BT3000 Rip Fence Maintenance

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  • weilin
    Forum Newbie
    • Jul 2011
    • 15
    • Encino, CA
    • Ryobi BT3000

    BT3000 Rip Fence Maintenance

    Hi everyone,

    I'm dusting off my BT3000 that has been sitting idle for better part of a year. I want to calibrate the rip fence and SMT just for a peace of mind before I start using it even though I think the chances of the rip fence being out of alignment is not that great (since I never took it off the saw). I know what the result of a misaligned SMT is, but what are the symptoms of a misaligned rip fence? I mean if you hold the work tight to the fence (even if it not aligned), your cut will still be even and parallel, right? I guess if the back of the fence has a lean towards the blade, i would worry about pinching. But what if the alignment of the rip fence is going away fromt the blade? What are the symptoms? I guess my ultimate question is how can I definitively tell if the rip fence is not aligned. sorry if this is an amateur question. I appreciate any help. Thank you.
  • leehljp
    Just me
    • Dec 2002
    • 8429
    • Tunica, MS
    • BT3000/3100

    #2
    Proper alignment in the past was to put the long arm of a square - parallel and snug to the blade. Bring the Fence up to the square. At the rear of the square, place a dollar bill or sheet of paper. The Back of the fence should be out of alignment by that amount - away from the blade.

    "Pinching" as you mentioned, is an absolute no-no and dangerous situation that ends in KICK-BACK. But "away" from the blade by the amount mentioned above is fine and greatly reduces the risk of kickback. Some people do use perfect parallel and that may be fine. However, blade burning usually is the results of such close or "no" tolerances.
    Hank Lee

    Experience is what you get when you don't get what you wanted!

    Comment

    • weilin
      Forum Newbie
      • Jul 2011
      • 15
      • Encino, CA
      • Ryobi BT3000

      #3
      Thanks for your response, Hank.

      Comment

      • cork58
        Established Member
        • Jan 2006
        • 365
        • Wasilla, AK, USA.
        • BT3000

        #4
        Its been awhile since this topic has come up. Had to look but found the thread I was looking for. This should get you started.

        This is the place to ask questions about the Ryobi BT3 series table saws. Please limit the posts to this topic only.


        I made the jig myself and will check my alignment every once in awhile, just because it is so easy.

        Dan
        Cork,

        Dare to dream and dare to fail.

        Comment

        • capncarl
          Veteran Member
          • Jan 2007
          • 3564
          • Leesburg Georgia USA
          • SawStop CTS

          #5
          Hank
          Thanks for pointing out that running the blade parallel to the fence results in blade burning. I forgot, and keep my fence parallel to be blade using a machinist parallel bar.
          capncarl

          Comment

          • Lonnie in Orlando
            Senior Member
            • May 2003
            • 649
            • Orlando, FL, USA.
            • BT3000

            #6
            I'm sure that most of you have more experience using a table saw than I have or that I will ever have. However, I've never bought into the theory of moving the outfeed end of the fence farther away from the blade than the infeed side.

            If the fence and blade are purposely made a little out of parallel, then I suppose that the "second" cut by one edge of the upwardly spinning teeth on the outfeed side of the blade might shave off burn marks by the caused by the infeed teeth if the piece had been moved too slowly through the blade, the wood is prone to burning such as maple or cherry, dull/dirty blade, or operator error. I dunno. But that happens only on one side of the kerf.

            > What should be done if the "keeper" piece is not on the fence-side of the workpiece?
            > What should be done when the fence is moved to the other side of the blade?
            > What should be done for crosscuts?

            It looks like the potential problems with a fence that is out of alignment are greater than possibly cleaning up one side of a cut. For example, wood movement will cause a greater problem on one side of a misaligned fence than on the other.

            - Lonnie
            OLD STUFF ... houses, furniture, cars, wine ... I love it all

            Comment

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