Squaring off logs/branches on a table saw?

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longbow

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I have a large collection of Yew logs of varying sizes which I use for turning. However most of the straight 'ish' ones have been used and I am left with some very curved pieces which will have to be squared off before I can use them. I am sure that I have seen somewhere a clamp which holds logs firmly in place while cutting off the excess. This clamp is used on a table saw. The flat side of the clamp is run along the regular saw guide on the table. Does anyone know of such a piece of equipment? Or another way to square off uneven timber with a table saw? I look forward to reading your replies.

Longbow
 
I found that a home workshop sized table saw rarely has enough blade depth to be of any use for such a purpose, and certainly not possible with adequate guarding or without risk of blade binding.

I use a bandsaw for doing that and clamp/screw the logs onto a sledge located and running in the table mitre slot.

You must make sure the log can't rotate and it needs to be supported/clamped to provide an even cutting plane at its base and no risk of it sagging when cutting over a bottom void.

On some logs I use a cheap hand power plane to flatten one surface enough to provide a base reference to slice down an adjacent side of a log without having to resort to a sledge.
 
Hand saw? They don't have to be perfectly square for turning purposes as long as you can locate your centres - then you can turn the ends square etc.
 
Jacob's suggestion sounds pretty reasonable to me.

What I do with branch wood is sight it as near as I can along the axis, then mark and knock off the waste/rubbish with a side-axe or draw-knife, then put it between centres to do the rest.
 
Or if longbow is looking to rip these pieces into boards then side-axe or drawknife is also the answer here i.e. the easiest way to get a flat face so that it can then be machined.
 
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