Blade will not raise

[blowboat]

I a BT-3100. I purchased it in 2004 and a few months after that I had to take it in for the shims to be replaced. Granted, the last few years I have not been able to do much woodworking. But since a recent move I have been in a better position to do some woodworking but noticed that the saw bade was very difficult to raise.

Last Sunday I vacuumed the saw out really good and sprayed some dry lube on it and all seemed to work very well. The next day I went down to work on a project and the blade was once again very difficult to move. So I took the saw apart, vacummed it out, sprayed it out with air, cleaned the gears and everything I could find. I then once again sprayed it with a dry lube and all seemed to be working well. I went back the next day and the blade worked worse than before.

I can only get it to move up a little bit and then it is very difficult to get it to go down. I'm not sure what else to do...except haul it in for some repair work. Is there something I am missing?

PJ

[tommyt654]

Sounds to me like the dry lube is the problem, try blowing it out and cleaning it 1 more time and don't use the lube and see what happens. If its fine then there's your problem, could be that lube is catching dust and its compressing in the gears causing a binding effect. Try using some graphite instead of the dry lube your using.

[jking]

BT3100 or BT3000?

Do you have a BT3100 or a BT3000? The 3100 isn't supposed to have the shim problem.

Regarding the blade raising, I've usually seen hard wax recommended for lubricating the mechanism.

[JimD]

I haven't had the problem you describe but if you do woodworking while the dry lube is not dry, it will collect dust rapidly. I use candle wax on the aluminum casting where the shims ride. It normally will keep it lubricated through 5-10 woodworking sessions.

Jim