Bearing quality rant!

[stoney]

Boy!   Every once in a while something I have heard or read about really bugs me and I just have to vent.   I have been reading lately about bearing issues with scroll saws.   I would hazard a guess that the bearings used in scroll saw production do not reflect but a small percentage of the cost.   Why then are low quality or defective bearings finding their way into otherwise respectable products.   I have contended for years that some otherwise intelligent people in cost control jobs, ( bean counters), make some very bad decisions.    A defective bearing can make an otherwise well designed product totally inoperable.   Why would a company want to chance such a small part to reflect on the reputation of the product and the company?   Everybody is not equipped with the mechanical skills or desire demonstrated by some of the members here to replace defective parts.   I think more consumers should let companies know that these types of issues are not acceptable.   JMHO   Thanks for listening.        

[JTTHECLOCKMAN]

You can take that same perspective and use it for anything that is bought today. I agree highend saws are just that for a reason. But you have also seen over the years many of these saw companies have changed hands and those are the ones that seem to be making the news. Hegner which I believe is one of the few companies that is still run by the same group and you do not hear peep about problems with  their saws. What is also disturbing is if and when there is a problem there are no close service outlets to take care of problems. Sending a saw back is almost impossible and if not mechanically inclined doing the work yourself is challenging to say the least. The people that buy into the business do not have the same connections to the customer as the original owners did. You see this all the time. Those people are just after the $$$ because they figure the ground work has been done for them. Just my thought. You see this bearing problem many times on lathes too. 

[dgman]

I've learned the big tool company's don't care about what the consumer wants. A few years back I was doing a demo at the Woodcraft store I teach at. It was a woodworking show so all the tool reps were there. The DeWalt rep came up and asked what I thought about the DeWalt saw as that is what I was using. I told him about my concerns. He suggested I speak to the head of the scrollsaw department at DeWalt. He took my Name, phone number and email address. About two months latter, I received an email from the head of the scroll saw division. All it said was " What is wrong with your saw?". I emailed him back that I wanted to talk to him about all the problems with the saw and my thoughts of how to improve it. I got no response. His original email had a phone number on it so I called. Again, no response. I emailed two more times and called several more times with no response. I finally gave up. 

[OCtoolguy]

3 hours ago, dgman said:

I've learned the big tool company's don't care about what the consumer wants. A few years back I was doing a demo at the Woodcraft store I teach at. It was a woodworking show so all the tool reps were there. The DeWalt rep came up and asked what I thought about the DeWalt saw as that is what I was using. I told him about my concerns. He suggested I speak to the head of the scrollsaw department at DeWalt. He took my Name, phone number and email address. About two months latter, I received an email from the head of the scroll saw division. All it said was " What is wrong with your saw?". I emailed him back that I wanted to talk to him about all the problems with the saw and my thoughts of how to improve it. I got no response. His original email had a phone number on it so I called. Again, no response. I emailed two more times and called several more times with no response. I finally gave up. 

It was sort of that way when I was in the tool business. One of the best companies at the time for me to deal with was Makita. They had/have their headquarters very near me. I use to go to all the woodworking shows when they were still in existence and one time I met up with a rep who also gave me his card. Just for the heck of it, I called him not long afterward. He and I talked at great length about problems, suggestions and many other areas of concern. I got the feeling that what I said at the time actually meant something to him because I got a questionaire from him wanting more details from me. I did actually see some of my suggestions get implemented in their tools. But, My one bitch to this day is that their batteries were outrageously expensive and did not hold a charge. I ended up tossing my Makita drills and batteries. Of course, that was before the lithium batteries came on the market. Now, I buy the cheapest cordless drills I can find. At this point, I'm sold on Black and Decker 20 volt lithium. I bought two of them, extra batteries and also the cordless 5 1/2" saw that uses the same battery. I could tell you another story about their cordless vacuum too but I've already taken up too much of your time.

Ray

 

[kmmcrafts]

Cannot agree more with you, Stoney..  I've recently found several bearings that appear  to have never even been greased.. My Hawk is a 1998 but was new in the box when I bought it.. last May.. I could never get the vibration to go away.. I kept messing around until i started really looking.. found 3 bearings in the ol girl that looked like there was never any grease.. 

 

[amazingkevin]

5 hours ago, kmmcrafts said:

Cannot agree more with you, Stoney..  I've recently found several bearings that appear  to have never even been greased.. My Hawk is a 1998 but was new in the box when I bought it.. last May.. I could never get the vibration to go away.. I kept messing around until i started really looking.. found 3 bearings in the ol girl that looked like there was never any grease.. 

 

I just tore into my 10th dw788 and found the wrist pin on the connecting rod off the motor had no grease.I replaced it with one i took a motor from and i'm good to go now.

[lawson56]

I have learned a few thing,When I get to where I can buy me a better scroll saw.I am going to chk it out before starting it up.

[Dan]

I agree that customer service has changed in the big picture. There are some companies that still seem to care, though. 

I have had my Delta P-20 for about 10 years. It's built well but I have replaced the bearing twice. I love when the saw purrs along quietly doing its job, but when the noises start creeping in I see it as a challenge. I just bought some bearings for $3 each (extras on hand) but the next time I need to replace it I'll do some research as I have seen the same size cost over $30. I'm not sure if that means they are better but I'll be researching and asking more questions next time. 

[kmmcrafts]

You want to see some awesome bearings... check out ceramic bearings.. not cheap though.. but I think most likely the best bearing you can buy..

[fordamir]

I owned a equipment rental busine nd found a company named motion industries carried bearings for the commercial industry.  We purchased a good many bearings fm them.  The labor cost to replace the bearing can be significant the bearing cost is incidential.  always tried to get t

Timkien or swiss made bearings well worth the additional cost inthe long run.  Found the equipment was repaired for the long run. JMHO

[kmmcrafts]

15 minutes ago, fordamir said:

I owned a equipment rental busine nd found a company named motion industries carried bearings for the commercial industry.  We purchased a good many bearings fm them.  The labor cost to replace the bearing can be significant the bearing cost is incidential.  always tried to get t

Timkien or swiss made bearings well worth the additional cost inthe long run.  Found the equipment was repaired for the long run. JMHO

I buy all my bearings from a local company.. they know I'm looking for quality when I walk through the door.. I know the guys there from parts chasing for my brothers sawmill over the years and  also for the company I used to work at.. 

They always get me the Timkien if they can.. otherwise the best other brand they can get.. Place is called Edwards Industrial.. I also use another local place called Detroit Ball Bearing..

Yes, I buy the good bearings... and use a good grease.. I'm usually good to go for many years..  

[stoney]

On 1/20/2018 at 11:13 AM, dgman said:

I've learned the big tool company's don't care about what the consumer wants. A few years back I was doing a demo at the Woodcraft store I teach at. It was a woodworking show so all the tool reps were there. The DeWalt rep came up and asked what I thought about the DeWalt saw as that is what I was using. I told him about my concerns. He suggested I speak to the head of the scrollsaw department at DeWalt. He took my Name, phone number and email address. About two months latter, I received an email from the head of the scroll saw division. All it said was " What is wrong with your saw?". I emailed him back that I wanted to talk to him about all the problems with the saw and my thoughts of how to improve it. I got no response. His original email had a phone number on it so I called. Again, no response. I emailed two more times and called several more times with no response. I finally gave up. 

 

On 1/20/2018 at 7:59 PM, kmmcrafts said:

Cannot agree more with you, Stoney..  I've recently found several bearings that appear  to have never even been greased.. My Hawk is a 1998 but was new in the box when I bought it.. last May.. I could never get the vibration to go away.. I kept messing around until i started really looking.. found 3 bearings in the ol girl that looked like there was never any grease.. 

 

Yeah Kevin you sight a bearing issue the goes straight to quality of the product.   You didn't say what the make or manufacturer of the bearings are but it appears the issue in your case is quality control.   A bearing is only as good as the materials used and the care taken in it's assembly.   

Back in 2002 I bought a Dodge mini van.   With less than 12,000 miles a bearing seized in the air conditioner compressor causing a issue that made the vehicle inoperable.   I heard Chrysler Corp. had those bearings made in a plant in Mexico.   Not long after my experience one of my neighbors had the same thing happen with a Dodge van that left them sitting along side of the road with a almost brand new vehicle.   My point is I am not attacking where a component, in this case, is made but its quality and the responsibility of a companies decision makers to make sure their decision doesn't reflect badly on a products otherwise overall good reputation.         

Edited January 25, 2018 by stoney

[rjweb]

It’s always money with companies, if they save a dollar per vehicle, that would add up, but I agree I would rather give them that dollar, RJ in 

[OCtoolguy]

20 hours ago, rjweb said:

It’s always money with companies, if they save a dollar per vehicle, that would add up, but I agree I would rather give them that dollar, RJ in 

I remember hearing the story about one of the major airlines that started leaving one black olive off of their salads and saved thousands of dollars the first year. It's all about counting beans.

Ray

 

[amazingkevin]

On 1/20/2018 at 11:14 AM, stoney said:

Boy!   Every once in a while something I have heard or read about really bugs me and I just have to vent.   I have been reading lately about bearing issues with scroll saws.   I would hazard a guess that the bearings used in scroll saw production do not reflect but a small percentage of the cost.   Why then are low quality or defective bearings finding their way into otherwise respectable products.   I have contended for years that some otherwise intelligent people in cost control jobs, ( bean counters), make some very bad decisions.    A defective bearing can make an otherwise well designed product totally inoperable.   Why would a company want to chance such a small part to reflect on the reputation of the product and the company?   Everybody is not equipped with the mechanical skills or desire demonstrated by some of the members here to replace defective parts.   I think more consumers should let companies know that these types of issues are not acceptable.   JMHO   Thanks for listening.        

Honesty a dieing word.