Miter Saw
This machine is working fine. Managers, click here for the maintenance log.
Unfinished SOP
This procedure is unfinished! Any instructions in here may be incomplete or incorrect.
Table of Contents
About this Machine
This machine is good for chopping up long pieces of material like pipes and boards. It’s also able to make precise angled cuts on the ends of that material. Used wisely, this can be used to make nice-looking frames and boxes.
Useful Links
- manufacturer website
- You can find the english manual here.
- You can find the full manual here.
Machine Safety
This is a big spinning saw. It can easily cut off a finger or throw metal chips into people’s eyes (even if you aren’t cutting metal), or grab loose things.
- Always wear safety glasses when working with or around this machine.
- Your reading glasses are not safety glasses!
- Always keeps your hands away from the blade while using this machine.
- Always tie back or tuck in long hair, jewelry, long sleeves, et cetera that could get caught in the blade.
- Never wear gloves while operating this machine or any other spinning power tool
- Never put any part of your body in the path of the blade.
- Never hold back, tie back, or otherwise disable the grey plastic guard that covers the blade.
- Never leave the machine plugged in after you’re done using it.
How to Get Help
The manufacturer’s manual is found above under Useful Links. For help with this tool or other shop tools contact Sean at laisean@pdx.edu or visit the EPL when he is working.
Using this Machine
These sections describe the standard usage and common pitfalls.
Setup
Ensure that the saw blade is properly mounted (not wobbly or loose) and test the function of the pivot before plugging the saw in. There is a small chrome pin on the left side of the saw near the pivot point. Press the saw down slightly to unbind the pin, and pull the pin out to allow the saw to pivot fully. Once you’re confident the machine is safe to operate, plug it in.
Mark the material where it is to be cut. Use a square to draw cutting lines across the entire width of the material to make proper alignment easier. Secure the material by pushing it firmly into the fence. Important: Ensure that the material is supported by the fence on both sides of the blade for large pieces of material.
Operation
Align the material with the saw blade by sighting your marked line with the edge of the saw blade before turning it on. Note that the blade has a 1/8” kerf. Once you’re confident that the material is positioned to be cut, firmly hold the material make sure you hand is well clear of the path of the blade.
Using the trigger in the handle, turn the saw on, and the lower the blade through your material to make a cut. The saw will have some kick when you turn it on. Don’t panic; stay strong.
Once your material is cut, allow the blade to come to a stop before releasing your hold on the material. Remove the material and be careful of splinters on the bak end of the cut surfaces.
Shutdown
After removing your material, lower the blade and reinsert the holding pin, then unplug the machine.
Cleanup
- Empty the dust filter on the back of the machine.
- Vacuum up the work area, including any surrounding work areas which may have collected dust/cuttings/swarf.
- Leave the lab a little bit cleaner than you found it! 😇