Shim Problem ?

[nmguy]

I picked up a BT3000 a few months back from friend, that has not beenused it a couple of years. I stumped on this problem I was thinking the shims were bad becase the blade had trouble rising. I opened it up cleaned it out, (not much to clean though) The shims are correct and in the right position, ( they have not slipped out of postion.)

I removed the shims. The shims looks ok, not bent or anything. It looks like they are new shims. I checked all the gears for the blade rise to see if it was stipped ;everything looks ok as far as I can tell.

I assembled the saw and it still has a little struggle moving up and down, not as much though. I pick up the motor with my hand to help it along, so as the screw for the blade rise does not stip. I have read the board on this problem for the last week.


I'm stumped here guys, what am I missing here.
I

[Stytooner]

The only other thing I can suggest is lube.
I personally used to use candle wax, but then switched to an anti seize crayon.
Any type of dry lube, as long as it's silicone free should help.
I lube the tracks the shims ride on as well as the gears teeth and threads. Works it in by moving up and down several times without a blade installed.
Holler again if that don't help.
Many pro's on here may have more tips for you. Welcome aboard as well.

[Black wallnut]

Welcome! Other than lube (dry) make sure the riving knife is not dragging on the back of the saw's case while going up and down. The shim adjustment screws need to be just right so as to remove play but not tight as to bind.

[LCHIEN]

the problem list for non-smooth elevation go in this way (probably in rough order of likelihood/ pain to fix)
1. riving knife tilted and rubbing against the back of the opening int he table top
2. crown gear/vertical screw packed with sawdust - clean and use dry lube to keep from attracting sawdust.
3. shims - need dry lube periodically (I do mine every few months with johnson's paste wax) to keep them sliding smoothly. if not kept lubed and allowed to pack with sawdust then shims can lock up on the sliding side and fall out.

Maybe more that's all i can remember, more in my FAQ (see sig line below).

[nmguy]

The only other thing I can suggest is lube.
I personally used to use candle wax, but then switched to an anti seize crayon.
Any type of dry lube, as long as it's silicone free should help.
I lube the tracks the shims ride on as well as the gears teeth and threads. Works it in by moving up and down several times without a blade installed.
Holler again if that don't help.
Many pro's on here may have more tips for you. Welcome aboard as well.

I picked up some candel wax today. I also took a closer look at that screw that raises the blade with a magnifying glass. It's packed with black hard saw dust. I cleaned it out. took about an hour. I also found more packed black saw dust wich took more time. The Riving knife was also caked with that black hard saw dust. So now all the parts move much better. I'm going to apply the candel was later.

Their was not much dust in the motor, just on the back plate. I opended that up and blew the dust out with a compressor. I like the fan on front of the motor. Don't see that much anymore on the new saws.

I'll report in tomarrow after I apply the candel wax to the screws. My hands are beat red from all the brushing and have to walk to retreivers.

thanks for the help everyone.

[nmguy]

I applied the candel was to all the moving gear parts as mentioned. The blade now rises with no problems at all, it's nice and smooth with no hang ups.

I do have another problem now. The blade \motor still have some play in it. is this normal?
When I put the blade at the highest position there is no play. When the blade is cranked to the center position and lower positions there is about 1/16 play. example. the blade will move to the left when standing in front of the saw and picking up the motor slightley.

Are new shims in order ? IT seems like the shims need to be a few mils thicker.

[LCHIEN]

... When the blade is cranked to the center position and lower positions there is about 1/16 play. example. the blade will move to the left when standing in front of the saw and picking up the motor slightley.

...

"Picking up the motor slightly." Huh?

[Black wallnut]

The shims have set screws which control the lateral play. Rotational rocking in the same plane as the blade is normal. Side to side play parallel to the arbor is not and needs to be adjusted to nearly none. stated differently; with the saw unplugged you should be able to move the blade slightly up just by grabbing it with your hand, you should not be able to move it side to side.

[nmguy]

I think I know what the problem is . I was looking at a diargram of the parts on some other site, ( won't let me donw load it diagram though ) Anyway I see there are two sets of shims for this saw. I only have one set on side where the motor is. the other set from what I can tell is on the guide holder side , is that right. ?

[Black wallnut]

That is correct. see http://bt3central.com/showthread.php?t=27266 the most awesome article on shims.........

[nmguy]

That is correct. see http://bt3central.com/showthread.php?t=27266 the most awesome article on shims.........

thank you very much. that helped me so much.. Yup it's missing the #3 shims in the diagram. I also came across an article here on the board about upgrading to the 3100 guide holder and spring shims. ( think that what there called ) would this be better, than just replacing the same old shims out.

I will have to buy parts anyway. The rip fence is missing the section on the end ( not the handle end) of it along with the internal parts. About 86.00 for everything including shipping for 8.95 from M&D Mower this also includes the guide holder and spring shims.

Is this saw as accurate as everyone says. ? because thats what I'm after ; straight cuts on ripping. is $86.00 to much for these parts? oh. um.. does the fence lock at both ends? sort of like a T- slot fence. ? I was wondering because I have an Excalibur T-slot fence maybe I could adapt it to the bt3000. ? I guess if the bt3000 fence locks at both ends then there would not be a need then. The Bt3000 fence Seems to a very high quality design. kind looks like my Excalibur fence in a smaller version.

The saw did come with 2 extra rails and the brackets for some kind of extended table rail kit ? It also came with some other table that clamps on to the rails on folds down. I did attach this sliding table and minter to see how it works. Could I do cross cuts with that ?

thanks

[Black wallnut]

thank you very much. that helped me so much.. Yup it's missing the #3 shims in the diagram. I also came across an article here on the board about upgrading to the 3100 guide holder and spring shims. ( think that what there called ) would this be better, than just replacing the same old shims out.

Better, not exactly. More expensive yes. If you follow my link for shim supports that upgrade costs almost nothing and yet is a permanent fix for shim problems. The 3100 upgrade is also permanent fix.

I will have to buy parts anyway. The rip fence is missing the section on the end ( not the handle end) of it along with the internal parts. About 86.00 for everything including shipping for 8.95 from M&D Mower this also includes the guide holder and spring shims.

Well you are buying parts anyway...... Your car needs tires and you also have lost a lug nut.... do you buy new wheels at the same time?

Is this saw as accurate as everyone says. ? because thats what I'm after ; straight cuts on ripping. is $86.00 to much for these parts? oh. um.. does the fence lock at both ends? sort of like a T- slot fence. ? I was wondering because I have an Excalibur T-slot fence maybe I could adapt it to the bt3000. ? I guess if the bt3000 fence locks at both ends then there would not be a need then. The Bt3000 fence Seems to a very high quality design. kind looks like my Excalibur fence in a smaller version.

Some saws are very accurate, most actually. There have been a few lemons. Some folks have not been able to get good results no matter how much they have tried. The fence locks at both ends, one of the saws revolutionary design elements. It is possible to adapt an aftermarket fence to your saw but I doubt the effort is worth the result. When the BT3000 fence is working properly it is equal to the best fence available. Its purpose is to guide the workpiece into and past the blade in a straight line, repeatably; it does that.

The saw did come with 2 extra rails and the brackets for some kind of extended table rail kit ? It also came with some other table that clamps on to the rails on folds down. I did attach this sliding table and minter to see how it works. Could I do cross cuts with that ?

thanks

That's part of the wide table kit, if you have the space a wonderful addition to the base saw. The fold down table would be the outfeed table also a great addition to have. The sliding miter table is one of the other revolutionary design elements of this saw. However most either love it or hate it. The jury is about evenly split. It you take the time to set it up right and treat it right it will give countless accurate cuts. Mine has for me. I check adjustment at the start of each big project, rarely have to adjust. That said the adjustments are interdependent, must be done in the correct order and are adjust, check, adjust, check, final tighten, check again type of process that may take a while. Keep in mind very small changes are the difference between right and not right. Oh yeah the SMT is for cross cuts. From the link above you should also be able to find the article I wrote on SMT guide maintenance, with tips on adjustment.

For a premier on the saw system you might go here watch each part.

Btw, you are welcome this is part of why this forum exists. Hope you have many happy cuts!

[LCHIEN]

you would probably do well to read my BT3 FAQ, it discusses about just about everything you have asked. See my SIG line below.

[mpc]

The most common source of "my saw won't stay aligned" complaints is an uneven floor. The BT3 stands are not as meaty as thousand-dollar cabinet saws and can flex on lumpy floors. Position the saw where you'll use it most and mark where the wheels are on the floor so you can always move it to that same spot before use. Adjust the wheels/feet of the BT3 stand to get any twist out of the stand & saw first, THEN go through the alignment procedure on the saw.

Depending on your shop space, a good first project might be to build a cabinet to replace the standard BT3 leg set. You can make it more beefy, heavier, and of course make it a good storage space. Lots of pics on this site of various BT3 mobile bases. Since you have the wide table kit (the extra rails and brackets to mount them) you might make a really wide cabinet base. In my prior shop (garage) it was essential that the saw take up as little space as possible when stored... so I made my wide table kit detach from the rest of the saw easily and the home-built legs supporting the far end of the wide table kit were attached with hinges. Thus the removed assembly would fold flat and lean against the front of the saw for storage.

mpc

[nmguy]

That is correct. see http://bt3central.com/showthread.php?t=27266 the most awesome article on shims.........

Fixed it !

I made the guide shims from the photos in the article that go towards the front on the guide holder. (#3 on the diagram) Took me 30 minutes, I used some 0.008 metal. Fits perfect there is no more slop in the guide plate I also adjusted one set screw on the guide. I Used my adjustable hand held sheet metal bender for the right angle bend and to make the overlap tabs. The blade sits at a perfect 90 Deg, now. The blade will now lower and rise with out any play or other problems. The candle wax works wonders to.


Lowes for $2.00 . If anyone is looking for some of this thin metal. It's located in the specialty screw drawers market hobby, The package is marked 0.008 on the top.Two shims can be from this small sheet. ,3-or 4 shims can be made for the straight flat shims. It's the same material and thickness of the original shims.


I'm off to the read the other articles you mentioned.

thanks again.