# Ripping cedar



## mainerich (Feb 2, 2010)

OK,

So this weather in Maine has really started me thinking about spring. 


Plus, I have some 'free time' coming up soon.

I am planning on ripping down some Spanish Cedar in 1x6 x 10' lengths, into 3/8" x 5'.


My question is this. Is 3/8 square an OK dimension for cribbing and trestle bents and other things around the layout?


I'd like most everything to be 1/29.

Thanks

Rich


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## armorsmith (Jun 1, 2008)

Most people generally use 1/2 x 1/2 for trestle bents. Cribbing can be most anything that looks good, depending on whether it is functional or not. 

Bob C.


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## dieseldude (Apr 21, 2009)

I did my trestle bents out of 3/8 inch cedar and it worked out well. I used a brad nailer to hold everything together. I'd include a picture, but right now my trestle is buried in the snow!!! If you check the thread "The 10th anniversary begins" in the Public forum, there is a picture of my trestle (Iron Island Railroad). That might give you an idea of how the proportions look. Bob C. is right- most people do tend to go with 1/2 inch. It's probably a lot easier to nail together. Hope this helps. -Kevin.


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## jnic (Jan 2, 2008)

Rich,

3/8 square cedar works great for cribbing.



 john


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## smcgill (Jan 2, 2008)

I used 1/2" X1/2" for my trestle.
I would us the left over etc. for cribbing.
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## NavyTech (Aug 2, 2008)

I would recommend that when you do rip the cedar that you ensure that the area is well ventilated and you wear a mask. From my experience getting the dust in your nasal passages and lungs is not good and takes a long time to clear out. 

Also do not be afraid to rip a lot of it, if you have the time rip way more than you will need. When I did mine I wish that I ripped 5 times what I needed and stores it for future projects. Having it all done and on hand would have made things easier. Now I get discouraged to start my next project with cedar because I do not want to spend the time ripping it down.


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## RimfireJim (Mar 25, 2009)

In trestle bent construction, 12"X12" timbers were very common. Probably the most common size, in fact. In 1/29th scale, that would be 0.414", or about 5% under 7/16"; 3/8" would be 9% undersize, and 1/2" would be 17% oversize. On my table saw I have no trouble ripping to the nearest 1/16". There is nothing magical about 3/8" or 1/2", so I suggest shooting for 7/16".


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## denray (Jan 5, 2008)

Rich 
If you are working with 3/4" lumber, figure out the thickness of your bracing you are desiring. 1/8" thick board, with a saw blade with a 1/8" saw kerf leaves you a 1/2" left. 
So you might want to look at it that way to save a pass through the saw. With a thinner blade, and 1/2" will leave a little thicker piece than 1/8" for bracing, which is fine for me. 
They never really got picky for bracing when building trestles. 
Dennis


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## Dan Pantages (Jan 2, 2008)

I'd go for the 7/16, that's close enough to 12" in 1/29. Trestles are supose to look spindly, i might even go for 3/8.


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## Madman (Jan 5, 2008)

I *STRONGLY* second Navy Tech's recommendation about wearing a mask when working with Spanish Cedar. It does indeed wreak havoc with your bodily person. 
As for size of members, I like to oversize things a bit. I figure all sorts of things that can weaken a structure such as a bridge. So oversizing sort of counteracts the gremlins.


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## rreiffer (Jan 14, 2009)

Very interesting topic. I am modeling primarily in 1:20.3 so it makes it a lot easier to buy 5/8 X 5 1/2 X 6' cedar boards from Lowes for $3 each. They come out to 1.06 scale feet (The .06 is about 1/2" off in scale for a 12" x 12" board). 

Now there is an advantage to getting older. First, nobody in my group can see clear enough to tell the 1/2" scale difference and second, nobody can bend down far enough to get close to actually measure it!









The thing you might want to do is to buy some of these boards (make sure to take the time to sort them) and find someone that has a planer and plane them down before ripping them. 

I also agree that you MUST[/b] wear a mask. 

If you want to look for the C&RR (or look back at my posts) and you will see the bridges etc that I have made (and I am just a beginner).


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## SE18 (Feb 21, 2008)

I just finished ripping a ton of half inch by half inch cedar. Did it outside on table saw. Wear gloves and full face mask and have a jig for pushing so hand doesn't come anywhere near blade. Goes pretty fast. Half inch is great for 7/8" scale.


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## Madman (Jan 5, 2008)

Now, I really don't want to burst our CEDAR bubble, Buuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuut, cedar is really not the best wood for outdoor projects. Particularly when it comes in contact with the earth. True, it is excellent at thwarting insect attack, but I've seen Carpenter Bees drill their perfect 3/8" holes into it. There are not too many species of wood that they won't make their nest in. One of the best woods for building your trestle bents with would be Ipe'. More expensive than cedar, much, much heavier than cedar, harder to cut and rip than cedar, and don't even think about driving a nail into it without first drilling a pilot hole just about as long as the nail you hope to embed into it. To best preserve any wood you want to use, coat it liberally with a mixture of linseed oil, turpentine (not paint thinner) and spar varnish.


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## Bob in Kalamazoo (Apr 2, 2009)

Posted By rreiffer on 03 Feb 2011 08:57 PM 

Now there is an advantage to getting older. First, nobody in my group can see clear enough to tell the 1/2" scale difference and second, nobody can bend down far enough to get close to actually measure it!









Hey Rich, I've been to your railroad and I can get down to actually measure the difference. I just need help to get up again.








Bob


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## rreiffer (Jan 14, 2009)

Bob,

That's right, I keep forgetting you are nimble! I believe you could actually get up, now if you can remember what you got down on your knees for after you get up then.......


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## Bob in Kalamazoo (Apr 2, 2009)

Yes, that would be a bigger problem for me.


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## SRW (Jan 13, 2010)

My band saw is on wheels right inside my garage door so when it's time to rip lots of stuff down to small size I wheel it outside to the driveway and do it there in the open air. As others have noted there are several types of wood that are very irritating to breath the fine dust that a band saw or table saw can create if done indoors, like cedar, walnut, mahogany, I would recommend any type of face mask/shield and a simple paper face mask if ripping indoors. Outdoors, is much better if you can swing it. 
That said, I have had good experience with poplar for outside wood construction. It quickly loses its green tint when exposed to sunlight and it has a pretty good ground contact rot resistance and I have found it doesn't warp or distort much. It's also readily available from big box stores in smaller/thinner gauges which may be suitable for most modeling projects. I've had very good luck with poplar myself from a durability standpoint and it finishes/sands nicely, stains well, and holds a sharp edge over time. It's stronger than cedar and is considered a medium strength/density wood. You should seal it in some fashion for the best long range ground contact.


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