Question/saw issue...

[LCHIEN]

last thought is that an improperly positioned riving knife will cause dragging.
The riving knife is positioned right and left so it can be rigged to be directly behind the blade and teh work pass to either side. There are a number of shims provided in the mouniting, you place the shims to one side or the other. In addition to this, the riving knife must be very vertical. It can be persuaded to lean to one side or the other by applying a bit of pressure, its mild steel so it will take a bend as the base is only an inch and a half wide. If the top of the blade you view is lined up with the blade but the knife is bent, then the lower part of the knife will not be aligned and can cause dragging.

[steveg]

Update --

My local Lowe's does not have the CMT blade, so I opted to order a better blade online -- a Freud Fusion P410T 40 tooth combination blade. This one was also suggested by knottscott, as being a "premium" combination blade.

(I also added to the order another knottscott blade suggestion for my 12" DeWalt Compound Miter saw -- an Oshlun SBW-120080 12-Inch 80 Tooth ATB blade).

I'm hoping that in about a week, once I get this new Freud Fusion blade and get it installed, and get the throat plate issue resolved (re-tap the screw hole and replace the screw), that this will fix my problem. I have read everything posted here, to do my best to make sure I don't have one of these other problems -- no extension cords, check fence/blade alignment issues, raise the saw blade higher...but these did not resolve the issue. A dull and dirty blade seems to be the only one left...so hopefully I've addressed that now, with a new blade on the way. We shall see. Any other thoughts?

Steve

[steveg]

Woodturner --

If by "backwards blade," you mean one with the teeth facing AWAY from the front of the saw (away from the material being cut) rather than towards it, then no -- it's not backwards.

An update -- I took a 3/4" piece of red oak, about 8" wide, and tried cutting it. I tried a crosscut first, and while I could accomplish it, I had to REALLY push hard on the board, and the board had a tendency to want to lift upward, from the table, while cutting. It burned the edge of the wood, and produced some smoke due to the burning, and the motor was being a bit stressed.

So, I then tried a rip on the same board, cutting off about an inch of material. This was even MORE difficult -- as soon as the wood encountered the blade, it was like trying to slide your feet along a rubber mat -- just did NOT want to feed, and burning the wood/smoking like crazy.

SO -- I decided that it must be a dull blade issue, and planned to go to Lowe's and get a semi-inexpensive, but decent quality combination blade (one of the ones that knottscott recommended to me a couple of years ago was a CMT model number P10050 -- it's a 50 tooth combination blade that he said is a pretty decent one).

WELL -- I went to remove the throat plate, to remove the blade, and wouldn't you know -- one of the screw heads was STRIPPED . So, I had to drill out the screw, and now need to go get a tap to re-thread the screw hole and get a new screw. Once I get this all done, get the new blade on, and try a new cut, I'll report back...

Seems like if it's not one thing, it's another...

Steve

[woodturner]

I ran a piece of 3/4" oak through the saw, and I found it VERY VERY tough to run the board through and make the rip cut.

Check the blade to make sure it is on right - the prior owner might have installed it backwards.

A fence out of alignment can cause some binding, but I wouldn't describe that as "very tough" - that sounds more like a backwards blade to me.

[steveg]

Hey all --

Some great info here...I need to go through each post and make sure I consider each point raised by each poster.

As an update, I measured the blade/fence distance today using the "edge of the tooth" method described by cabinetman, I think it was -- measure from edge of tooth to fence, then rotate that tooth to the front and measure again. I could see no difference in the measurements. I used a tape measure with only 16ths of an inch markings on it, but I would estimate that the measurements were the same at least to the 100th of an inch...could the blade being out of alignment by less than a 100th of an inch or so still be causing these issues? No, the saw was not attached to a long thin extension, I think it was plugged in directly.

I will re-do the cuts with a different piece of wood; I'll do a rip, and a crosscut, and see what I find out, and report back...

Steve

[jdon]

Ditto on a dedicated rip blade- I've been happy with my Freud thin kerf.

Also, there could be a problem with blade-fence parallelism in the vertical plane, which might cause binding. Secure clamping of the fence requires little force on the handle; the saw's previous owner might have bent "clamper A" by agressive clamping, resulting in a non-vertical fence.

Do a search using "fence" and "vertical" for a thread from a month ago, where this site's gurus helped me out

[pelligrini]

Another thing that can contribute is a dirty top and fence. I'll wax mine regularly. A quick application of paste wax makes things slide with less effort. It also lessens the amount of the gray marks I get on my material from the raw aluminum.

If you've got a lot of ripping to do, you might consider getting a dedicated rip blade. The 36T OEM blade should handle 3/4 material fairly easily though, if clean and sharp. Picking up a thin kerf rip blade will also let you compare a newly sharpened blade to the one you have.

[cwsmith]

Very easy way to check that the fence is parallel to the blade is to simply take a piece of stock (that has parallel edges) or preferably a measuring stick (I use a 2" wide aluminum yard stick from HF), and lay it next to the blade, making sure it touches (but not forced) the blade front and back. If you use a yard stick, you can position this in the gullet area of the blade, rather than be concerned about the set of the teeth.

Then move the fence very close to the yard stick (but not touching...maybe about an 1/8 or less of space). The yard stick should be absolutely parallel.

Now lock the fence down and pay attention to any movement of the fence as you do so. On my original factory-set, the fence moved a good 1/8-inch toward the blade at the back which was my particular problem.

Adjust as may be necessary.

This has proved to be the best method for me, in checking and maintaining proper fence alignment. Once adjusted in this manner, my fence has maintained it's proper position for well over a year now.

My further feelings regarding your problem is in agreement with all of the posts read thus far. I'm pretty much a "junior" too, with only having my table saw experience span the last few years... and only with the BT, which I really love.

Keep that blade clean!

Also, don't assume that it is little used and properly sharp. It just may have been cleaned and dressed up by the previous owner. Have you tried to use it on a simple cross cut and has that been easy? That of course takes any fence alignment issues out of the question.

Lastly, I keep my blade height adjusted so that the bottom of the gullet is at the top edge of whatever stock that I'm cutting... in other words, the blade is set so that only one tooth fully extends above the stock. (That is what I was taught, so I hope that is correct procedure... it works for me, but comments are certainly welcome.)

At no time should you ever have to really force the stock through a cut. Realize of course that you can't rush the blade though, it needs to be able to do it's work. But really having to force the stock is dangerous and I'm glad you have the knowledge to ask about it.

Good luck,

CWS

[cabinetman]

Another thought. The wood may be damp. Like it was mentioned an inappropriate extension cord could be problematic. It may be undersized, or too long. Check to see if it gets warm.

Another thing you might try is run the blade higher...well above the stock. Try it high. At a high setting the cutting angle provides a shorter contact between the blade and the stock. It will run cooler.

.

[Knottscott]

Assuming the blade isn't dull, it's likely alignment.

The blade could also just be dirty.....very easy and dirt cheap to clean it. Spray on a household cleaner like 409, Totally Awesome, Fantastic, etc....hit the teeth with a brass or nylon bristle brush, rinse, wipe....3-4 minutes from start to finish. It's a good habit to clean the blade regularly...a dirty blade behaves like a dull blade, and actually causes dulling via excess heat.

Be sure your saw isn't plugged into a long thin extension cord...it'll rob amperage.

[LCHIEN]

my 2 cents is that blade binds are typically caused by one of three things:
1. Back of fence toed in towards the blade. Alignment is the answer and BT way of alignment is to loosen the two screws on top of the rip fence with the front handle pushed down slightly as as to lock up the front rail grabbers but not lock up the rear rail grabber (some feel for rip fence operation is necessary). Align then tighten the screws. The holes have enough play to make the alignment.
2. Wood has got some strange stresses in it that cause it to close up on the blade and or riving knife/splitter. Solution is another piece of wood.
3. Blade problem - is really dull and won't cut, this is pretty rare to be that bad, unless you put it in backwards or crooked, or loose of something equally weird.
4. Assuming you're doing a relatively thin rip (you said trim molding), underpowereing due to AC supply issues should not be a problem.

[steveg]

cabinetman...

I'll doublecheck the saw being plugged in/turned on, when I try to make a cut!

I have not measured the "blade to fence" yet. Since this seems like one likely culprit of my issue, I will do so, and hope to find that this is the issue -- as this would be an easy thing to adjust, and thus solve the problem.

No, there was nothing "restrictive" on the table (aside from the blade guard/riving knife/anti-kickback stuff) on the table, and nothing restrictive on the fence.

I'll keep my fingers crossed that when I take the two blade-to-fence measurements, that I find this to be the problem...

Steve

[cabinetman]

Guys --

First of all, here's what it says on my blade:

10" combination blade
7000 RPM
36 teeth
laser cut, carbide tipped
Made in Italy

I have been told this is the Freud blade, that is the typical "stock" blade on the BTs.

So, reading all that is written, and assuming the blade is NOT the issue (though I will wait to see if you all agree on that), seems like I do need to check the fence/blade alignment.

Yes, cabinetman, the blade is installed correctly (teeth facing front)...and you and Knottscott both asked about blade type (which I've provided now, hopefully giving you the info you were asking about).

Pappy -- yes, blade guard is installed. I'm not familiar with a "splitter" -- but I don't think this is the issue, as, if I recall correctly, the "hard to push through the blade" issue was occurring BEFORE there was enough of the wood past the blade to allow it to "close back up" and thus be the cause of the issue...

Carpenter96 -- I'll keep in mind what you said about pushing on the stock too close to the fence. Thanks much for that little tip!


Thoughts (given the blade info?)

Steve

Before you start the cut, did you plug the saw in and turn it on? Sorry, I just had to ask.

Did the blade to fence measure the same front and back? Are there any restrictive elements on the table or the fence that would inhibit the wood to be moving freely?

.

[steveg]

Guys --

First of all, here's what it says on my blade:

10" combination blade
7000 RPM
36 teeth
laser cut, carbide tipped
Made in Italy

I have been told this is the Freud blade, that is the typical "stock" blade on the BTs.

So, reading all that is written, and assuming the blade is NOT the issue (though I will wait to see if you all agree on that), seems like I do need to check the fence/blade alignment.

Yes, cabinetman, the blade is installed correctly (teeth facing front)...and you and Knottscott both asked about blade type (which I've provided now, hopefully giving you the info you were asking about).

Pappy -- yes, blade guard is installed. I'm not familiar with a "splitter" -- but I don't think this is the issue, as, if I recall correctly, the "hard to push through the blade" issue was occurring BEFORE there was enough of the wood past the blade to allow it to "close back up" and thus be the cause of the issue...

Carpenter96 -- I'll keep in mind what you said about pushing on the stock too close to the fence. Thanks much for that little tip!


Thoughts (given the blade info?)

Steve

[Pappy]

You also don't say if the blade guard ar a splitter are installed. Without a splitter the wood could be trying to close up on the back of the blade. This would not only cause the hard cutting you describe, but put you in danger of a kick back.