How to Cut a Board to Length w/ Angles - A Beginner Tutorial

New to woodworking? This video is for you. A quick explanation of how I reliably cut a board to exact length with any degree angle needed.

This video was inspired by a question submitted to me via email. Check out the blog post for the specific question:

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"Easy Breezy" by Silent Partner

[markspears]

As a professional cabinet builder and finish carpenter I like to watch these types of videos usually for a good laugh but this guy is actually offering up good sound advice. It is true “sneaking up on a cut” is a real term used. For the people who don’t use miter saws or much of any saw and trying to cut angles you have to realize and understand cutting rough materials like 2x4’s are a bit of a challenge for anyone because it’s rough lumber. Rough lumber is typically not straight or its cupped or worse it’s twisted. All of this affects cutting angles in the worst way. Even finished trim or cabinet material will not cut exact if it’s not straight and flat and square. If your doing a project buy an extra 2x4 or piece of trim so you can have a little extra in case you make a mistake or just need to make several cuts to get a little confidence or familiarity with the saw. I get that you want to save money and only buy what you need but if you don’t do this type of work daily or at least as a hobby your gonna make a mistake. As a professional who does this type of thing daily I make mistakes. It’s just the reality of it so just relax and give yourself a reasonable chance.

[elirodriguez]

Every YouTuber giving simple instructions using a 2 thousand dollar saw 🤦🏻‍♂️

[whifflingtit]

Thank you for the tip to "sneak up on" that second cut, that'll be something that helps me out in the future.

[jpah]

Being a novice woodworker i had no idea how to make angle cuts that would fit. Today i got too frustrated and called it a day. Tomorrow is a better day thanks to this video!!! Thank you Stan!!!

[Sebastopolmark]

The thing you hear most woodworkers say is "I sneak up on the line".
GREAT tip Stan and thanks.

[kategerber]

damn for whatever reason this made it make sense in my brain. thank you!! made my very first miter cuts today and they came out PERFECTLY, it's probably the most satisfying feeling I've ever experienced lol

[SmallestWorkshopGH]

As always nice simple and to the point dialogue, so helpful for newbies. 👍

[danielvenkat]

Made my cuts today, thank you. I’m a newbie and I put my project on hold for 3+ weeks because I couldn’t figure out how to make them until i came across this video. Again, Thanks.

[collincourtois]

I'm an absolute newbie at this so thank you for this very informative lesson.

[christianackley]

Thanks man! Its like this video was made specifically for me. Currently following a cut list from a YouTube video and now I know how to get my miters to an exact length. Thanks again!

[jwgjrich]

Very helpful!! I've always struggled with this, thank you for showing a simple solution that I can easily remember how to use!!!

[joshuabreeding]

Just on this one video I am Subscribed! I know there is probably a hundred tutorials on this, I know I should of looked it up years ago...

But here I am, I've finally looked I got your video, it was easy and you showed the stock block part which I always forget.

I'm set to cut some miters!

[arbuckle]

Thanks Stan. I'll be using what I've learnt from this video and the angle cut video next week. Someone hired me to organize and tidy their basement. Part of the process is building some shelving.

[IPASAustralia]

Very few things in life take pure talent or strength or speed. It's usually all about knowing the techniques. The technique you just showed is extremely helpful and will help me in my current project. I look forward to seeing more of your videos where I hope to find more useful techniques. Thanks for posting it!

[davidbotta]

Good tips. I don't tend to sneak up on the cut though. I usually just line up by bring the blade down while it's off using the teeth to line up the cut.

[vice]

I’ve been holding off trying these for exactly the reasons you mentioned! This video made so much sense! Thank you!

[bw]

Thank you, I've been looking for this exact video, gone thorugh more than 20 before finding it..

[mathewshoyt]

my grandfather was old school.. he drew angle lines on the wood and cut perfect with a hand saw. he never had power tools.. all manual tools

[mannyfilmsinc]

This video showed me a fast way to do this, without complicated jigs. Great tip ! Thanks!

[harindergill]

short, crisp and clear - Excellent. Thanks