Reviving a mothballed BT3000

[Charles Darwin]

Well, I finally picked up a BT3000. I've been looking for a while and found one posted in the BT3central classifieds!

Now, every saw I have seen posted on CL, etc is always described as hardly used or lightly used, but in reality, this is hardly ever the case (I looked at 3 BT3100s in very rough shape). So when then seller told me that this saw was never used, I was skeptical. But after an inspection I'm pretty sure he was telling the truth. There was not a grain of sawdust on it. There were no scratches or marks or any indication that the saw was ever turned on. It was fully assembled (except for RK), but it had never been aligned. I turned it on, and it ran. So I came home with a pristine saw.

So my question to the forum is this: What sort of maintenance should I do on this 8-year-old never-used saw?

I'm pretty sure the shims are in place, but what sort of damage does sitting idle for 8 years do to the belts? Should anything be lubed or cleaned. It was stored in a dry basement, but should I inspect any specific parts for corrosion?

This forum has been tremendously helpful so far. Any suggestions will be appreciated.

CD

[Tom Miller]

I'm pretty sure the shims are in place, but what sort of damage does sitting idle for 8 years do to the belts? Should anything be lubed or cleaned. It was stored in a dry basement, but should I inspect any specific parts for corrosion?

The two main moving parts, or rather where metal slides against metal, that I'd check are where the shims slide against the guide holder (note: there are three surfaces, not two, on each side of the arbor), and the elevation screw. The latter is on the motor side of the saw. I wouldn't move the blade up or down until you get those surfaces lubed (dry lube), as the aluminum could be oxidized enough to bind.

Don't know what to tell you about the belts -- don't know why they'd be worse off for sitting, and mine are still working after 9 yrs.

It's a good idea to get spare shims and belts while they're still available. (Hmmm, reminds me to check if I have replacement belts on hand....)

Welcome to the forum!

Regards,
Tom

[Ed62]

Welcome aboard. You should send LCHIEN a PM asking for the FAQ. It has a ton of good information concerning your new saw. Just click on the member's list above to find him. Or he just might make a post on this thread. Good luck with making sawdust.

Ed

[cgallery]

I'd get the FAQ from Loring and order the parts to have BT3100 shim replacements on hand.

[LCHIEN]

I'd get the FAQ from Loring and order the parts to have BT3100 shim replacements on hand.

I don't think a BT3000 is a automatic sentence for lost shims... when i did a poll a year or so ago (and this was several years after it was discontinued), about 1/3 of BT3000 owners reported they had problems which means you have a 66% chance of not having them.

I personally think if you take care of the saw and lube the ways periodically, keep them clean, then you probably won't have shim problems. I suppose the prople whose shims fell out simply never lubed their saws in this area.

Now an 8-year old saw that has sat presents some possible issues. If the lube in the ways has dried up it may sieze up the shims on first movement and you will lose them. I would wax the exposed ways to lubricate them, then carefully move the elevation just a bit to see if the shims mved with the motor housing. If they move then I would carefully crank it to the waxed parts and then wax the newly exposed parts. If they seemed to stick then I have some other ideas but its plan B for sure.

Once you get it going, wax the ways every few months.

[Charles Darwin]

Thanks or the advice everyone.

Unfortunately, I have raised and lowered the blade a few timed to align the SMT and rip fence. Out of morbid curiosity, I crawled under the saw to look at the shims, and it looks like there is a problem. One shim is starting to slide to the side at a slight angle . I tried to push it back into place, but it does not want to move, and I do not want to force it. The other shim is sliding down, but can be pushed back up into position.

I will be ordering the parts to upgrade to BT3100 shims. The shims and guide holder are cheaper at M&D, but the belts are cheaper at Sears (for the 22811). The belts look good for now, but I want some spares, so I will probably be going with Sears.

This is a bummer, the thing still has never touched wood. The blade is all the way up now, is it safe for me use it with the shims sliding out?

CD

[Black wallnut]

Is it safe: possibly; should you: probably not; will you get poor results: very likely. Fix the issues with the saw first, recheck adjustments and then do a test cut. With a good blade you will be surprised in a good way!

But wait just a minute! I doubt you can see the shims from under the saw. The shims that have given users the fits are those on the arbor side of the locker bracket and captured by the guide holder. The shrouding around the blade makes this not viewable except from the top with the throat plate removed and the left side with the dust shroud removed. To truely inspect the shims you need to remove the left side panel, then the dust shroud. Pretty much follow my directions in the Articles section. You'll see plenty of good step by step photos of what to look for and how to do each step. If your shims are fine and if your saw is truely never used I have real serious doubts that you have shim problems, but anything is possible. As Loring stated only about a third of the owners polled ever had issues so the odds are in your favor.

[Charles Darwin]

Hmmm. I'm pretty sure I'm looking at the arbor-side shims, and they are very easy to see.

Here are 2 pics taken straight up from the base:





Am I missing some sort of guard that would normally block this view?