Grizzly G1023 Table Saw - Discontinued Blade Arbor

[Rich Aldrich]

My table saw is a Grizzly G1023 purchased back in 2000. I have changed arbor and bearings in 20089 - 2009 time frame. I have to change them again. The issue this time is the arbor is no longer available because they do not make right tilt blade table saws any longer. Parts are no longer available.

I have a difficult time giving companies my business when they discontinue supplying parts for products I have purchased and still own.

I was seriously considering purchasing a new G1033X planer. I am glad I found a used Powermatic 209HH planer.

It will be a long time before consider a Grizzly machine again.

I have the old arbor, so I will make a drawing of the part and take it to a machine shop for this one.

[Art Mann]

I don't think I would buy a saw from a company whose saw arbor becomes irreparably damaged twice, even if I could buy the part. That isn't a very common failure. Of course, replacement bearings can be bought lots of places.

[glenn bradley]

I feel your pain on unavailable parts. Companies that retail in our current-state, self-inflicted Wal-Mart world have to draw the line somewhere in order to stay viable. It has been 20 years after all. Before you dog a budget-level machine that has given you 20 years of service, try finding an arbor for a 20 year old Powermatic :) Just food for thought.

[Richard Coers]

I've replaced bearings on 50 year old Unisaws and the arbor was like new. Horrible metallurgy to destroy 2 arbors in 20 years.

[Alex Zeller]

My Powermatic PM66 table saw isn't much older and very little is still available for it. Why does the arbor need replacing? Do you use the saw all the time? 12 years isn't that long for bearings. I just replaced the original bearings on my PM66. 25 years and the grease was drying out. I replaced mine with Timken bearings that will probably outlast me.

[Andrew More]

My table saw is a Grizzly G1023 purchased back in 2000. I have changed arbor and bearings in 20089 - 2009 time frame. I have to change them again. The issue this time is the arbor is no longer available because they do not make right tilt blade table saws any longer. Parts are no longer available.

Sorry, but I don't believe this is correct. I've got the original G1023, which was made ~1990s, and the parts are still available, including the arbor. https://www.grizzly.com/products/G1023/parts

You need to access the parts store here: https://www.grizzly.com/parts enter your model number, and select the appropriate parts from the diagram.

[Tom Bussey]

I helped a friend find and replace his arbor. The bearing froze and spun the journal. After much looking and talking I bought a new arbor, bearings, and everything needed from Ebay for about $100. A delta uni saw arbor fits perfactly. Grizzly cloned the uni saw right down to the arbor and bearings. If I remember right there are a couple of different arbores so make sure that the pictures on ebay match your arbor.

[Frank Pratt]

I'm curious as to how 2 arbors got ruined. Theoretically, there's nothing that should wear out on an arbor.

[Rich Aldrich]

Sorry, but I don't believe this is correct. I've got the original G1023, which was made ~1990s, and the parts are still available, including the arbor. https://www.grizzly.com/products/G1023/parts

You need to access the parts store here: https://www.grizzly.com/parts enter your model number, and select the appropriate parts from the diagram.

Sorry, but go ahead and punch in the part number. PN. P1023045 and it will tell you it is discontinued. I did this last night on their website and got the same answer. Also spend a half hour on the phone with a Grizzly rep like I did this morning and you will find the same thing.

[Andrew More]

Sorry, but go ahead and punch in the part number. PN. P1023045 and it will tell you it is discontinued. I did this last night on their website and got the same answer. Also spend a half hour on the phone with a Grizzly rep like I did this morning and you will find the same thing.

Okay, cool, sorry to hear it's not that simple. Have you tried one of the "newer" arbors? I've ordered one of the new doors from the G1023, and it fit my old saw exactly.

[Rich Aldrich]

Okay, cool, sorry to hear it's not that simple. Have you tried one of the "newer" arbors? I've ordered one of the new doors from the G1023, and it fit my old saw exactly.

I was thinking about trying that. Otherwise, I will take the arbor to one of the machine shops I deal with and see what they can do to make a new one. I think Taiwan steel used might not be up to par. It should be at minimum 1045 and the bearing fit needs to be tight enough. With these small bore bearings, it can be tough for some machinists and machines to hold the tolerance tight enough.

[Rich Aldrich]

I've replaced bearings on 50 year old Unisaws and the arbor was like new. Horrible metallurgy to destroy 2 arbors in 20 years.

Thats what I am thinking too. Also shaft size (or tolerance) might not be right for the bearing fit. Typically the spinning race should be a tight fit and the held race should be slightly loose, depending on application.

[Rich Aldrich]

My Powermatic PM66 table saw isn't much older and very little is still available for it. Why does the arbor need replacing? Do you use the saw all the time? 12 years isn't that long for bearings. I just replaced the original bearings on my PM66. 25 years and the grease was drying out. I replaced mine with Timken bearings that will probably outlast me.

I dont use the saw that much, especially with all the turning I have done over the last 9 years. I suspect either steel quality or bearing fit. I normally use SKF bearings, but Timken are a very good bearing as well. Timken only made tapered roller bearings until the 90s when they bought out Torrington. However, Timken makes some of the best steel in their South Canton steel mill. They couldnt buy good enough steel for their high speed tapered roller bearings for gearbox applications, so they built their own steel mill. A lot of bearing companies by steel from them.

[Alex Zeller]

Hopefully this will help. It looks like you can use a right tilt delta unisaw arbor.

https://www.forums.woodnet.net/showthread.php?tid=7348837&page=3

[Rich Aldrich]

Hopefully this will help. It looks like you can use a right tilt delta unisaw arbor.

https://www.forums.woodnet.net/showthread.php?tid=7348837&page=3

Thanks, Tom Bussey pointed that out too. I found them for anywhere from $174 to $250.

[Bob Riefer]

I’m very surprised... I had a pre-1980 (guessing) 1023 and grizzly customer service bent over backwards to help me repair and replace the entire arbor bracket assembly. They pulled old parts diagrams and spent at least 5 hours helping me. In the end the saw was like new. This was my experience about 2 months ago. In short, they went way above and beyond. Maybe call again?

[Rich Aldrich]

I’m very surprised... I had a pre-1980 (guessing) 1023 and grizzly customer service bent over backwards to help me repair and replace the entire arbor bracket assembly. They pulled old parts diagrams and spent at least 5 hours helping me. In the end the saw was like new. This was my experience about 2 months ago. In short, they went way above and beyond. Maybe call again?

They are supposed to call me back, so we will see. I asked to talk to his boss or even the top guy at Grizzly, but of course, that went no where. If they don't want to make a part, I am not sure if there is anything I can do. I did ask for a drawing since they aren't making it anymore. Of course, that request was turned down, too.

I was told the right tilt has not been offered since around 2005. When the spare parts for the right tilt were gone, they were not going to make any more.

[Larry E Stroud]

If making a new arbor is not feasible, maybe the machine shop can repair the existing one? If the OEM tolerances are bad, allowing the bearing inner race to ruin the arbor, maybe the machine shop can build then turn to proper spec.

[Ole Anderson]

I, too have a G1023, 1998 IIRC. Curious as to the mode of failure.

[Jim Andrew]

You might check to see if you have a neighbor who is a machinist. I had a neighbor who would weld up damaged parts and turn them back down to repair them. He would ask to have the new bearing you planned to use, then machine the shaft to fit the bearing.

[Rich Aldrich]

I did receive a call back from Grizzly this morning. They have the complete arbor assembly with the casting available in a few weeks but he is checking why they cant supply just the arbor.
.
I checked the shaft size on the first arbor. At the bearings and the full length of the shaft. The shaft is 0.6680 - 0.6685”.

The bearing 6203 is 0.6693” id. Normally for woodworking machines with this diameter, you would have j5 fit. This would be 0.0001 loose to 0.0005 tight. The shaft was originally undersized. This data was in my SKF catalog.

I am not sure why they decided to go with this loose of a fit. Normally the spinning race is a tight fit and the stationary race is a loose fit. It may be due to assembly. It was less machining because you don't need a step at the area where the bearing is to be located.

Maybe the belt tension is an issue. Many times machines are designed with more belt than required and it puts too much load on the bearings. Maybe reducing by one belt would help. I found this to be true on many of the fans in the boiler room at work.

Sorry I am a mechanical engineer and tend to dive deep into problems that come up more than once in a machine’s life.

Engineers tend to be horrible at spelling too.

[mike stenson]

Larry mentioned this too, but I'd seriously consider having it hard-faced and turned to the proper diameter for the bearings.

[Rich Aldrich]

Larry mentioned this too, but I'd seriously consider having it hard-faced and turned to the proper diameter for the bearings.

I agree. That is why I am looking into the proper shaft size. I will have them make the shaft the bigger proper size where the bearing is supposed to be on the shaft. The other observation about this arrangement is normally the inside bearing is one size bigger so it just slides over the outside bearing seat on the shaft. The sheave (pulley) will have to be able to go over this larger shaft diameter as well.

[Alex Zeller]

If Grizzly doesn't have just the arbor or it will still be slightly undersized look on ebay for one for a right tilt Unisaw. I'm not sure about the cheaper ones but one of the more expensive new ones are made and sold by a machine shop. You can send them your old arbor and any other relevant information and they can make one up specifically for you or confirm that the Unisaw one will work. There should be plenty of reviews and since they do it often they should know exactly how to make the arbor.

[Rich Aldrich]

If Grizzly doesn't have just the arbor or it will still be slightly undersized look on ebay for one for a right tilt Unisaw. I'm not sure about the cheaper ones but one of the more expensive new ones are made and sold by a machine shop. You can send them your old arbor and any other relevant information and they can make one up specifically for you or confirm that the Unisaw one will work. There should be plenty of reviews and since they do it often they should know exactly how to make the arbor.

The issue I see with the unisaw arbor is the lowest price is $174 that I found so far. I am not even sure if they are new.

There is a machine shop in Green Bay, WI - 3 hours from here - that does very good work for a good price. I have had them make a lot of parts for me over the years for my present employer and previous employer. Some parts were reverse engineered (I make the drawings) or my design (again from my drawings). The guy I deal with has a lot of good experience and we learn a lot from each other. I think the best thing is to have him make one. He might recommend just building up the bearing area and machining it to tolerance. But, I am unsure of the metallurgy of the shaft. If it is considerably softer than 1045 steel, I will be concerned about the build up area maintaining bond to the softer metal. I will have him check the hardness and go from there.

[Brice Rogers]

Just curious, if the arbor is a loose fit by, say only roughly 0.001 +/- a bit, aren't there locktite products designed for this application that will fill the minuscule gap?

[Alex Zeller]

If you have a good shop then stick with them. These guys came up when I did a quick search. I have no connection to them what so ever. But from their description it sounds like they make their own stuff and choose the right materials.
https://www.ebay.com/itm/ARBOR-ASSEMBLY-NEW-DELTA-UNISAW-RH-TILT-TABLE-SAW-ABSOLUTE-TOP-QUALITY/324003618060?_trkparms=aid%3D111001%26algo%3DREC.S EED%26ao%3D1%26asc%3D20160811114145%26meid%3D5cbdc 064e42f4576b547768259985cda%26pid%3D100667%26rk%3D 1%26rkt%3D8%26mehot%3Dnone%26sd%3D324003618060%26i tm%3D324003618060%26pmt%3D0%26noa%3D1%26pg%3D23345 24&_trksid=p2334524.c100667.m2042

[Lee Schierer]

How does one damage two arbors on a table saw?

[Frank Pratt]

How does one damage two arbors on a table saw?

A couple of us have asked that question, but OP won't answer. The only things I can think of are messing up the threads or having a spun bearing.

[jeff norris 2011]

Sounds like Grizzly is trying to work with you on a solution for your 20 years old saw. They have always been helpful when I deal with them, so happy to hear this is in action again.

[mike stenson]

A couple of us have asked that question, but OP won't answer. The only things I can think of are messing up the threads or having a spun bearing.

While not specifically stated, having a shaft smaller than the race would lead to a spun bearing.

[Rich Aldrich]

How does one damage two arbors on a table saw?

I thought the answers I have posted were clear, but apparently not. I don't think it was how the saw was operated, but I would be bias in that regard. I am not sure how you could do the damage ripping lumber. I mostly start with 4/4 rough cut hardwood and size it.

The first thing I notice is the saw starts to vibrate which increases over time (I let it go a few months so more damage was probably caused by continuing to run the saw). The bearings did spin on the arbor both times. The saw was purchased new in 2000 - Grizzly assembled it. 2008 , the bearings spun on the arbor. I changed the bearings and installed a new arbor, noting that the shaft is about 0.001 smaller than I can find as a recommendation in the bearing manufacturers catalog for woodworking machinery. Maybe there is something special about a table saw, but I highly doubt it. Now 12 years later, the same thing happened. The bearings were pushed on, not hammered on - when installing the bearings on the arbor, they slid on once they were lined up. Force was applied to the race being pushed on - not

I suspect the issue is the loose fit between the inside race and the arbor. Normally, the fit is tight for the spinning race and loose for the stationary race.

Other factors could be too much belt tension, maybe one too many belts that ends up overloading the bearings when the belts are tightened. You would think you would take out the motor bearings before the arbor bearings, but that isn't always the case.

[Rich Aldrich]

Just curious, if the arbor is a loose fit by, say only roughly 0.001 +/- a bit, aren't there locktite products designed for this application that will fill the minuscule gap?

Loctite does make a decent product according to my local Motion rep. Neither of us are fans this method but maybe I should try it.

[Bruce Wrenn]

Because the shaft is "soft, and undersized," why not knurl it, and then grind down to correct size for the 6203's. Turning would most likely be done between centers. Problem comes back to shoddy tolerances in manufacturing. Shaft was made too small, allowing bearing to spin on shaft. Sharaz is a poster here, so give him a shout out.

[Ronald Blue]

Because the shaft is "soft, and undersized," why not knurl it, and then grind down to correct size for the 6203's. Turning would most likely be done between centers. Problem comes back to shoddy tolerances in manufacturing. Shaft was made too small, allowing bearing to spin on shaft. Sharaz is a poster here, so give him a shout out.


My thoughts as well Bruce. Knurling is a tried and true method of salvaging a shaft. It's common for whatever reason to have a bearing surface become undersized. Especially when it's a very complex or large shaft that would be expensive and or time consuming to replace. I would think a good machinist could have a knurl raised in a couple minutes. A little longer to take it down to size. Knurling was always something I considered to be kind of fun. Since this is simply to enlarge the shaft there wouldn't be a need to get the knurling wheels tracking properly for appearance sake.

[Rich Aldrich]

Because the shaft is "soft, and undersized," why not knurl it, and then grind down to correct size for the 6203's. Turning would most likely be done between centers. Problem comes back to shoddy tolerances in manufacturing. Shaft was made too small, allowing bearing to spin on shaft. Sharaz is a poster here, so give him a shout out.


My thoughts as well Bruce. Knurling is a tried and true method of salvaging a shaft. It's common for whatever reason to have a bearing surface become undersized. Especially when it's a very complex or large shaft that would be expensive and or time consuming to replace. I would think a good machinist could have a knurl raised in a couple minutes. A little longer to take it down to size. Knurling was always something I considered to be kind of fun. Since this is simply to enlarge the shaft there wouldn't be a need to get the knurling wheels tracking properly for appearance sake.

We had to do this a couple of times for short term repairs at the papermill where I used to work. This application isnt as tough, and if I combine this method with the Loctite product, it might be good for a long time. I appreciate the help.