Scarfing

[cs]

I know this topic has been covered a thousand times, but I still wanted to add some input.

For smaller stock (i.e. rubrails etc) I have found that I can quickly and easly cut the scarf on the band saw and than clean it up with the belt sander. Once I've cleanded them up and checked them for fit I drill a couple of holes through both pieces and use wood dowels for alignment. I found that if I don't use the dowels that the joint tends to slip when clamping.

Cutting the scarfs is something that I've struggled with even thought I've been sent several good ideas and photos of different ways to cut scarfs. For smaller stuff that will fit on the bandsaw I have found the above method to be the most effective.

Chad

[NormMessinger]

We each develop satisfactory methods for getting a job done. Sometimes there is a better way but often there is just a different way. What ever works.

I think the wood slicer blade, from Hightland Hardware in Atlanta, I have on my band saw would make a cut that would not require the extra clean up step. If I had many scarfs to cut I'd make a jig or sliding fence that would assure a streight cut.

When I cut three hundred fifty two thousand more or less scarf for the stripping of Prairie Islander I set up the rarely used radial arm saw so the strip did not move, a pull of the saw and Bob (who ever he is) was my uncle.

If I had adopted your idea (now ya tell me) of pinning the scarf I could have glued a stack of strips at one time.

[Ian McColgin]

All in what you're used to. I can never seem to get a surface flat with a belt sander unless I clamp it down and bring the stock against it, like one of those stationary disc and belt stationary sanders. So I almost always use a plane and find it faster anyway.

Getting an at least rough cut can be a pain if your stock is too big to run through a band saw. By the way, it's common to make a wedge shape at least a thick as the fence is high so you can get your bevel by holding the stock against the wedge and moving the whole along the fence. Take care.

Anyway, I have two fast ways to whack down lots of wood for a scarf. Especially when I'm doing it in place - a bit of planking on the boat - I use my japanese pull saw. I get the edge squared and mark back a line where the top of the bevel will come. Then I just rip cut on a bevel such that the teeth do not cut into air under the edge and the kerf ends at the line further up the plank. Takes but a few minutes to whack a bunch of such lines maybe an inch apart. The pull saw is really aggressive at ripping down along the grain.

Once those lines are in place, it's easy to chisel along using them as a guide.

One can also cross cut a bunch of lines cut to the bevel marked on the edges. This is slower but for some jobs is fairly quick. I've done it on a table saw by just starting with my deepest cut and then dropping the blade a tad and making cuts till the kerf touches my bevel mark and dropping the blade again and so on. Get's lots of wood out of the way and leaves a step pattern to be chiseled or planed fare.

G'luck

[JimConlin]

I like specialized miter box jigs.

For strip canoe planking, i have one with two fences, 3/4" apart, which hold a strip securely. I use a japanese trim saw in it. It's long enough to span a couple of station molds and can be set atop the setup.

I once needed to scarph a bunch of 1x2 (3/4" x 1-1/2") stock for a laminated stringer and needed to do it on site.
I made a jig consisting of three pieces of 3/4" ply, maybe 3' x 6". There was a 1-1/2" wide by 1-1/2" deep channel in it, angled 7 degrees to the long edge and emerging from the long edge. A piece of stock could be held in it with a few wedges. On top of this block, near the other long edge was fastened a fence. It was positioned to guide a skilsaw to cut along the long edge of he jig, where the end of the stringer stock was emerging. With a framer blade, the cut needed some dressing with a plane.

[Bruce Taylor]

To each his own. I cut to the line on the bandsaw, then take the rest off with a few strokes of the plane.

If I'm cutting doglegs, I skip the bandsaw and do the whole thing with a #4 plane.

I haven't had much trouble w/ slippage, but if I did I think I'd adapt a trick I've used for mandolin heads. Tap a couple of small brads in one of the scarfed pieces, then nip off their heads at a height of 1/8"-1/4". The brads bite into the mating half of the scarf and keep the wood from slipping.