Used DW788 Scroll saw - what to look at before I make a offer?

[Jim Laumann]

A local purveyor of used merchandise has one of these saws...

I've not seen it run, nor placed my hands on it yet. Table top has a good coat of rust on it.

I figured I'd go back again and have a closer look, w/ piece of oak in hand - run the thing through the speed range, etc. (there is a blade installed).

Is there anything/things I should be looking for w/ regard to problems?

Thanks

Jim

[Ken Deckelman]

The rust could be a issue if the table has pitted, but if it's just surface rust it will clean up well-I used green SchochBrite pads and WD40 on the Clausing metal lathe I restored and it worked quite well, pictures here: http://picasaweb.google.com/kdeckster/Clausing4900

Just run it through the speeds, listen/feel for excessive vibration, that's about all you can do.

[Leo Vogel]

Look for excessive vibration. If it is a problem, you can't see what you're cutting. I own the same saw, and love it. The rust may be a bit hard to remove. The table on this saw has swirl marks in the metal, making it somewhat harder to remove rust. Make sure you have a new fresh blade when you try it, it makes all the difference in the world.

[Lori Kleinberg]

I agree with Leo, the most important thing is vibration or lack of. The DW788 is considered one of the best for lack of vibration (in this price range). I don't know if there is anyway to tell if this has been done in the past, but you don't want the saw picked up by the overhead arm (supposedly a very bad thing).Make sure price is good. They do come up quite often on craigslist.I bought one off craigslist last year that looked brand new for about 50% of new.
Good luck.

[kent borcherding]

check the listing on the information found on the top of motor.

see if it is a type 1 or 2.

type 1 was an early model that was made in Canada . type 2 were made in Taiwan , maybe Chine now.

I have had a type 1 since 1997 a fine machine , I have used the Hegners and Deltaa scrollsaws , would hesitate to trade my Dewalt for one.

[John Fabre]

If it is a type 2, don't pay no more than $200.00 w/stand and light, the type 1 will run up tp $350.00 w/stand and light.

[Jim Laumann]

Leo/Ken

The rust looks to be surface rust, didn't see any indications of pitting.

Kent/John

Thanks for the tip on the type 1 & 2. That would make a big differance - some of the on-line reviews I've read make mention of a change in manufacturing facilities, and some issues w/ the table due to mis-alignment of parts, etc - reported to be due to the overseas manufacturing. Sadly, the saw has no stand and no light.

Jim

[John Fabre]

If you get the Dewalt for a good price you can always add the stand and light later. There was two different stands, one was produced at the beginning of 2000 and now, that's the best one. The tube looking one is not designed to control vibration as good as the other one.

[John Pratt]

I have the type 1 and type 2 and see no discernable difference between the two. Checking for vibration is definitely a must. These thing s do not vibrate very much at all, so if the one you are looking at does, it could mean problems. I know in the past, some of the upper and lower (especially the lower) blade clamps were made from an inferior material and were prone to cracking. I would make sure to put a blade in it and chceck for any hairline cracks (This is an easy fix and fairly cheap part, but still nice to know).

[Jim Laumann]

Today I went back to the store w/ some wood in hand....

Eyeballed it again - found it was a type 1 - that was good.

Asked to be able to put the saw thru its paces - so the clerk went to get it off the shelf - and alarm bell 1 rang, as the clerk went to grab it by the arm. I promptly stopped him, but it raised concern that the clerks have been doing this in past - and there was a big yellow label on the arm saying that was a no-no.

The saw got put on the floor and plugged in - very quiet, and the lower speeds were very smooth - but as the speed increased, the vibration seemed out of proportion - alarm bell 2.

It had a blade, but it was so bent and managled, I went to put my own in, and alarm bell 3 went off. The lower set of jaws was so tight I couldn't budge the tightener knobs. Had to have the clerk get a pliers to free the blade clamp. Finally got the blade installed, but couldn't get decent tension on the blade. It was fine for 1/4" basswood and oak, but the cut in 3/4" oak definitely suffered due to lack of tension.

And there was still all the surface rust on the table....

Figured I could fix it up for the right price, so I asked the clerk how much? $299.99 was the reply. I indicated I thought they were way to high, and offered $220. He said he had to go see the boss, and was gone a while. When he came back, he showed me a sheet from Google for the saw, showing a price of $408 (factory refurbs). I stayed w/ my $220 offer, so then he really did go see the boss.

The clerk came back, telling me the boss said $250 - and I thought to myself, we're getting some where - so I upped my offer to $235. Then the clerk tells me the boss said $250 was it - no lower. I told the clerk what I found, and for those reasons I wouldn't budge. "The boss thinks our price is solid", so we agreed the we dis-agreed, I picked up my wood and walked.

Thanks to all who responded to my questions

Jim

[John Fabre]

Jim,

You did the right thing, $220.00 would of been a fair price without the stand and light. The vibration could be caused by it not being bolted to a stand or a heavy bench. I don't know where you live but there's a Dewalt type 1 for $175.00 posed local here.