Cutting melamine with a circular saw actually worked for me

I was building a pantry system in my own house and didn't want to haul the 4x8 sheets to the shop. My buddy said just use the factory edge and a circular saw with a fine tooth blade. I tried it on a scrap piece first and it didn't chip at all. I clamped a straight edge down tight and took it slow... not one blowout on the whole job. Has anyone else ditched the table saw for smaller melamine projects?

2 comments

2 Comments

the_sage20d ago

Tried that same move on a melamine shelf project last year. Clamped a level down as my straight edge. That thing slipped mid cut and I ended up with a curve that looked like a snake. Had to buy a whole new sheet after that day. Your method sounds way more solid than my disaster.

the_caleb20d ago

...and now you've gone and ruined it for the rest of us who've been hauling full sheets to the shop for years (like absolute chumps). Seriously though, I tried this once with a diablo blade and a guide track, thought I was a genius until I hit a knot and the whole thing sounded like a dying animal. But hey, if you got zero chipout then you're basically a wizard and I'm just jealous my table saw isn't getting as much love lately. Plus, not having to wrestle a 4x8 sheet through a basement door is its own kind of victory, am I right?