Replies

1. 
   forestgirl | Jul 17, 2006 02:04am | #1

   This is a long shot, but I always ask because it's caused me problems in the past:  Did you check your splitter alignment, both that it's directly in line with the blade, AND that it's 90° to the table? 

   Also, when you checked your blade to make sure it is 90° to the table, did you actually make test cuts to verify whatever your square was telling you?  (Crosscut a tallish piece, roll one half over and see if there's a gap where the two cut ends meet.)

   forestgirl -- you can take the girl out of the forest, but you can't take the forest out of the girl ;-) 
   

1. 
   user-93986 | Jul 17, 2006 05:06am | #5

   I currently have removed the spliter but it was aligned. I haven't taken a cross cut test since my last adjustment I should try that again.

   Thanks

   Phil

1. 
   highfigh | Jul 17, 2006 05:10pm | #9

   When you do the crosscuts, do them from both sides of the blade. Also, move the wood to the front edge of the blade and push it through to see if the wood makes contact at the rear of teh blade on one side ot the other. Ideally, the fence side will be parallel or just slightly farther from the rear of the blade than the front, but not much. You don't want it to pinch.Did you check the blade to make sure it's truly flat? I have an Oldham 40T and while it's flat, the first three I got (and exchanged) were far from it. Every time I tried to make a cut, it left marks on the wood, even on short crosscuts. The fourth one is fine. I use a blade stabilizer, too. "I cut this piece four times and it's still too short."

   Edited 7/17/2006 10:13 am by highfigh

1. 
   user-93986 | Jul 17, 2006 05:48pm | #11

   Highfigh

   I know for sure while cutting with the fence on the right that the wood is contacting the blade at the rear I can hear it as I cut. I haven't tried pushing through a crosscut piece after, I will try that. I will also check the blade for flatness, I don't have another blade I will have to get one.

   Howie

   I haven't had the blade sharpened since I purchased 18 months ago, probably a contributing factor, but why would I get a perfect cut on the left side of the blade?

   I used the left mitre slot for all my allignment tasks

   My test cuts are in 3/4 stock

   Thanks for the suggestions

   Phil

1. 
   highfigh | Jul 17, 2006 06:10pm | #12

   IIRC, you said you have a dial indicator and if you do, you can use that to check the blade for flatness. If the left side isn't in contact with the wood, it will cut cleaner than the right, which has been in contact on every cut made. Check the fence for straightness, too. I have seen a few that had a definite curve to them. If the fence is faced with white HDPE, think about replacing it with something that's more stable. Mine has that and when it gets really hot, it tends to "grow" and since it's screwed on in 4-5 points with no allowance for expansion, there is a bulge between the screws.Don't assume the arbor washer on the fence side of the blade is totally flat, either. Mark the arbor, washer and blade. Make a cut and see if it's true. Then, rotate the washer and re-test. It may change and if it does, think about getting a new washer."I cut this piece four times and it's still too short."

   Edited 7/17/2006 11:12 am by highfigh

2. 
   SARGEgrinder47 | Jul 17, 2006 06:37pm | #13

   If you have been using the blade for 18 months and been through a lot of stock, chances are the blade is dull. If a lot of that stock was soft-wood, pitch has most likely built up around the teeth. If so, take it off and clean it with a brush and Simple Green, etc.

    But.. you said the blade didn't burn the RH side on your friends TS? You had taken the splitter off, I believe you mentioned? Was the kerf opening wider, closing or neutral after it pasted the blade? Opening wider or closing with no perfectly aligned splitter or riving knife (or not using one at all) has caused problems with the back of the fence from my past history. Especially if the blade is dull or theirs pitch build up.

   Might attach a short fence to your existing long fence. Let it extend to a tooth or two (depending on how thick the stock is) before center-line on your blade. I've been using a short fence for several years and combined with clean, sharp and correct blade (24T-30T for ripping), haven't experienced any problems with burn or kick-back for that matter.

   And if you decide to do a little kerf watching as I do, just an occasional quick glance with one eye as getting the stock through "not too slow..not too fast" and hand position demands constant attention. And of course... always keep the lane clear!

   Good Luck...

   SARGE.. g-47 

2. 
   BigK | Jul 17, 2006 02:28am | #2

   More longshot things to check. Is the fence perpendicular to the saw table?  Check for pitch buildup on the right side of the blade. Check EVERYTHING again. Or better yet, bribe a knowledgable buddy to check it with you ( the thinking is that the buddy will check both the saw and how you are checking things; obviously something is wrong). Best of luck with it.

1. 
   user-93986 | Jul 17, 2006 05:09am | #6

   Hi BigK

   I did check the fence it's very slightly out I was thinking of shimming or adding a auxilary fence to square the aluminium section. I have recently joined a woodworking group but they don't meet again to september and I wanted to start my next project. I may get another friend to walk through it with me, he likes beer ;->

3. 
   KeithNewton | Jul 17, 2006 02:53am | #3

   A lot can be told by closely inspecting the kerf, or tooth marks on both sides of the cut. If you only get tooth marks on one side from the back of the blade coming up from underneath. this would indicate fence alignment problems.

   If the back of the blade is marking both sides equally, then one side of the blade may be dull. If your friends saw has more power, it may not burn if the feed rate is faster.

   If your saw is under-powered, the slow feed rate would cause this symptom, because the dull teeth on one side will generate more heat than the sharp side.

   Try another blade and see if you get better results.

   If your saw is a little short on power, I would suggest that you drop down a size on the blade, which will improve the torque, which will allow you to feed faster without the heat.

   While I am on my soapbox, I would like to say that I have observed many many times back through the years, that most newbies tend to feed way too slow, not knowing that each tooth needs to take a proper sized chip out of the kerf to dissipate the heat generated by the cut. Finding the right combination of power to blade diameter to number of teeth, to feed rate will make your blades cut and last longer.

   Since I don't normally read FWW I don't know if they have covered this lately, or if ever, but if they have not, I think it would be of great service to its readers.

   does anyone need a slightly used soap-box? I hope this helps, K

1. 
   user-93986 | Jul 17, 2006 05:13am | #7

   I don't think the saw is underpowered, I will check on the kerf marks from memory there are some on the right side cut. My next step was to clean the blade which has definately more residue on the right side. The only other blades I have are dado ones so I will probably try one of those.

   Thanks

   Phil

4. 
   BG | Jul 17, 2006 03:23am | #4

   Phil,
   I was getting a bit of burn from the back of the blade and I could not figure out the source. I suspected it was saw dust that was causing the face of the fense to bulge a bit. During the process of snooping around I noticed the back of my zero clearance plate was up a bit,(ie, not level with the table)I adjusted the allen screw, no more problems.
   I was headed toward using a short fense if that did not work....

   
   

   ---

   Edited 7/16/2006 8:25 pm ET by BG

1. 
   user-93986 | Jul 17, 2006 05:15am | #8

   I read an article about setting throat plate up a little at the rear so the piece doesn't catch, I will check again it below the surface although I think the burning is along 75% of the piece an not just at the back.

   Thanks

   Phil

5. 
   HowardAcheson | Jul 17, 2006 05:14pm | #10

   Some thoughts.

   Is the blade sharp? When was it last sharpened?

   Buy a 24 tooth rip blade as see if it works OK.

   When you aligned the blade to the miter slot, which slot did you use?

   When you aligned the fence to the miter slot, which slot did you use?

   Finally, what is the thickness of the wood? Do it do it on 3/4" stock?

   Howie.........
6. 
   dwyer | Jul 18, 2006 05:50am | #14

   Phil;

   Are you using any sort of blade stiffener or large washer behind the arbor nut? I made the mistake once of using 1/2 of a blade stiffener in place of the washer provided by the manufacture. The stiffener was not flat on the blade side and when the nut was tightened it warped the blade slightly. This caused my cuts to do the same exact thing that you are describing. The burning was worse as you raised the blade because it exposed more of the blade cupping. It puzzled me for a while too. I just removed the stiffener and installed the original arbor washer and it worked fine after that.

7. 
   Dave45 | Jul 18, 2006 07:23am | #15

   What kind of wood are you cutting and is the edge dead straight?  When I've had that problem, I usually find that the edge of the board isn't dead straight and it's "springing" slightly away from the fence. 

   I've also had this happen is I use my push stick closer to the fence than the blade.  It seems to want to slightly "cock" the board as it travels along the fence and bind it into the blade.