What should I expect from my BT3K and a new blade?

[Taylormade]

Hi there, new guy here. I picked up a BT3k in great shape and immediately bought a new Freund 1040 blade and slapped it on there. The old blade was the original factory one. I got the saw tuned up and square and last night I cut a handful (literally) of laminate planks. 5 or less. Today I was excited to start a new project (after finishing the floors) and went to rip a small piece of 6/4 Cherry. The saw really bogged down and eventually starting smoking. I turned it off and let it cool off before cutting some small pieces of pine which it handled with little problem. I'm using an extension cord, but it's the one for my camper, so it's a 10 guage cable, on a dedicated 20A circuit.

I guess I'm concerned that my "new" saw isn't going to do what I need it to do. I have a bunch of 6/4 cherry that's 10' long each. I know I should drop to a 24T blade for ripping, but I was just trying to rip a small piece and couldn't. Does cutting 5 pieces of fairly thin laminate really kill the blade THAT fast?

[RodKirby]

Welcome Great saw!

I'll ask before someone else does Is the blade mounted the "right" way? That is, teeth "points" towards you, as you stand in front of the saw. A few of our guys have been caught that way.

AND/OR - are you sure your rip fence is parallel to the blade - NOT the ridges in the top?

[Taylormade]

Ha! yeah, the blade's on right. And the fence is parallel, the first thing I did when I brought it home was "tune" it up. Thanks though, I'm certainly not above making dumb mistakes.

[dbhost]

I am assuming the saw is new to you, and not one you picked up NIB never used etc... There are a couple of things to ask then...

#1. How clean is the saw? Is it possible you have sawdust in the motor etc?
#2. How is the condition of the brushes?
#3. By Freud 1040, do you mean Diablo D1040X? Or did you grab some non thin kerf blade?
#4. How's your feed rate? A 1.5HP saw isn't going to take 6/4 stock at anywhere near the rate of a 3HP saw. You might just need to slow your rate down to what the saw wants to do...
#5. This might sound dumb, but what blade guard do you have? I managed to get stock stuck under my Shark Guard once due to operator stupidity, and wedged the stock against the blade, that stopped the saw cold...
#6. That laminate, depending on what the resins in it are, it is possible that it got the blade good and dirty already... You might try cleaning it.

After that, I'm out of ideas. I am sure Loring, or one of the other fellas that have been using the saw longer than me will chime in soon and give you some more ideas...

[Taylormade]

First, I really appreciate the speedy responses.

It's new to me, but certainly not new. I haven't pulled the motor apart to inspect the brushes yet, perhaps that's something I should check into. I do have the FAQ and it's been great to check up on things.

It is the Diablo blade the 1040X. I know, not the best of blades, but I thought it should handle this decently. I'm just trying to rip a 2' board. My feed rate is as slow as it can be, doesn't matter. As soon as the blade hits the board, it bogs and starts throwing smoke up. The blade almost looks shot (I just went out and took a look at it), but I happen to have another one just like it new in packaging. I can toss that on and see if it helps.

I removed the saw guard completely, so that's not it, and I took the fence out of the picture, just trying to push the board through free hand, still no luck. I'm going to run out and try the new blade... see if I just ruined this one on the laminate.

[Knottscott]

The D1024X would have an easier time, but the BT with a D1040X should do pretty well in 6/4" hardwood. You've said that the alignment is good, but is the wood flat and straight? How's the moisture content? Keep the blade very clean, and double check the alignment.

[Taylormade]

ok, so I replaced the blade, re-aligned the fence, and finished ripping the board I was working with and then cross cut it. I don't know the specific moisture content, but it's been stored in a shed for a few years (flat). The board is rough, but it's fairly flat and straight.

I'll get a 24T blade tomorrow and we'll start again. Maybe the 5 pieces of laminate I ripped lengthwise fouled it up enough to make it smoke cutting 6 qtr stock. Thanks again for all the input, I'll cut some more tomorrow when my neighbors won't want to kill me

[cwsmith]

DON'T free-hand your board on any cut!!! That's a sure-fire way to loose a finger, bind up the saw, or whatever. VERY dangerous way of using a table saw. If you are ripping and if you have properly aligned the rip fence and the blade, then there should be no reason to not use the rip fence.

Cherry, as I understand it, is a very hard wood to cut and it can easily be burned. While I have yet to experience it, I have read a few posts where burn-marks on cherry can be a problem.

From my own experience, cutting laminate is very hard on saw blades. While you haven't cut that much, I know that I destroyed a 10" thin-kerf 40-tooth Ridgid blade on my CMS doing just one small kitchen floor; and that was just doing crosscuts.

Hopefully with a new blade, you'll find the going a lot easier. But given your description, I'd be a bit concerned that you're overstressing the BT's motor. I'd hate to see you burn it out. While my own BT has mostly been used cutting pine and some oak, I do pay close attention to the "cutting" and let the blade and motor/blade efficiency dictate how slow or fast I feed the stock. You should feel very little resistance if the blade is cutting efficiently. If you feel you really have to push, then something is not right and you're overloading the saw's capacity.

Is there any tendency of the stock to "close" and pinch the blade during the cut?

I hope this helps,

CWS

[Bill in Buena Park]

Good advise to check what may be binding on the blade, which I believe is causing the burn and smoke, hopefully. It wasn't clear if the smoke was from your cut or the motor.

DON'T free-hand your board on any cut!!! That's a sure-fire way to loose a finger, bind up the saw, or whatever. VERY dangerous way of using a table saw.

I second that. No guard, free-hand - you're asking for kickback in a BIG way. Please use the fence when ripping, and the SMT, miter gauge or a sled for your crosscuts.

[LCHIEN]

If it bogs down you are feeding faster than the saw can cut - slow down.
if it burns then you are feeding too slowly - speed up feed rate.
If it burns and bogs at the same time then you do not have enough power, either because the saw is underpowered for size job you are throwing at it or for some reason you have limited the power available to the saw (too small power cord, misalignment, workpiece hanging or trapped etc.)

[Taylormade]

Thanks again for the replies. Ok, I'll try to address everything.

First, I understand free handing cutting is not something recommended, nor is it something I do regularly (or at all). I simply did this to eliminate both the fence and the guard as obstructions. They both went right back on after I determined they weren't at fault.

The stock didn't close or pinch past the blade. It stayed the same as the kerf of the blade through the riving knife.

I eliminated the extension cord and plugged directly into a dedicated 30A circuit, so it's not the supply... it may very well be the saw itself being underpowered (ducks). I need to look at the brushes and belt and see what's going on. That is, of course, if the 24 tooth blade doesn't slice it.

[Cochese]

I did a bunch of 6/4 (basically. 8/4 planed down to about 6/4) hard maple and purpleheart rips last year. While I had a bit of burning using a 60T blade, I never had smoking. Something's not right.

[Taylormade]

yeah, I'm going to try to disassemble the motor and inspect everything. Is there a write up on how to do such a thing? I have the FAQ but I don't think it says how to tear it apart. Maybe I missed it. Thanks.

[dbhost]

I am thinking brushes, or extension cord. But the cord you describe *should* be okay...

FWIW, I had a similar bogging problem with my BT3100 late last year, it's the brushes. I had to clean out a mess of sawdust from the motor housing, and while that fixed most of it, I recently had to order brushes from M and D, they actually shipped yesterday... I am working around it by slowing my feed rate down a tad... No smoking from my saw though, ever... That's what has me stumped, and I use a Diablo D1040X, it's no slouch of a blade mind you. Don't let those with deep pockets fool you, the Diablo is a very well made blade, and produces a fantastic cut... It is possible however that you maybe have a lemon? It happens even with the best...

Simply remove the side cover to the saw to expose the motor, there are brush covers on either side, unscrew them and the brushes should slide out. Even without replacing the brushes, you might want to just try blowing out the motor / under side of the saw. I have no clue how packed with sawdust this one is. They tend to get pretty nasty sometimes, especially if the previous owner didn't do anything for dust collection... I did get lucky there, the original owner of my saw was pretty good about dust collection from the saw, so it was pretty clean, but the motor was still packed with sawdust. Years of cutting will do that to these motors...

[cork58]

I use allot of Maple and after trying the less expensive blades I stepped up and bought the Freud 30T Glue Line Rip blade. My problems stopped right there. It is not a thin kerf but the results are well worth it. I also use Bostic DriCote at the start of every day, that helps to keep the bits and gullets clean. You can also use oven cleaner to remove any buildup you may have on the blade.