dewalt 788

[buddy08]

ok i am a bit confused ( it happens alot)

everyone goes on and on about the 788 saying how good it is and what all its able to do. yet i keep hearing people talk about how there fuses keep blowing. and moter issues. one guy even had to replace his brushes 2 months after he bought his 788. my question is if the 788 is so great why is there so many issues with the darn thing? i run a cw40 bought it new right out of the box when it first came out i use this saw daily as it makes 50% of my income and i have yet to replace a blown fuse or the brushes ( mind you i switch the fuse out once a year as part of maintenance) but as far as the brushes other than cleaning them iv never done anything else to the saw . so is the 788 really worth it?

[amazingkevin]

Hello buddy08,Im very interested in the pro's and con's of this infammous saw.The thing i like about it,though i have never tryed one is that the blade goes straight up and down. Unlike other saws and mine is the worst (but i love it, a c- arm 20") the blade tends to rock in an arc rather than true up and down. BUT you can control this motion to useability,which in my experience is to slow down the saw . Just today i needed to cut some letters on an oval keychain and anything above dead slow will distort your letters badly.the letters i'm talking about are less than 1/4" tall.If there's a will there's a way.When i looked at the dw788 in the woodcraft store here i was not impressed with how little room there is to fit your hand in the bottom blade to change it ,let alone see what your doing.I've read countless sad story's about out of the box dw788 's that i think quality control at the factory is slacking.It's one of the most beautyfull saws around (my favorite color too) I will own one some day and put it threw the mill as i've wore out 7 saws allready in 3 years.If you have lemons make lemonade.Do not let what you do not have,prevent you from useing what you do have.

[carlton4143]

I have been scrolling almost 20 years. I worked for Woodcraft and sold many 788's. I had two come back with problems. One was a lose wire in the on off swich (5 min. fix). The other was blade tensoner (10 min. fix).

We hear when someone has a problem but hear nothing when when the saw works fine. No matter what saw is made, some will have problems. IMO the 788's is one of the best in it's price range. I personaly own a ridgid 16" 15 years old, a 788 8 years old and a EX-30 4 years old. I put 20-30 hours a week on my saws.

The best advice I can give is buy your saws at a local store. If you have a problem you have someone on your side to help you fix it. That in it's self is worth the extra money.

Carlton

[amazingkevin]

Hi carlton,good advice.The woodcraft store here wants over $200.00 more than a mail order company does for the saw ,light and stand and no matter what your going to have to pay somebody or send for something to get a quick fix. Here at ssv i've copyed all said about dw788's problems and there are alot.Not every machine is going to have them but it's nice to know what is causeing the problem ,where the problem is and what it takes to fix it. A lot of the problems are quick fix but with out ssv's informative forum and the wealth of information at hand just for asking you'll be on your way to scrolling from down time in record time.I am in debt to ssv for all the knowedge iv'e learned and have been able too share with newbies and refined scrollers.If your a do it yourselfer we here at ssv can steer you right at a price you can afford,free!

[forester21]

I've been scrolling for about 12+ years on my Dewalt. I've had to blow out the dust from the off/on switch a couple of times - and that's all the maintenance I've done on it. The only problem I have is that my light bulbs go out a lot. I've pretty much stopped replacing them.

 

I do have the type 1 saw and I think that makes a LOT of difference in having problems or not.

T

[qlty]

I bought a reconditioned one unaware that it was but have had no issues with it @ $190.00 IMHO it was a bargain with the stand.Having read of the switch prob I put it on and covered it with plastic as I use a foot switch.Just the other day I picked up a dermel swing arm lamp and magnifier for $5.00 at a tag sale so I'm a happy camper.I have a couple craftsman saws they work but no comparison to the 788 as far as vibration free and just being able to cut faster and more accurately I guess why its often referred to as a production saw,you just have to scroll on one to appreciate it. JMHO

[Lastchance]

I am one of the new guys around here, but I found the following 2 links that I enjoyed reviewing before I ordered my 788. These are trouble threads from other scrollers, whom have worked out cures to some of the known issues.

 

http://www.scrollsaws.com/SawReviews/DewltTuneUp.htm

 

http://www.toolpartsdirect.com/cgi-bin/ ... 788_TYPE_1

 

As best I can tell from what I have read above and from google, the 788 units where not having many issues until they moved their MFG outfit from Canada to Asia. The first runs units coming from Asia had many quality control challanges reported. I have since read that many of those have been corrected, but that did little for the units that already shipped to the stores in 2007 and 2009. All and all, I still decided to purchase the 788 even after I confirmed it was MFG'd in Asia. ( I was told in 2010)

 

When compaired to other units within the same price range, it did not appear to have many more complaints and it's still rated higher than all of the competitors units at the same price point.

 

I would think that every model has it's own challanges during first run cycles. I just hope that they have fixed as many of the known ones as possibile before they built mine.

 

hope this helps a bit,

 

Chance

[amazingkevin]

Hello Chance, Say that info was the best ever.!i'm keeping track of all i can find and you came up with info i don't have .Very interesting too.one thing i have'nt found out yet is the differance between the type 1 and 2 dw788's.your right the saw is the best around for the money with lots of creature features un like other saws.$375.00 is as low as i can find one in town for used.Some are loaded with the jim dandy ,hundreds of blades,light stand etc.i just aquired a sears or craftsman 18" and i should have tryed it first.It looks brand new.but when i tryed to install a blade in the bottom ,my hand was too big to turn the thumb screw,lol.Most saws are like that for me.But my torch or saws all could modifie the opening if need be.I just am happy to have a back up saw.Thanks for posting the gems on the dewalt.iI need ed that info .

[Lastchance]

Here the print for the 788 type 2

 

http://www.toolpartsdirect.com/cgi-bin/ ... 88_TYPE_2/

 

 

Owners manual and some other stuff

 

http://www.dewaltservicenet.com/Product ... eSupport=1

 

http://www.dewaltservicenet.com/documen ... ,DW788.pdf

 

More trouble shooting and solutions

 

http://www.fixya.com/support/p976178-de ... riable_spe

 

http://www.diybanter.com/woodworking/24 ... oblem.html

 

Dewalt PDF files and stuff

 

http://findfav.com/en/ebook/DeWalt+Manuals-.html

 

Glad I could help out a little bit with some needed information and supply Kevin with some resources that he may have not had before.

 

I will try to prove myself worthy to the new friends I have found here.

 

Chance

[amazingkevin]

Thank You , Thank You!! You have gone the extra mile out of the blue.And a neewbie on top off it! Us aged members really appreciate the new comers chimeing out with their wealth of knowedge to share with us.that info really made my day.i've spent untold hours searching to find all i could about dw788's and you surpass all my expectations of what was out there.That's heart felt dedication for the club.

Welcome Welcome to scrollsawvillage!!!And remember just ask!