Blade Wobble (Craftsman)

[Fishman]

I've been having a hell of a time with this Craftsman 16 inch. I just can't seem to get the blade running parallel front and back, rather than the blade going straight up and down... it goes more forward and back. Once you're about 1/2" or so in the wood, it isn't much of a problem, it's on the smaller fret type cuts and starting a cut where the problem becomes a giant pain. Like it will "bounce" out of your current cut and it's starting to cause all sorts of problems. There could be some wobble left and right too, kind of hard to tell. It's really becoming difficult to do some of these cuts as a progress further into more intricate projects.

 

I've tried all sorts of things from moving the saw elsewhere to all sorts of adjustments. Don't think it's a tension problem either, that seems to be pretty good. Am I missing something? Is my saw itself broken? Or is a little bit of blade bounce normal on a cheaper entry level saw like this?

 

I'm about to give up on scrolling (or just stick with less delicate cuts) till I can afford a new saw, it's really starting to get frustrating. I'm going on a trip next month and just don't have the extra money for a saw, which is a shame because I'm trying to make a few gifts to take with me.

 

Any help would be appreciated, I really want to do these projects.

[amazingkevin]

Look on craigs list for another one .Costs about the same as repairing one.Chinese saws are noted for rapid wear out!

 

I've been having a hell of a time with this Craftsman 16 inch. I just can't seem to get the blade running parallel front and back, rather than the blade going straight up and down... it goes more forward and back. Once you're about 1/2" or so in the wood, it isn't much of a problem, it's on the smaller fret type cuts and starting a cut where the problem becomes a giant pain. Like it will "bounce" out of your current cut and it's starting to cause all sorts of problems. There could be some wobble left and right too, kind of hard to tell. It's really becoming difficult to do some of these cuts as a progress further into more intricate projects.

 

I've tried all sorts of things from moving the saw elsewhere to all sorts of adjustments. Don't think it's a tension problem either, that seems to be pretty good. Am I missing something? Is my saw itself broken? Or is a little bit of blade bounce normal on a cheaper entry level saw like this?

 

I'm about to give up on scrolling (or just stick with less delicate cuts) till I can afford a new saw, it's really starting to get frustrating. I'm going on a trip next month and just don't have the extra money for a saw, which is a shame because I'm trying to make a few gifts to take with me.

 

Any help would be appreciated, I really want to do these projects.

[LarB]

Hey Fishman ... I can sympathise with your frustration, I was having the same difficulty and also with very thin ply splintering. One of the suggestions was to minimise blade movement by way of reducing the blade slot - technically it was described as a zero clearance insert.  There are a number of different ways, but the simplest and most cost effective way I found was to tape an old business card across the area and poke a hole through the centre with the blade (probably not conventional but it worked for me!) 

 

I'm not as experienced as a lot of the guys but I hope this suggestion helps ease the pain.

 

There is a bit more info on the 'plywood tearout' thread (pg 4).

 

Although I'm not familiar with the Craftsman 16" perhaps check the blade you are using is suitable for the thickness of timber.

 

Please don't give up on scrolling...you do wonderful work and there is always a solution.

 

Cheers

 

L

[Larry A. Blakely]

Hey Jordan, I have a Craftsman 16" too. I noticed a similar problem of bouncing out of the cut when using spiral blades. They are harder to fasten with the upper blade mount. Increasing the tension helped a little. Flate blades don't seem to have this problem for me. BTW, I replaced the Allen screw with a threaded knob and blade changes are much faster now. I'm also more able to lock them in a parallel position.

 

Edited March 22, 2015 by Lorenzo

[Lucky2]

Fishman, try cutting at a slower speed, and experiment with the tensioning of the blade. As for the blade cutting in a forward to back direction, if there's no way of adjusting for that then you could improve it some by the way you attach the blade to the blade holders. Try attaching the blade to the back of the top clamp, and try attaching the blade at the front of the bottom blade clamp. This is what I had to do with one of my earlier saws, it helped solve the problem, but, was a pita. I hope this helps.

Len

[Fishman]

Thanks everybody, glad I'm a part of this community. I was getting pretty frustrated and you helped me calm down a bit.

 

Hey Fishman ... I can sympathise with your frustration, I was having the same difficulty and also with very thin ply splintering. One of the suggestions was to minimise blade movement by way of reducing the blade slot - technically it was described as a zero clearance insert.  There are a number of different ways, but the simplest and most cost effective way I found was to tape an old business card across the area and poke a hole through the centre with the blade (probably not conventional but it worked for me!) 

 

I'm not as experienced as a lot of the guys but I hope this suggestion helps ease the pain.

 

There is a bit more info on the 'plywood tearout' thread (pg 4).

 

Although I'm not familiar with the Craftsman 16" perhaps check the blade you are using is suitable for the thickness of timber.

 

Please don't give up on scrolling...you do wonderful work and there is always a solution.

 

Cheers

 

L

 

Great idea, I will try it tomorrow! Thank you for the compliment too.

 

Hey Jordan, I have a Craftsman 16" too. I noticed a similar problem of bouncing out of the cut when using spiral blades. They are harder to fasten with the upper blade mount. Increasing the tension helped a little. Flate blades don't seem to have this problem for me. BTW, I replaced the Allen screw with a threaded knob and blade changes are much faster now. I'm also more able to lock them in a parallel position.

 

Hmm, maybe it's just the saw. Great tip for the threaded knob, blade changes can be a giant pain. What knob did you get? Just any old little knob that would fit from your local hardware store?

 

Fishman, try cutting at a slower speed, and experiment with the tensioning of the blade. As for the blade cutting in a forward to back direction, if there's no way of adjusting for that then you could improve it some by the way you attach the blade to the blade holders. Try attaching the blade to the back of the top clamp, and try attaching the blade at the front of the bottom blade clamp. This is what I had to do with one of my earlier saws, it helped solve the problem, but, was a pita. I hope this helps.
Len

 

I will try this as well tomorrow. Thank you.

[Larry A. Blakely]

"Hmm, maybe it's just the saw. Great tip for the threaded knob, blade changes can be a giant pain. What knob did you get? Just any old little knob that would fit from your local hardware store?"

 

I took the Allen set screw out of the upper blade holder and found a knob with the same threads. Had to cut it shorter and grind the end flat. Then polished the end with wet/dry sandpaper so it won't dig into the blade. You could probably take the set screw to a hardware store and find a knob that would work. These were in my shop drawer. I'm.not sure where they were from.

[Multifasited]

If you are talking about the blade clamp screw ,you really need one with a built in pivot end (like on a C-clamp)(only as an example )as pivot on a clamp screw is actually smaller in dia than the of the thread ,lets tip clamp against blade with out disturbing with final clamping twisting and misaligning blade in holder ! The Front to back angle of the blade ,is only related to the blade to table angle front to back ,changing the angle of the table to the blade by raising the rear of the table on my 788 solved the problem ,doing it ,requires some real thought to be able re-secure and maintain solid pivot to not mess up pivot for tilt of table ,not familiar with your saw , Doing this will change aggressive-ness( aka )speed for other applications where tight precision are not needed .Some high dollar saw have this adjustable feature built in . 

[Larry A. Blakely]

If you are talking about the blade clamp screw ,you really need one with a built in pivot end (like on a C-clamp)(only as an example )as pivot on a clamp screw is actually smaller in dia than the of the thread ,lets tip clamp against blade with out disturbing with final clamping twisting and misaligning blade in holder ! The Front to back angle of the blade ,is only related to the blade to table angle front to back ,changing the angle of the table to the blade by raising the rear of the table on my 788 solved the problem ,doing it ,requires some real thought to be able re-secure and maintain solid pivot to not mess up pivot for tilt of table ,not familiar with your saw , Doing this will change aggressive-ness( aka )speed for other applications where tight precision are not needed .Some high dollar saw have this adjustable feature built in .

 

Good luck on finding an after-market pivot end that will fit the craftsman. That's why I polished the end of the bolt as much as I could so it wouldn't distort the blade too much. Kind of a compromise I guess. Life's like that-full of compromises. lol

[amazingkevin]

I just though about you saying you don't have this problem with flat blades.I'm thinking it's because spirals have a twist  in them and they  are hard to fasten correctly with out coming half way out because of the twist in them .when you tighen them the blade wants to walk out instead of staying put because of the twist in them,confusing huh?

[OCtoolguy]

How long have you owned the saw? Did you buy it new from Sears? If so, return it. That's what I do when I buy something that doesn't work the way I think it should. I bought my wife a new laptop last week. I spent two days getting everything set up on it but there was something wrong in the keyboard and it would just just for no reason. I thought my wife was crazy but then it did it for me. Back it went. Life is too short to spend it being frustrated. I bought my Dewalt 788 used on Craigslist for $250. And it came with stand and light. There are deals out there if you are patient. Good luck.

 

Ray

[Fishman]

Quick update....

 

I tried everything and nothing fixes it. I did find out how off it is though by trying that business card trick. I cut a slit in the card with a scissors, taped it around the blade, and after turning the saw on it made a hole/shape based on the path of the blade. So it looks to be going forward, back, and to the right.

 

Makes cutting a giant pain, and also makes everything take longer....but I'll just have to deal with it for now I guess. Something is off with the saw itself, and it's not returnable.

 

Going to try and not let it hold me back and just deal with it till I can get a new saw.

Edited March 26, 2015 by Fishman

[Travis]

A blade will rock forward and back a little.  That's just part of the cutting stroke.  But it shouldn't be significant.  Side to side is definitely a problem.  One thought is that the blade is not set perpendicular to the table.

 

The blade holder has 2 screws.  One that is a set screw, and the other screw is the one you tighten to grip the blade.  If the set screw is too shallow (or too extreme the other way) compared to the lower blade clamp, that might account for side/side movement.  (see pic below)

 

 

You'll want it the same spacing  for both blade clamps.  Try to center it for best results (see pic below).

 

Likewise, the rocking forward/backward could be a similar issue if you place the blade far back in the upper clamp and far forward in the bottom clamp.

 

I'm sure you already looked at these possibilities, but I thought I'd throw that out there.

 

If it's pretty extreme, it might be the arm got knocked pretty good and it's either crooked or bent.

[Fishman]

Thanks Travis. I have already checked for this and everything appeared to be aligned. I will check again though, just to double check...don't have anything to lose.