Armed Polite Society

Main Forums => The Roundtable => Topic started by: AmbulanceDriver on October 09, 2012, 12:33:18 AM

Title: Compound angles suck......
Post by: AmbulanceDriver on October 09, 2012, 12:33:18 AM
So I've been drawing up plans in google sketchup to build a hexagonal bench around a tree in our yard....

Now that I have all the plans drawn up, I started looking at the angles I'm working with on the back of the bench...   The joints are all 30 degree angles, and the back of the bench leans back at 15 degrees.....

Now, sketchup lets me put a virtual protractor to the boards...  

Anyone know how to set a radial arm saw to 29.1 degrees and 8.4 degrees????   [ar15]

Yes...   I'm gonna build me a jig to hold my boards at a 15 degree angle and just make a 30 degree bevel.

But compound angles suck.
Title: Re: Compound angles suck......
Post by: vaskidmark on October 09, 2012, 06:33:58 AM
Plastic Wood is your friend.

(Probably old school nowadays, but you get the idea.)

stay safe.
Title: Re: Compound angles suck......
Post by: RoadKingLarry on October 09, 2012, 08:04:36 AM
Don't be so obtuse, tell us how you really feel.
Sounds like you'll really have acute bench when you're done though.
Title: Re: Compound angles suck......
Post by: griz on October 09, 2012, 08:49:23 AM
Can't you tilt the arm to 8.4 (or whatever) and separately set the angle to the bed at 30?
Title: Re: Compound angles suck......
Post by: slugcatcher on October 09, 2012, 09:00:31 AM
Quit being an engineer.  Just get it close.  It's wood.  It's going to expand and contract.  If you get it too tight the joint will split and cause bigger problems than a 1/16th gap.
Title: Re: Compound angles suck......
Post by: AmbulanceDriver on October 09, 2012, 09:10:28 AM
Can't you tilt the arm to 8.4 (or whatever) and separately set the angle to the bed at 30?

Griz, the problem is that little ".4"....  :) 

And slug, that's why I'm gonna just build a 15 degree block.  I've got 18 boards to cut, total of 36 cuts, so a jig will help anyways.
Title: Re: Compound angles suck......
Post by: Harold Tuttle on October 09, 2012, 09:12:08 AM
(https://armedpolitesociety.com/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.googlepixel.com%2Fimages%2Fnorm.jpg&hash=c8dc9ae71572dd0c8702e1cf75cad07b0da8d33e)
Title: Re: Compound angles suck......
Post by: griz on October 09, 2012, 09:28:22 AM
Oh, I didn't realize you meant you actually wanted to set it to within a tenth of a degree.  In the real world, it's tough to mass produce cuts to closer tolerances than the material you're working with.
Title: Re: Compound angles suck......
Post by: Marnoot on October 09, 2012, 10:11:44 AM
(https://armedpolitesociety.com/proxy.php?request=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.googlepixel.com%2Fimages%2Fnorm.jpg&hash=c8dc9ae71572dd0c8702e1cf75cad07b0da8d33e)

He'd use one of his high-priced 29.1°-only miter-saws, of course.
Title: Re: Compound angles suck......
Post by: Tallpine on October 09, 2012, 10:20:24 AM
I think that you're getting 0.2 over this  ;)
Title: Re: Compound angles suck......
Post by: slugcatcher on October 09, 2012, 11:05:08 AM
Griz, the problem is that little ".4"....  :) 

And slug, that's why I'm gonna just build a 15 degree block.  I've got 18 boards to cut, total of 36 cuts, so a jig will help anyways.

A jig?  Where's the adventure and foul language in that? =D
Title: Re: Compound angles suck......
Post by: Harold Tuttle on October 09, 2012, 11:44:31 AM
http://www.ronhazelton.com/projects/how_to_build_a_bench_around_a_tree
Title: Re: Compound angles suck......
Post by: AJ Dual on October 09, 2012, 11:45:57 AM
He'd use one of his high-priced 29.1°-only miter-saws, of course.

And make whatever it is out of cheap-ass pine..  :laugh:
Title: Re: Compound angles suck......
Post by: AmbulanceDriver on October 09, 2012, 11:55:27 AM
Harold, that's very similar to the plans I'm using.   I'm using the ones from "This Old House" I think...  With my own modification of instead of one board as a "backrest" at 90 degrees, I'm building an actual back tilted back 15 degrees...

I'll see if I can convert my sketchup drawing to a .jpg


ETA - here we go....

Title: Re: Compound angles suck......
Post by: Tallpine on October 09, 2012, 01:12:00 PM
What happens when the tree gets too big  ???
Title: Re: Compound angles suck......
Post by: AmbulanceDriver on October 09, 2012, 01:13:50 PM
Well, it's a pretty mature tree, and you allow an extra 6 inches for that......  :)
Title: Re: Compound angles suck......
Post by: Tallpine on October 09, 2012, 01:36:38 PM
Well, it's a pretty mature tree, and you allow an extra 6 inches for that......  :)

So you think the tree is mature enough to not get too big for its benches ?   ;)
Title: Re: Compound angles suck......
Post by: AZRedhawk44 on October 09, 2012, 01:41:37 PM
Why bother getting worked up over a bench that is going to get covered in bird poop and no one wants to sit on, anyways?   :lol:
Title: Re: Compound angles suck......
Post by: RevDisk on October 09, 2012, 02:02:37 PM
ETA - here we go....

I tend to build my plans slightly overkill in the engineering process. Tends to be built as if I expect Germans to drive a tank over it a couple times.



Which they MIGHT. So, there.
Title: Re: Compound angles suck......
Post by: Tallpine on October 09, 2012, 02:11:11 PM
Why bother getting worked up over a bench that is going to get covered in bird poop and no one wants to sit on, anyways?   :lol:

It fills in the cracks nicely  :cool:
Title: Re: Compound angles suck......
Post by: dm1333 on October 09, 2012, 03:48:33 PM
Just eyeball that sh*t. 
Title: Re: Compound angles suck......
Post by: Scout26 on October 09, 2012, 05:09:44 PM
You can always cut it longer....

 :P :P


(Screw the .4 and just set you mitersaw to the whole number angles.  Wood putty and stain to finish.)
Title: Re: Compound angles suck......
Post by: roo_ster on October 09, 2012, 06:21:12 PM
I tend to build my plans slightly overkill in the engineering process. Tends to be built as if I expect Germans to drive a tank over it a couple times.



Which they MIGHT. So, there.

That way, it stays built.
Title: Re: Compound angles suck......
Post by: AZRedhawk44 on October 09, 2012, 06:26:10 PM


Anyone know how to set a radial arm saw to 29.1 degrees and 8.4 degrees????   [ar15]



But compound angles suck.

Bird poop aside, this is why you use a compound miter saw for this job rather than a radial arm saw.
Title: Re: Compound angles suck......
Post by: AmbulanceDriver on October 09, 2012, 10:21:57 PM
Yeah, well, I don't have a compound miter saw and I do have a radial arm saw...  So there...   [neener]  However, I don't think even a compound miter saw would solve this one....
Title: Re: Compound angles suck......
Post by: RoadKingLarry on October 09, 2012, 10:38:49 PM
I tend to build my plans slightly overkill in the engineering process. Tends to be built as if I expect Germans to drive a tank over it a couple times.



Which they MIGHT. So, there.

Which is why when I build thing my preferred GP "fastener" is 6011 rod.

Mic it,
mark it with chalk,
cut it with a torch,
beat it to fit.
Title: Re: Compound angles suck......
Post by: Cliffh on October 11, 2012, 12:10:16 AM
Protractor, straight-edge, circular saw

Should be able to cut any angle(s) you need, up to 90*.

Can you put a small block/wedge against the fence to hold the material at the desired partial degree?  I've used double-sided tape to hold a small block to the fence at a pre-determined distance from the blade, placed the material against the block and the fence near the blade, then made the cut.  It'll take some experimenting the get the exact size of the block/wedge, distance from the blade and how much material can extend past the blade.


Cut to plan
File to fit
Paint to hide