> Paul,

> Sounds like a pretty nice radial arm.

Just an old Sears model that has been in the family for about 40 years.

> Another thing I forgot to mention
> about ripping with a radial arm, the wider the rip the more torsion on the
> arm and the more likely to bind and kick. This isn't as big a problem with
> narrow strips.

Not a problem here.

> Have you thought of trying the band saw?

I'm thinking of someay to make a larger table for this. Band saws cut fast, direct the sawdust away from the cut and the operator, and the blade is pretty well shielded, which makes it harder to cut fingers. But the cut is not as smooth as what I get from a circular saw blade, so the strips need a bit more sanding.

I recently bought (and have not yet used) a surface planer, which I hope will reduce the sanding time for strips previously cut on the radial arm saw, (and future ones, regardess of what tool I cut hem with). It should also ensure the strips are precisely as thick as I want, and consistent.

One of these days I may even break down and go with bead and cove. I'm looking at a single router bit that *almost* does both, and sells for under $9 at Sears -- which means it would be readily available. I think a few minutes of working on this with a file or grinder would be all that is necessary. I'll take some pictures as I go and see if I can do this.

Aren't sawmills
> basically big band saws?

Some are. others use huge circular saws. My band saw has a throat about 6 inches high, so it can cut much thicker wood than my table saw can. I have some drying timber I plan to make into boards, and then into strips. I plan to use the band saw for a lot of the work.

> Sure would make a small kerf. I don't own a band
> saw so I don't know how life/cost of a band compares to a blade.

I've never had a band saw blade resharpened. They have a lot more teeth than circular saws, so I suspect they would be much more expensive. Circular saw blades get dull, and you sharpen them. Band saw blades break, and you can repair them a few times, but eventually they get replaced.

The small kerf of the bandsaw is a big advantage. some think that you lose that because you have to plane or sand the strips, but I don't buy that argument. If you get 14 strips from a board when you rip it with a circular saw blade, and 16 or 17 when you use a band saw, then you are still going to be 2 or 3 strips ahead, even after you plane or sand them all to size.

Paul G. Jacobson