Contractor saw owners?

[Kent E. Matthew]

What do you do to increase performance on your contractor saw?

[Tyler Howell]

You can't get silk purse out of a sows ear but....
Machined pulleys, PALS, Bies fence, linked belt, and sand bags to weight it down all improved performance a little.

[Ken Shoemaker]

1) Link Belt - I didn't put on the machined pulleys. Runs smooth without them.

2) Swapped out the T2 fench for a Beis on my Delta Contractor saw.

3) Got PALS for the trunion bolts for presion alignment if the blade and fence to the miter slot.

4) Got a Master Plate and Dial Indicator for precision alignment.

5) Placed a 1/4" piece of plywood between the saw and the base. Cut a hole and glued in an attachment so I could hook it to my dust collector.

In short, I'm new t the sport but I think it's running pretty sweet.

Good Luck!!! Ken

[Dan Barr]

i have the delta contractors saw with a unifence. are you talking about increasing horsepower or tuning. if youre talking tuning, i usually do a few things to make sure im getting the best possible cuts.

i make sure the table tops line up perfectly. i do this by clamping two flat hefty steel bars one on each edge. these bars are are 1 1/2" x 1" x 12". then clamp the steel table extensions and tighten the bolts up.

I align my fence to a perfect 90 degrees with the miter gauge slots. unifence is pretty easy to adjust for this.

then I line up the trunnion to within .003 of 90 degrees or less. takes a little time, but worth it. should be two bolts in the rear of the trunnion. loosen and adjust accordingly. careful when tightening them back up. the trunnion will probably want to shift a little. if you can get a clamp in there to hold the trunnion after you adjust it, that might help. some folks use the alignment systems that allow you to turn a bolt to move the trunnion left or right in small amounts. i think its called PALS.

I then set my bevel angle stops for 90 and 45 degrees. i use a wixey digital angle gauge, so this is not so crucial for me. i always check the angle anyway. i wont depend on the stops unless im doing something rough liie outdoor furniture.

also, check the tension pins in the height and bevel adjustment screws. these can and will give out if you ever torque on em much. somewhat a pain to replace too.

I set my unifence to float 1/16" off the top of the table as well.

then i make a few test cuts for fun. lol

lastly, i zero my miter gauge on 90 and both of the 45's. then a few more test cuts. i like to get this perfect. every now and then it get out of whack and i'll spend an hour just getting it back to perfect.

hope this helps,

v/r

dan

[Doug Shepard]

You can't get silk purse out of a sows ear but....
Machine pulleys, PALS, Bies fence, linked belt, and sand bags to weight it down all improved performance a little.

Everything he said plus a good aftermarket miter gauge and let's hope you're not using whatever cheesy blade came with it.

[scott spencer]

PALS, link belt, good alignment, great blade, ZCI, upgrade the miter gauge and fence if necessary, wax the surface.

[Tom Cowie]

I've had a Delta for years now and along with the Uni-fence a good blade is well worth the money ( I use thin kerf when possible)

Tom

[Suanne Lippman]

5) Placed a 1/4" piece of plywood between the saw and the base. Cut a hole and glued in an attachment so I could hook it to my dust collector.



How is it going with that? I used to use a bag that snapped onto the bottom, but dust poured out of every hole.
So I did what you did last week. It seems to cut the below table dust down a bit (with a DC sucking 800cfm, it ought to...) but doesn't do anything at all with the above table dust.
Is that your experience also?

[Dan Barr]

Mine too.

the bottom dust gets sucked away, but not the dust on top. You can build an overhead dust collection port. someone on here has pics of theirs. if you search for it you can see it. 4" pipe running along the ceiling and hanging over the TS with a home made "box" of sorts that targets the vacuum power over the blade. pretty neat.

V/R

Dan

[frank shic]

i pimped out my lowly contractor saw with: an exaktor sliding table, a digifence, a sharkguard and a modulus 2000. i don't think that i'll ever upgrade to either a cabinet saw or a true slider. the only thing missing is a unifence...

[Steve Ash II]

What do you do to increase performance on your contractor saw?

Get a Beis fence and snap-in splitter. Align with a Masterplate and dial. Wax the top! Get the right high quality blade for the job...

... then buy an EZSmart base and guide and never use your table saw again! :D

[Greg Robbins]

A thin kerf blade for ripping heavy stock helps too.

[Dave Falkenstein]

The most significant performance improvement I realized from my contractor saw was changing the size and length of the extension cord I used to power it. I switched to a 12 gauge, short cord, and the power improvement was amazing. I no longer have that saw, but I use nothing but 12 gauge cords on all my tools now.

[C Scott McDonald]

Anybody have a problem with the Delta Contractor saw where when trying to tighten the blade height locking knob it lowers the blade? It is the most frustrating thing. I have cleaned and lubed everything and it continues to do it. Also Mine saw blade will slowing lower itself when running but I cant tighten the the knob enough to get it to stop.

Thanks,
Scott

[Pete Brown]

I basically built the saw from parts. After using it for some time, though, I'd really like to get a sliding saw or at least a good cabinet saw with a riving knife and some additional mass.

http://www.irritatedvowel.com/HomeImprovement/FrankenSaw.aspx

Power hasn't been much of an issue, even when I was ripping 2" thick ebony.

Pete

[Vic Damone]

I can't wait to sell it. That motor hanging out the back takes up way to much room. Since their original design was for a job site saw, controlling the dust is a big issue. It vibrates more than my old Walker Turner cabinet saw. While it has less rated power it still cuts well, no complaint there.

Vic

[matt halloran]

What do you do to increase performance on your contractor saw?

throw it away and get a new one!

I freakin hate my contractor saw with a passion. It was the dumbest thing I did....not listening to all the advice on here and saving for the sawstop or powermatic and buying a $200 crappie instead.

Never again...

[Dan Barr]

sounds like your tension pin might be about to give out or maybe just barely hanging on.

On the screw that couples with the trunnion is a tension pin that holds it to the shaft that you turn to raise/lower the blade. this pinn goes through the screw and the shaft. you'll have to get under it and take a close look. it soujnds like it might be sheared off and the remnants just provides enough friction to actuate the lowering/raising function, but not correctly.

the indication you gave that you cant tighten it enough also eludes to this same problem. you have probably pulled the shaft thorugh the screw past the point where the tension pin would have gone through to hold the two together.

you can get a 1/8" X 3/4" tension pin at lowes (in packs of two in the hardware aisle) you'll have to hold this in some pliers and sand it down on a drum sander. the correct tension pin is about 3/16" X 5/8" maybe a shade larger, something like 2 mm X 12 mm. anyway, take the remnants of yours and get a best match.

i sanded mine down on a drum sander to get it to fit. then i used vise grips to incrementally press it into place.

let me know if this is the problem.

v/r

dan

[glenn bradley]

Anybody have a problem with the Delta Contractor saw where when trying to tighten the blade height locking knob it lowers the blade? It is the most frustrating thing. I have cleaned and lubed everything and it continues to do it. Also Mine saw blade will slowing lower itself when running but I cant tighten the the knob enough to get it to stop.

Thanks,
Scott

Stack two washers between the knob and the wheel. Locks and unlocks easier without influencing your setting. Unless the setting is changing due to the tension and not the rotation. If it is due to tension, something is not adequately supported. Some designs terminate the adjustment screw in a bearing screwed to the sheet metal sides which flex(?).

[Brandon Shew]

There are some things that you can do. Not everyone has the money (or room in my case) for a nice cabinet saw.

Use a link belt to help eliminate the vibration.

Use a thinner kerf blade to compensate for the lack of power.

Put a nicer fence on the saw. I upgraded to an Incra TS-III for my Crapsman contractor and that was the single best improvement that I have made. (the fence is probably worth more than the saw)

My saw also came w/ an under blade dust chute that helps w/ dust collection from the bottom. If yours doesn't have this, I would look into some dust collection options. I'd like to have an above table dust collection option and a splitter, but the next thing on my list is a collapsable outfeed table and then I'll be good to go.

Overall I can't really complain about my contractor's saw as it has worked well over the last few years (and it was free).

[Jason White]

Rub a lubricant called "SLIP IT" all over the table, fence and blade. Also, I trashed the steel stand and built a cabinet with wheels to get the saw up higher (I'm 6'4" so I like the table at about 40" high) and give me extra storage. Since the cabinet is heavy, I also get reduced vibration.

JW


What do you do to increase performance on your contractor saw?

[frank shic]

clever idea, jason!

[Ken Shoemaker]

Suanne,
Your absolutly right!! Top dust keeps a comming, but below ( the most of the mess) is pretty good. I just figured I had a contractor saw and aint gonna get it all. It does pretty good for what I got.

Ken

[Jake Helmboldt]

Kent, if you get link belt make sure it is the right size. The red belts you see at most woodworking stores are 1/2" while many (most?) contractor saws are 3/8" which is harder to find. You can use 1/2", but you need to replace the sheeves (pulleys) to match.

Scott, my Powermatic also screws up blade height when tightening (so not only are you not alone, it isn't just Delta). I'll need to try some of the suggestions noted here.

JH

[Bart Leetch]

There are some things that you can do. Not everyone has the money (or room in my case) for a nice cabinet saw.


A cabinet saw that has the same size table & fence system will actually take up less space than a contractors saw.

[Paul Johnstone]

Use a ripping blade for ripping. A ripping blade will give you much better
performance than a combination blade. My friends with cabinet saws can
get away with using a combo blade for ripping, but I think it's worth
swapping blades on a contractor's saw.
I have a 15 year old Delta contractor's saw, have a Beisemeyer fence and
a shark guard on it. In all honesty, I could afford to upgrade it, but
it's served me so well and works great, so I haven't upgraded it.
It would seem like throwing my child on the street to sell it.
I agree that dust collection isn't ideal, but since I put the shark guard
with the 4" opening on it, and ran a 5" duct to the bottom.. I get pretty
good collection.

[Bill Jepson]

I'm pretty happy with it. I haven't seen this mentioned, if your saw is 120V in set-up check if you can convert the motor to 240V. I did on mine and the power difference is very noticeable. I got the incra miter for mine and it adjusts to the slot exactly which really helps repeatability. After the Incra I would have to triple the cost of my saw at least to get something truly better. (Saw Stop, Powermatic, or Delta)

[frank shic]

bill's right on about upgrading to 240v - it's been so long that i sometimes take it for granted! prior to that the circuit breaker would pop or the lights would dim.

[Chuck Lenz]

5) Placed a 1/4" piece of plywood between the saw and the base. Cut a hole and glued in an attachment so I could hook it to my dust collector.


This is what I built from sheet metal for my Delta 34-445X Contractors tablesaw. It's alot easier to hookup the DC hose to, and I think it does a better job of collecting dust than the generic plastic hood. http://i25.photobucket.com/albums/c89/Woodchuck_/100_0033-1.jpg

[Joe Fenwick]

Where could I find PALS? Does Rockler or Woodcraft carry them?

[Michael McCoy]

http://www.in-lineindustries.com/saw_pals.html

[Alex Carrera]

I need to get a linked belt. I'm building a dust collection system for my delta contractor saw now. I'll post when I'm done. I want to get a nozzle as near the blade insert as possible.

[Greg Cole]

I have a General 50-185 with:
Incra Fence system with looooong rails.
Link belt & custom made pulleys for double belt drive.
Snap in splitter.
Shark Guard (not on the saw yet but in Lee's shop).
Left side Woodpeck RT (eventually will live on a dedicated base).
Shop fox mobile base w/ extension kit for long rails
ZCI's

But in all honesty, one of the things I never had cross my mind until I upgraded the shop power was to re-wire the motor to 220V versus the standard 110. The saw spins up to full speed in no time and does not bog down in the least with a wide kerf blade ripping thick stock, and with a think kerf blade it's night n day from before.

Worth whatcha paid for it....

Greg

[Don Stanley]

Align the saw if necessary and resolve any vibration issues. A contractors table saw will never be a cabinet saw, but you can add some upgrades that will make a BIG difference. A good blade and a splitter should be the first item on your list. A big outfeed table and a large crosscut are especially nice.

http://www.ncwoodworker.net/pp/data/1012/thumbs/2_P1010696.jpg (http://www.ncwoodworker.net/pp/showphoto.php?photo=14521)

Here's a link for more pictures: http://www.ncwoodworker.net/pp/useralbums.php

-Don

[Russell Tribby]

Nice table Don. I built an outfeed table similar to that and while it's served me well I'm not happy with it. You gave me some good ideas. I like your leg design. Have you ever had a problem with material catching on the cut out for the motor? I was just going to route out a recess in the bottom of the table for my motor's swing.

[Bob Genovesi]

Here's my Jet sightly modified, :o

In 1998 I decided to purchase something new and settled on the Jet Contractor model with 1 cast iron wind and the 30 inch XACTA fence system. The saw also came with a 1 3/4hp motor wired for 110 volts.

Once home and partially assembled I ordered an additional cast iron wing, machined pulleys, and a link belt. I changed the motor over to 220 volts then gave the saw a complete tuneup using a TS-Aligner Jr.

http://i153.photobucket.com/albums/s225/BobbyG53/newtsajunior.jpg

Here's the saw in it's present state with 2 cast iron wings.

http://i153.photobucket.com/albums/s225/BobbyG53/Jet-01.jpg

http://i153.photobucket.com/albums/s225/BobbyG53/Jet-02.jpg

I added a JDS Accu-Miter miter gage which matches the precision and repeatability of the saw. Also note the dust collection, a very important addition.

http://i153.photobucket.com/albums/s225/BobbyG53/Jet-03.jpg

This saw will cut what ever I run through it all day long and with the repeatable precision of something much more expensive at much less the cost.

This investment was definatley worth it.

[Jim Heffner]

Anybody have a problem with the Delta Contractor saw where when trying to tighten the blade height locking knob it lowers the blade? It is the most frustrating thing. I have cleaned and lubed everything and it continues to do it. Also Mine saw blade will slowing lower itself when running but I cant tighten the the knob enough to get it to stop.

Thanks,
Scott
Scott, you might want to try install some type of flat friction washer behind that knob...may help keep the knob tight. Jim Heffner

[Richard Dragin]

Start with a used Delta 36-666 that looks like a boat anchor that you bought for $75.....
http://i79.photobucket.com/albums/j147/DraginRichard/Picture076.jpg
http://i79.photobucket.com/albums/j147/DraginRichard/Picture078.jpg

Clean it up, order a couple of parts from Sevicenet......
http://i79.photobucket.com/albums/j147/DraginRichard/Picture084.jpg
http://i79.photobucket.com/albums/j147/DraginRichard/Picture091-1.jpg

Add, machined pullies, link belt, paddle switch, PAL's, ZCI, Accu Square fence, Forrest blade, align everything with a dial indicator and build a cabinet to hold it all....
http://i79.photobucket.com/albums/j147/DraginRichard/Picture005-1.jpg
http://i79.photobucket.com/albums/j147/DraginRichard/Picture011-1.jpg
http://i79.photobucket.com/albums/j147/DraginRichard/Picture012-1.jpg

I have since added Maple trim and routed slots for a sled, now I only need the Shark Guard to finish it off....

[Jim McCarty]

Start with a used Delta 36-666 that looks like a boat anchor that you bought for $75.....
http://i79.photobucket.com/albums/j147/DraginRichard/Picture076.jpg
http://i79.photobucket.com/albums/j147/DraginRichard/Picture078.jpg

Clean it up, order a couple of parts from Sevicenet......
http://i79.photobucket.com/albums/j147/DraginRichard/Picture084.jpg
http://i79.photobucket.com/albums/j147/DraginRichard/Picture091-1.jpg

Add, machined pullies, link belt, paddle switch, PAL's, ZCI, Accu Square fence, Forrest blade, align everything with a dial indicator and build a cabinet to hold it all....
http://i79.photobucket.com/albums/j147/DraginRichard/Picture005-1.jpg
http://i79.photobucket.com/albums/j147/DraginRichard/Picture011-1.jpg
http://i79.photobucket.com/albums/j147/DraginRichard/Picture012-1.jpg

I have since added Maple trim and routed slots for a sled, now I only need the Shark Guard to finish it off....
Nice restoration job! There ought to be a law against letting a good tool fall into that kind of condition.

[Mike Henderson]

I have an older Craftsman contractor's saw that someone gave me - motor was dead. Over the years, I put machined pulleys on it, a link belt, carefully adjusted and aligned it, added a Biesemeyer fence, and perhaps the biggest thing, I bought a 2HP motor for it, which I run on 220V. 2HP is about the limit for the belt drive. Even at 2HP, I experience belt slipping if I feed too fast.

It cuts well and I've used it for a lot of projects but it's not a cabinet saw. I use cabinet saws at school, and even with the abuse they get from students, they adjust and cut much smoother than my contractor's saw. Problem is, I want to get a cabinet saw with a riving knife and they're just starting to come out. Even better would be a SawStop but I'm just not ready to spend that much money right now.

Mike

[Bill Jepson]

I posted earlier, and I have the Rigid Saw. This saw has a nice small well that sits under the blade and has a close fit to the insert up top. It's plastic and looks a bit hokie but is pretty close fitting. There's a 4" outlet to run to the DC or shop vac. To my everlasting suprise it works very well. I'm using a regular shop vac. I'd love a dust collector which will be another buy soon, but I'm supprised some of the "big saws" don't use a system that isolates the cuttings from the main cabinet. You need much better DC to pick up the dust in those. The only way to improve mine much would be a overtable pick up to a good dust collector. The main thing to look for in the contractors saw is, does it have a CI table and CI wings. measure the miter groove as well as some mfgrs. seem to use non-standard widths. The key here really is how well does the saw cut after "tuning". Mine required some minor fine tuning with the indicator. After that the saw would cut a shaving .010" thick the length of a jointed board past the kerf. After that I'd say any mistakes are MY fault. a good cabinet saw will stay in adjustment longer I'm sure but I'm happy with mine considering it came from a borg box store for under $600. It may get replaced someday but I would need to be cutting a lot more lumber for it to make sense.
Bill

[Bart Leetch]

Richard

It looks like you've been have to much fun.:D

Tell me do you stand in front of your saw or at the end of the right extension to run your router table?

The reason I ask this is because a shaper & a jointer are both run while standing along side the tools & I think this is safer because it helps give the operator better control throughout the operation. This is the way you usually see a router table set up to be operated when it is set up as a stand alone tool.


I stand along side my router table & it has its own fence shown in the 3rd picture.

Here is what I started out with & the results are I have a 1940 Delta Unisaw in my shop with a router table in the left hand wing. Initial cost $250 final cost with motor, fence, door, Belts, Paint,material & laminate for tops, hardware for router table,router plate. router raiser, free m12V $900. I had a lot of fun fixing up this old saw. I off set the fence 24.5" to the left so I can place the fence to the left of the blade for bevel cuts & still cut 44" to the right. The most I usually cut to the right is for a end of a base cabinet.

I also have my Dad's 1950's Craftsman contractors saw which just needs to be mounted to the cabinet I have to put it on & install the magnetic switch & turned on it is still a real good saw.

[Stan Welborn]

What do you do to increase performance on your contractor saw?
Rolled it over into the corner of my shop to hibernate and used something else.