Rip fence aligns poorly on new BT3100.

[steve-u]

I just bought a BT3100 at HD. I have assembled it according to instructions and all seems to have gone well except when I pull the rip fence handle down to lock it the rear moves about 1/8 inch to the left. I hope that is not normal. I read page 34 for instructions on how to check rip fence alignment and it seems fine until I lock it. It shows a clamp screw on the end of the rip fence but makes no mention of using it for any adjustment.

Also a minor separate issue is that the scale indicator [plastic window with red line] does not fit on the rip fence front. It is about a quarter inch too long. I am thinking of just rubbing the ends of it on sand paper to try and work off some plastic to make it fit. I could use my Roto Zip to trim but that can eat it up real fast if I am not careful. Anyone have any other ideas on how to trim it down. I could call them I suppose for a new part also. --- Steve

[LCHIEN]

quote:Originally posted by steve-u

I just bought a BT3100 at HD. I have assembled it according to instructions and all seems to have gone well except when I pull the rip fence handle down to lock it the rear moves about 1/8 inch to the left. I hope that is not normal. I read page 34 for instructions on how to check rip fence alignment and it seems fine until I lock it. It shows a clamp screw on the end of the rip fence but makes no mention of using it for any adjustment.

Also a minor separate issue is that the scale indicator [plastic window with red line] does not fit on the rip fence front. It is about a quarter inch too long. I am thinking of just rubbing the ends of it on sand paper to try and work off some plastic to make it fit. I could use my Roto Zip to trim but that can eat it up real fast if I am not careful. Anyone have any other ideas on how to trim it down. I could call them I suppose for a new part also. --- Steve

The BT fence lockdown goes like this:
As you lower the handle part way the front clamps the front rail at two places - this will line up the rip fence repeatably,
and will be parallel to the blade if you have set it up this way.

As you continue to lower the front handle, the clamp in the rear of the fence pulls up and grabs the slot on the rear rail.

You now have a fence locked down front and back so it won't move as you cut wood. The delayed rear lock allows the front to line your fence up properly. This is pretty much a unique and positive feature to the BT3, other saw fence systems only lock at the front and its possible to deflect the fence at the rear.

If its not working like this then you have a problem.

[steve-u]

Thanks for that info. I adjusted the two screws on top of the fence at the front of the table and it now seems to work fine after adjusting the screws a couple of times. It now repeatedly locks the rip fence parallel to the blade. I used my square to check and used it's one leg end like a feeler guage and at both ends it just barely scrapes the fence in the bottom quarter of it while the other leg of the square is lined up on the blade. --- Steve

[leehljp]

Welcome Steve. Hope you enjoy your saw. That movement catches a lot of people until they find out that it is part of the alignment proceedure.

The correct way to align the fence is to use the square against the blade like you did, push the handle down about 1/3rd of the way until it swings. This acutally squares the front block of the fence with the front rail.

At this point just before the rear clamper locks, check and see if it is aligned with the square or not. If not, loosen the two TOP screws on the front of the aluminum bar and align the fence to square. Retighten the screws. Finish clamping so that the rear clamper is doing it's job.

Hope this helps

[gjbivin]

The scale indicator mounts behind the window (either left or right, depending on your rail setup). It would indeed be too long if you're trying to mount it on the outside of the fence base -- and wouldn't be near enough to the rail scale for accuracy in that case.

[gmack5]

If it were me, I would only loosen ONE of the screws on the top of the Rip Fence, use the other one as a pivot and swing the blade to make the adjustment, then retighten the loose one and you should be good to go.

Welcome Steve,

Congratulations on the acquisition of your BT3100 and welcome to the "family".

One of the first things you need to do, after you get your BT3100 Saw assembled is, following your Owner's Manual, go thru the entire set-up proceedure, step by step, in the sequence laid out in the Manual. Each set up proceedure builds on the preceeding proceedure, so you MUST keep them in sequence.
Usually the Saw is set up properly, right out of the box, but you should still check it as this gets you familiar with all the adjustments on the saw and assures you that everything is as it should be.

Here's some free plans that'll keep you busy for a while. http://www.woodworkersworkshop.com/r...ex.php?cat=102

And here's some additional information about your Saw that you may find useful.

Regardless of what you've read or others have told you, NEVER NEVER use any wax or lubricant on your saw that contains Silicone, this includes all automobile waxes and polishes and most spray-on furniture polishes. The reason is simple, most of them contain Silicones and they will make your projects difficult to finish.
Silicones repell liquid, making "fish eyes" in your finishes, this will force you to remove the Silicones from your project and start over. That stuff (Silicone) migrates all over every where, don't ask me how, it just does.
If you put it in one place, eventually it will be all over the
entire saw.

Your best bet is to use a "dry" lubricant, such as Teflon (PTFE), Powdered Graphite, or Candle Wax for the Raising/Lowering and Tilt mechanisms below the table top.

Then use either Johnson's Paste Wax, Minwax's "Finishing Wax" or Butcher's Wax on the working surfaces, table tops (All three of them) and the Rip Fence.

Do NOT Wax the Front and Rear rails or the Miter Fence. As a mater of fact, you may want to glue 220 grit sand-paper to the front face of the Miter Fence, cause you don't WANT things to slide on there.

You might also want to check out the "Articles" section on the www.BT3central.com site. Lots of good maintenance information on your saw and some of the Jigs and Fixtures that BT3Central members and others have designed for it. Located here: http://www.bt3central.com/articles/ The only thing you'll need to access the information is a recent copy of the Adobe Reader (It can be downloaded from the BTcentral site). One of the Articles mentioned is a "Check List", written by Jim Frye. You can find it here: https://www.sawdustzone.org/articles...nce-check-list

This list contains all the different areas on your saw that need to be periodically inspected or given some sort of special attention. In other words, a "Preventative Maintanence Check List" or PM. Performing this PM on a monthly basis would be a good idea. One of the other things you'll find there is an on-line copy of the User's Manual in downloadable pdf format (a handy thing to have).

Something you might think about is the use of a set of Draftsman's Triangles instead of the Carpenter's Square that they show in the Owner's Manual for setting up your saw.
An accurate Carpenter's Square is almost a myth!
A good one will cost you quite a bit of money, $40 - $75, or more. I would recommend that you consider using a pair of Draftsman's 30 -60 and 45 degree triangles instead. You'll find they're not near as expensive and are far more accurate than a run-of-the-mill Carpenter's Square. The 30 -60 triangle should have one 12" leg and the other leg would be 9" long. The 45 degree triangle should have at least 8" legs on either side of the 90 degree corner. That way either one can be put up against the side of the Saw Blade without touching the saw teeth.

Just remember, regardless of which measuring instrument you choose to use, check it(them) to be sure they're accurate. When checking the Miter Fence for Square to the Blade with a triangle, use the 12" 30-60, if possible.

One of the other "tricks" that I've discovered is to take a piece of "Wax" paper, fold it several times and rub it in the grooves that the "T" nuts that lock your Rails in place ride in. Makes the Rails move smooth as Butter.

Last, but not least, don't forget to paint the RED line!
It's a line that extends the line-of-sight from the saw blade to the front edge of the table to remind you NOT to let your Miter Fence or your FINGERS get in the way of the saw blade. Just put red paint, nail polish, or what ever, in the grove that extends towards the operator from the front edge of the saw blade.

[wassaw998]

Sounds like you got it figured out. Another way to think about this, is , as you slide the fence in either direction on the rails, the back end of the fence is going to "toe out" or "toe in" depending on which direction you are sliding. That is, at that pt, the fence is no longer parallel. When you then lock down the handle, as mentioned, the lock down processs is going to force the fence back to parallel, and thus you'll see the "toe/swing" get removed and the back end of the fence move accordingly. That is, this is proper - and what you want to occur, else each time you move the fence and tighten down, you may be out of alignment, any fence I've used works this way. If when it locks down the fence is not aligned, that is a different issue. But, the movement as it locks down is very normal, and part of the way a fence works.

To avoid some of that swing movement, you can "press" the fence straight before you lock it down, so when you do lock it down there is not much if any swing. I started doing this as habbit, makes adjustments a lot easier.

[steve-u]

Thanks gentleman. It work perfect now. Before when I locked the rip fence the back was about 1/8 inch to the left of the front but after adjusting the two screws on top of the arm it aligns beautifuly and does not move off the measure mark I select on the front rail. And also thanks for the info on the the scale indicator as that is properly installed. I did some test crosscuts on a 2x4 and was pleased at how smooth the cut was. My old Craftsman [around 1980]radial arm saw must have a dull blade as the crosscuts are kind of rough [blade is aligned to fence/table]. I probably will be auctioning it on Ebay for local pickup as between the BT3100 and my power miter saw I don't seeing my RAS getting much use anymore unless I keep it just because it looks cool. I got my moneys worth out of it but I won't miss using it for ripping any more. --- Steve

[scorrpio]

If you don't have a miter saw yet, thas RAS might still be of use. Put a decent crosscut blade on it and it should work great for cutting longer pieces.

[steve-u]

I do have a 10" Pro Tech miter saw with laser and it seems to work pretty well. When I bought it I did not know much about power tools and if I was going to do it again I probably would buy the Hitachi 10" miter saw. The thought of getting a new blade for my RAS sounds like a good idea but I am having a hard time finding a RAS blade as many recommend a negative hook angle but since I am not going to rip with it anymore I really wonder if that is necessary and instead am considering a carbide 60 tooth crosscut blade that is also suitable for a sliding compound miter saw. The RAS is nice and easy for crosscuting and I have plenty room in the basement for it. --- Steve

[MaineManx]

9 years late to the party… but thank you!!!

Seldom used BT3100