chip out

[edward]

I been cutting small  name letters on 1/2" oak and the front comes out perfect, and certain letters chip  out in the back I been using fd#1 blade, tension is good and table is level., has anyone experienced the problem.  edward

[jerry1939]

Just about everyone on this site will disagree with me, but for anything remotely delicate, I put a 1/4" luan plywood above and below my piece.  Run the surface grain of the ply 90 degrees to your piece.  That adds a tremendous amount of strength.

For the amount of time spent on your project, I consider it darn cheap insurance.  IF 1 or both "sacrifice boards" are nice, I will spray paint them and give them away.

jerry

[SCROLLSAW703]

oak is a fairly brittle wood. Try slowing your blade speed down, & ease up on your feed into the blade. I use oak alot for crosses & memorials. I use polar blades, a #1 or #3. I don't have any issues. And most all my projects are 1/2" or thereabouts.

[Lucky2]

Edward, I've done what Jerry has suggested, and I had great results. Other times, I've used just the blade with no backer, and I had good results then also. A lot of the outcome depends on the type of wood your using, and a lot depends on what type of blade you used. You stated that you used a FD blade, you didn't happen to mention what type of FD blade you used? Was it a scroll reverse type or some other?

Len

[Dan]

Like Len has mentioned, a reverse blade helps reduce the chipping. Also, a zero-clearance table insert may help. If the letters are small enough you could drill a small hole on a piece of 1/8" ply, make sure it's big enough to fit you letter, thread the blade through the hole to center it, then tape the board to the table. That should offer more support without sacrificing too much wood. 

[oldhudson]

15 hours ago, jerry1939 said:

Just about everyone on this site will disagree with me, but for anything remotely delicate, I put a 1/4" luan plywood above and below my piece.  Run the surface grain of the ply 90 degrees to your piece.  That adds a tremendous amount of strength.

For the amount of time spent on your project, I consider it darn cheap insurance.  IF 1 or both "sacrifice boards" are nice, I will spray paint them and give them away.

jerry

I'm not sure why you think "about everyone on this site" will disagree. I've not noticed that bias.... But let me say using a backer is a great technique. When I read the original post, using a backer board instantly came to mind. I use backers with my router, especially when working cross grain. And they should always be used in drilling. Backers are a fundamental woodworking technique.

[MrsN]

I agree with Jerry, a backer board will help a lot. I don't usually use a top board, but almost always use a backer when cutting.

[jerry1939]

Here are 2 pieces I cut from 1/16" solid oak.  When you sandwich your work between 2 sacrifice boards, at times it will blow your mind how fragile and tiny the elements are that survive just fine.

[tomsteve]

what #1 FD blade are ya using?  ultra reverse give me good results.

[edward]

I used #1 penguin silver, also tried  FD #5 ultra reverse, and the same results on both.   edward

[amazingkevin]

On 12/14/2017 at 8:18 PM, edward said:

I been cutting small  name letters on 1/2" oak and the front comes out perfect, and certain letters chip  out in the back I been using fd#1 blade, tension is good and table is level., has anyone experienced the problem.  edward

table allingemet ,spelling not good i messed up,many walnut eagles from that problem