: I am getting ready to rip the wood strips for my first stripper. Most books
: and sources suggest the standard setup whereby the 1/4 inch thick strip
: ends up between the saw blade and the fence. But some have suggested doing
: it the other way around, where the main board is between the fence and the
: blade, with the strip falling free after the cut. (With this setup, you
: need to move the fence after each cut).

: Any suggestions on which method is better? Other hints? I'll be working with
: 12-16 foot lengths of 1 x 8 clear cedar and redwood.

: Thanks!

Table Saw Set Up
Cutting strips can be easy and safe when the saw is set up properly and infeed and out feed tables support the board.
The following safe cutting method works very well, with no kickbacks. Your hands are never near the saw blade.

CHECK that the saw blade and the fence are perpendicular to the saw table. Make sure that the saw blade and the fence are parallel!

Saw Blade Set Up
Install the new blade in the table saw. Lower the blade all the way. Make an
auxiliary throat plate of wood to fit your saw. Or use double sided tape or hot glue to fix a piece of 1/16” veneer over the blade and the existing throat plate. If you use veneer, make sure the veneer also is trapped under the fence so it won't move and extends to the ends of your saw table so it won't interfer with the board feed.

With the saw turned on, slowly raise the blade up through the throat plate to cut an opening only the width of the blade.
This is important because now the strips won't be able to slide down between the throat plate and the blade.

Featherboard
A featherboard is a piece of scrap wood with a series of saw cuts (Fingers) at one end creating a flexible feather edge. This edge is cut at an angle of approximately 20°. When a featherboard is clamped against a board being cut or milled, the board is held firmly and cannot kickback. The feathered edge is angled in the direction of board travel.

Make a featherboard of l x 4 stock. It only needs to have fingers of 2" in length with 2" of board left to clamp to your fence. Spring Clamp the featherboard to the fence DIRECTLY over the center of blade. Use two or three spring clamps to hold the featherboard in place.

Position the Featherboard
Set the fence to cut your strip width. Use a scrap piece the same thickness as the boards to be cut. Start cutting a strip, but stop the saw part way through the board. Drop the blade flush with the surface of the wood. Press the featherboard down firmly on the wood surface and POSITION your spring clamps. Turn on the saw and raise the blade 1/4” into the featherboard. Finish cutting the strip. The featherboard will completely cover the saw blade. There will be no chance for your fingers to touch the blade. The cut strip will be held by the featherboard and will not kickback.

Take a piece of scrap wood the thickness of the boards to be cut and cut a few test pieces. Measure strips carefully to see if you are getting a consistent cut.

Apply consistant pressure on the board against the fence. Look carefully at the contact of the board on the fence. You must have infeed and outfeed tables accurately set to mill consistant strips, THIS IS CRITICAL TO CONSISTANT CUTS.

Once the featherboard is placed and adjusted correctly, with the board properly supported, it will hold the wood so well, that you can take your hands off the board being cut to walk behind the saw and pull the board through to finish the cut. On the last few strips cut from the board, use a push stick to press the wood against the fence.

All the best and Happy Holidays,
Rob Macks