New Guy Introduction & Question

[Herman]

Hello,

I just joined the forum this evening and thought I would introduce myself. I purchased a used BT3000 last week primarily to use as a cheap portable table saw for repair work on my rental houses. I have messed around with wood working from time to time, but most my word working is the carpentry I do to repair my houses.

I will admit I didn't look the saw over too closely when I bought it since it was fairly cheap and the guy threw in just about every option Ryobi produced for the BT saws. It runs okay and cuts wood, but not with any more accuracy than the $50 throw away table saw I used to have. I assume whatever is wrong is repairable.

I tried using it this past weekend and noted two problems.

1. There seems to be several thousandths play in the blade when I move it back and forth perpendicular to the plane of rotation. Is this normal or does it indicate the arbor bearings are worn?

2. The rear of the rip fence does not lock or locks very loosely. Should the fence lock smoothly or is it normal for it to make noise as you tighten the handle? The saw ejected wood backwards at me which I assumed meant it was pinched between the blade and the fence.

Thanks,

[JR]

Welcome, Herman!

You should be able to get very accurate cuts with this saw. It may not be be as durable as big cast-iron job, but it is every bit as accurate.

1. There seems to be several thousandths play in the blade when I move it back and forth perpendicular to the plane of rotation. Is this normal or does it indicate the arbor bearings are worn?

No, there should be no play of the kind you describe. Take the throat plate off and try your blade moving experiment again. You'll probably see the the bracket to the right of the blade moving away from the wall. If so, you can remove the side panel for access the screws on that bracket, which will need a little tightening. If that's not it it's probable motor bearings, but that is a very rare problem.

2. The rear of the rip fence does not lock or locks very loosely. Should the fence lock smoothly or is it normal for it to make noise as you tighten the handle? The saw ejected wood backwards at me which I assumed meant it was pinched between the blade and the fence.

The fence should be rock solid when locked down. Normally the locking handle will only depress to a point between horizontal and about 22.5 degrees below that. There is a little hook at the back of the fence that's supposed to get under the lip of the rear rail. One of our members, RayintheUK, posted a manual. IIRC it explains how to adjust this.

HTH,
JR

[Pappy]

Welcome to the Asylum, Herman!

Send a PM to Loring with your email address (LCHIEN) to get a copy of the BT3 FAQ's. A lot of the answers to the questions that you will have are in there.

[jabe]

Welcome!!! Sometimes if U tighten the blade to tight it'll cause it to wobble. The arbor nut is a reverse thread so U don't have to tighten it real tight just snug with a 1/4 turn more.

[pecker]

There are some shims in the blade raising mechanism that can get damaged or even fall out. This would allow some left to right movement of the blade. Here's a thread with some pictures:
http://www.bt3central.com/showthread...im+replacement

You can find more by searching the forum for "shim replacement"

[dvan]

Hello Herman, I am also new to the site welcome! My BT3000 rip fence was also loose on the back side and would not lock down tight. I did some research and I was missing the little hook JR talked about and Eparts online has all the pieces you need to build the whole back of the rip fence for around $9 + shipping. I think there are 5 or 6 total pieces. Hope this helps you.

[dvan]

I'm sorry Norm that is E replacement parts online.

[Herman]

Thanks for the assistance.

The slop is in the set screws used to adjust the shims. I noticed one of the four was cranked in substantially further than the other three. When I took it apart further I noticed two of the shims are dented and deformed. It looks like I need to replace the shims.

I messed with the fence some more and adjusted the screw on the end to get it to lock and was able to rough in the fence adjustment with the two screws on top the fence and the plastic blocks under the locking mechanism. I thought I would replace the two plastic blocks since I need to order shims any way.

Does any one have reccommendations for a more portable stand than the one that comes with this saw? I was wondering about the folding stand Dewalt makes for their portable saws. I like the rolling stand that comes with the Craftsman 218290 but I'm not sure how well a rolling stand would work when it comes time to load and unload the saw in my cargo van.

[eccentrictinkerer]

Re your need for a portable stand, I caught a deal on the Bosch stand at Amazon a while back. Only $150 shipped!

It's a terrific stand for my shop. I have only 270 sq. ft. so every inch counts.

I'm not so sure that the BT3 is the best saw for throwing into the truck. With the rails on it's kinda clunky. I use a Dewalt benchtop saw for my handyman business and my BT3 for precision cuts.

The BT3 was, I believe, designed to be a lightweight shop saw that gives great accuracy at a reasonable price.

YMMV!