.5" (165MM) HIGH
VERTICALLY AGAINST THE FENCE
Position material as shown in Figure 11.
All cuts made with the back of the molding against the
fence and bottom of the molding against the base.
- EXAMPLES -
ANGLE MITER OR BEVEL
45°
36°
30°
25.7°
22.5°
20°
18°