> Also, when you'r ripping a thicker board, do you cut the strips first and
> then rip them, or have the whole board ripped by a mill and then cut the
> strips? Pardon my dumb question, but I'm new at this.

> Best Regards Spidey

You have to decide if you want flat grain or edge grain in the final strips and plan the cutting of each board to get the same (or almost the same) grain on each strip. flat grain gives more "figure" to the wood and edge grian is more uniform in patern and color. Gary