Rip fence difficult to slide

[Grandpa Jones]

Hi all,

Been cleaning up the BT3000 I found on CL. The two plastic slide blocks in the
rip fence head are a very tight fit in the front rail top slot. I thought perhaps
the front rail had a damaged section, so I removed the slide blocks from the
rip fence head, and checked the fit of the blocks along the entire length of the
top slot in the front rail. They are uniformly tight the full length of the slot.

Considering removing some material from the width of the slide blocks, but
I'm not sure if this would affect the squaring of the rip fence if done
incorrectly.

Anyone else run into this problem?

Thanks,

Dave

[leehljp]

Welcome Dave. I am sure there is someone here that can answer that particular question. I don't remember that problem coming up. I do have a BT myself.

[Richard in Smithville]

Hello Dave and welcome to the forum. I had a look at my BT and I wonder if the blocks are not running parallel to each other. This would cause some twisting effects and make the fence stick. I don't think removing any material from the blocks will benifit you.

[pelligrini]

You might try rubbing some wax paper on the blocks and the contact areas on the rails before you get into messing with the blocks.

[LCHIEN]

i think waxing the blocks and ther rails will have bad implications down later - people who have waxed the rails end up withthe T-block lifting off the raisl when they clamp it.

I also think that trimming the blocks would be a bad idea as they were molded, fit originally, and nothing should be "growing"

My first suspicion woul be too much saw dust jamming everything up, although if you've had it apart that could be out the window. The roller wheel in the back is also susceptible to too much sawdust and should be cleaned an lubed intil it rolls freely.
If the screw adjusting the point at which the clamp tightens up is too far in then the clamp could be clamping too early. THis screw is in the very back of the rip fence.

This (plastic slides too tight) is certainly not an issue that's come up before and i have been on this forum for years and the Ryobi one before that. I'd look around at other issues and if you haven't, read my FAQ.

[John Hunter]

Is it possible that one of the rails is turned? Seems I remember someone running into that problem.

[dbhost]

I was going to tell you to double check the way the rails are installed, that they are square and all... I seem to recall someone else having a similar problem with a front rail that had gotten somewhat twisted. It's an odd problem though...

Wish I could see how all the bits and pieces line up on yours, but that would be a VERY difficult set of photos to take...

[eezlock]

rip fence difficult to slide

Dave, it sounds as if your fence rails are not mounted properly. I think that
the rails should be checked with the fence removed from the saw.
Take a little time and a good set of calipers and check the clearances
between the saw body and rails at several locations on each rail. I think that
you will probably find that the distances from one end of the saw to the other
is not the same, and be sure to check both front and back rails. It would also be a good time to see if the rails are level, as this minor fault could cause some binding when you try and move the fence.Lets us know if this solves your problem.

[leehljp]

Dave, it sounds as if your fence rails are not mounted properly. I think that
the rails should be checked with the fence removed from the saw.
Take a little time and a good set of calipers and check the clearances
between the saw body and rails at several locations on each rail. I think that
you will probably find that the distances from one end of the saw to the other
is not the same, and be sure to check both front and back rails. It would also be a good time to see if the rails are level, as this minor fault could cause some binding when you try and move the fence.Lets us know if this solves your problem.

I used my saw today and looked at the fence very closely. Eezlock's suggestion came to mind. It should slide fairly easy unless one or both of the rails are not mounted to the saw correctly. The mounting bosses have caused a few people problems if they are turned wrong or one of the rails is not seated correctly.

A second problem that I thought of was the fact that the back latch could be mis-adjusted as Loren suggested. It should hook under the lip and when the handle is up, it should be free of the rear rail lip and allow the fence to slide.

[Black wallnut]

Reference below pics for correct rail orientation:

[Grandpa Jones]

Thank you all for your replies, the more I look at this saw the more it
appears that it was largely unloved. You've given me plenty of tips
to get it set up properly.

Thanks,

Dave