Blade will not raise or lower

[thestinker]

I've got a BT3100 that the blade was tought to raise or lower. I popped the side off and blew out the inside and added some light oil to the raising and lowering screw that moves the saw motor up and down. It didn't really help any and now the crank will just spin, but not engage the gears that turn the raising / lowering screw. Any ideas on how to fix this or is it pretty much hosed?

[Black walnut]

If the raise/lower pinion gears are not turning have you locked the bevel lever all the way to the right?

[LCHIEN]

If the raise/lower pinion gears are not turning have you locked the bevel lever all the way to the right?

That makes sense.
If the gears and elevation screw were turning that would be a stripped thread in the locker bracket, but you said the bevel gears were not turning which fits with BW's suggestion.

[Kangaman]

First post so please excuse the lack of terms..

I have just purchased a BT 3000 (craigslist) and had an issue with raising the blade.
I performed a complete tear-down and discovered the dreaded shim issue. After reading several posts and discussions going back to 2007, I upgraded the shims and Guide holder to ones from a BT3100 (ebay)

I fitted these on the weekend - use some light oil to lubricate (will pay for that later).

Wow - all now works smoothly - not sure if this is related to what you are having.

I do have other issues, but I will create another thread for that..

Paul

[JoeyGee]

There are several threads pertaining to raising and lowering, in addition to the tilt function with lots of great info on how this mechanism world and what to do when it doesn't work.

I'd link to some now, but I'm having issues searching from my phone. Just do a search on raising and lowering, tilt, etc.

[TylerMcDowell]

I been hit with the shim issue as well and am working on fixing them. The problem I have ran into is the head of the screws are stripped and before I start working on them with a screw extractor thought to see if there are anything I should watchout for? I know I didn't strip them, because I have been luck enough not to have to work on my BT3100 until now. I was also looking for replacements screws and they seem to be hard to find. Is there an alternative that would work as well for replacements?

[LCHIEN]

well, I just lubed the shims in my 1999 BT3000 with Johnson's paste wax. Still got the original shims going strong. lube them a couple of times a year and keeping the inside pretty clean with a DC in use most of the time. so no serious dust buildup.

[Kangaman]

Nice to know.

Does this cause saw dust build up or stickyness?

Paul.

[LCHIEN]

No stickyness. Its considered a dry lube so it doesn't seem to attract dust like oil and grease.

[Black wallnut]

I been hit with the shim issue as well and am working on fixing them. The problem I have ran into is the head of the screws are stripped and before I start working on them with a screw extractor thought to see if there are anything I should watchout for? I know I didn't strip them, because I have been luck enough not to have to work on my BT3100 until now. I was also looking for replacements screws and they seem to be hard to find. Is there an alternative that would work as well for replacements?

My advice is to just drill the heads off. Then once everything is disassembled you can use visegrips to remove the stud that is left. You will need 4 10-24x1" and 2 8-32x3/4" all of these should be pan head. Any hardware store should have both sizes as they are rather common. I am assuming that you live in North America, if not there are other options....

[ejs1097]

This happened to me recently, after taking the knob off, the plastic gears in the knob are stripped. My short term fix is vice grips.

[LCHIEN]

My advice is to just drill the heads off. Then once everything is disassembled you can use visegrips to remove the stud that is left. You will need 4 10-24x1" and 2 8-32x3/4" all of these should be pan head. Any hardware store should have both sizes as they are rather common. I am assuming that you live in North America, if not there are other options....

That sounds right - all the BT3x00 hardware is SAE standard threads. Any US hardware store should have replacements.

[thestinker]

Hello all. Sorry for the delayed response regarding the tilt on the saw. Yes moving the lever allows the blade to tilt and lock into place. This is limited to raising and lowering the blade. Like its binding up, but there noting under the saw motor or inside where the blade is.

[TylerMcDowell]

Thanks for the information. I am going to take care of this over the weekend. It's been a great saw and I have never understood why Ryobi never fixed the few problems and made a BT3200.

[BMiles]

Hi Everyone,

I've been also having problems raising my blade. I think my problem is with the clutch and spring. I cant figure our how it is supposed to work or how to get it taken apart. I have a short video of it turning but cant figure out how to post that. here are a few photos

other questions,
BT3's can not be found new anywhere, correct?
are there any saws made now that are comparable to it?
are replacement raising and lowering wheels only made of plastic?

thank you

(first time here)