Help... bt3000 riving knife won't lign up with blade

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  • vcoutu
    Handtools only
    • Jun 2015
    • 2

    Help... bt3000 riving knife won't lign up with blade

    Hello,

    I purchased a new to me bt3k that didn't have the blade guard. I ended up purchasing two new ones from ryobi.

    When I installed it I noticed the riving knife/splitter was about 10 degrees out from the blade. Enough to be unable to pass a 3/4" plywood piece without it shifting away from the rip fence. I removed all the shims and checked the shims/bolts/mount. The bolts have a ton of play, and the riving knife was tilted the same without shims.

    Blade is at 90 btw

    Any ideas?

    Thanks
  • Black wallnut
    cycling to health
    • Jan 2003
    • 4715
    • Ellensburg, Wa, USA.
    • BT3k 1999

    #2
    10° makes it sound like it is bent and tipped away from the blade. It is possible that you have the wrong blade washers around the blade. You should have one about a half inch thick, one about a quarter and the larger flat blade washer then the blade, then another large flat washer and finally the arbor nut. With a blade installed this way you should be able to place a straight edge along the blade and confirm that the riving knife attachment boss on the guide holder is parallel to the blade. if it is then use whatever combination of shims needed to center the riving knife behind the blade. If it is not parallel then you have a bent arbor. or warped blade. Does the blade spin in a straight line or does it wobble? Can you post a picture?
    Donate to my Tour de Cure


    marK in WA and Ryobi Fanatic Association State President ©

    Head servant of the forum

    ©

    Comment

    • LCHIEN
      Internet Fact Checker
      • Dec 2002
      • 20914
      • Katy, TX, USA.
      • BT3000 vintage 1999

      #3
      The main splitter is made of mild steel. You may need to do a little persuading to get it perfectly vertical.
      YOu can do this by bending in the opposite direction a little over until it stays where you want it. of course you have to have the throat plate off.
      Then do the shim spacers to get it lined up behind the blade. That's my procedure anyway. At least , since I last had to "persuade" it which was quite a while ago.
      Last edited by LCHIEN; 06-09-2015, 03:51 PM.
      Loring in Katy, TX USA
      If your only tool is a hammer, you tend to treat all problems as if they were nails.
      BT3 FAQ - https://www.sawdustzone.org/forum/di...sked-questions

      Comment

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

        #4
        I believe that Black Walnut is correct. The splitter on my saw does not perfectly line up with the blade either. Since I remove the splitter fairly often to do shallow cuts it is easier to tweak the blade with the washers than bend the splitter and get the guard all out of kilter.
        capncarl

        Comment

        • mpc
          Senior Member
          • Feb 2005
          • 979
          • Cypress, CA, USA.
          • BT3000 orig 13amp model

          #5
          In which axis is the blade guard out? Does it lean towards or away from the fence - as though it was expecting a bevel cut? Or is it angled - i.e. is the distance from the front (curved) edge of the splitter to the fence different from the distance between the splitter's rear edge and the fence?

          The splitter itself is supposed to be a flat slab of metal - the whole shape (the curved front edge and slots for the support bolts) is just stamped out on a big cutting press. (think big cookie cutter) If your splitter isn't flat, flatten it.

          Then, with the saw OFF and unplugged, remove the throat plate and raise the blade all the way UP. Look at the rectangular aluminum section at the very back of the blade support assembly - the piece with the two bolts that support the guard. If the face of that rectangle is sloped top-to-bottom, the guard will "lean" as I described above. If the face of that rectangle is crooked (front to back) relative to the blade it'll result the guard being "angled" per my first paragraph. If either of those are true, then somebody either:
          A) took a file to the thing for some reason
          B) tried to bend the aluminum section holding the rectangle to get a little more blade clearance (e.g. installing an 8 inch diameter dado stack that otherwise rubs the aluminum)
          C) that whole aluminum piece is installed incorrectly. That aluminum piece is called the "guide holder" in the parts diagrams. It press-fits over the arbor and a bearing... it's possible somebody got it cocked sideways while trying to fit it over the bearing so it jammed at an angle relative to the blade... leaving the rectangle portion angled too. Squeezed between this piece and the front of the motor are the infamous shims. There are set screws that adjust the "slop" around the shims; if some of those set screws were screwed in too far during saw assembly they'd hold the guide holder cocked.

          The two bolts that hold the blade guard are supposed to have some back-and-forth wiggle-room so you can slide the splitter plate close to the trailing edge of the blade... no matter if the blade is exactly 10 inches or a bit smaller/larger.

          mpc

          Comment

          • Stytooner
            Roll Tide RIP Lee
            • Dec 2002
            • 4301
            • Robertsdale, AL, USA.
            • BT3100

            #6
            All good advice here so far.
            My only other suggestion is to post a picture or two. That may help.
            Lee

            Comment

            • vcoutu
              Handtools only
              • Jun 2015
              • 2

              #7
              Lots of good ideas.

              Looks like my last post didn't save so I'll type it out again with pictures this weekend.

              For sure going to look at the set screws though... Didn't know they could do that. From what I read in another article overdoing the set screws will damage the shims so this will be interesting.

              I trust the riving knife as I have 2x from the factory doing the same. The guard tilts to the right like so (/) and the guide holder looks ok where the guard is mounted, but I'm not an expert on that. The guard is out the approximate 10 degrees with the blade set at zero bevel and confirmed with a combination square.

              Comment

              • leehljp
                Just me
                • Dec 2002
                • 8429
                • Tunica, MS
                • BT3000/3100

                #8
                Originally posted by vcoutu
                Lots of good ideas.

                The guard is out the approximate 10 degrees with the blade set at zero bevel and confirmed with a combination square.
                Mark answered as I would have and as others have mentioned. However, I am not able to fully understand the 10°.

                10° From which/what perspective? Is it leaning approx. 10°? -> \|
                Or is it off to the side of the straight alignment from the blade, looking front to back (out of alignment from the blade)? -> ___----
                Hank Lee

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

                Comment

                • leehljp
                  Just me
                  • Dec 2002
                  • 8429
                  • Tunica, MS
                  • BT3000/3100

                  #9
                  Originally posted by vcoutu
                  Lots of good ideas.

                  Looks like my last post didn't save so I'll type it out again with pictures this weekend.

                  For sure going to look at the set screws though... Didn't know they could do that. From what I read in another article overdoing the set screws will damage the shims so this will be interesting.

                  I trust the riving knife as I have 2x from the factory doing the same. The guard tilts to the right like so (/) and the guide holder looks ok where the guard is mounted, but I'm not an expert on that. The guard is out the approximate 10 degrees with the blade set at zero bevel and confirmed with a combination square.
                  REREADING this. Add the shims back in. The shims are there to tweak the alignment to the right or left depending on the need for each individual BT3x and its guard. It "sounds" like you are not tightening it enough and you probably can't fully tighten it unless all the shims are there. I am not at my machine and can't check it out. The shims are there for both alignment and for spacing, IMHO. Without the shims, you "may" be bottoming out on the screws.


                  From the original post:
                  It might be that I removed all the shims and checked the shims/bolts/mount. The bolts have a ton of play, and the riving knife was tilted the same without shims.
                  Without the shims, you WILL have a ton of play.

                  IF it is tilted WITH the shims in and bolts tight, then something probably is bent. Since you did not buy it new, there is the possibility that the previous owner bent the blade guard holder.
                  Last edited by leehljp; 06-11-2015, 01:05 PM.
                  Hank Lee

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

                  Comment

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