Transporting a Unisaw

[Matt McGraw]

Hi, I've been reading a while and decided to buy a Unisaw. I went used and now am looking at how to get it home. Is it safe to transport the saw laying down on it's side in an SUV? Or will the weight of the motor and inner assembly do damage traveling this way? It would be about a 4hr ride for the saw if it matters. Thanks in advance for any opinions you may offer.

Matt

[Chee Fang]

I did the same. You need to take the fence, wings and cast iron table off. Then you can let the cabinet standing. It will be okay this way. No effects on motor and other parts.
Hope this helps.

[Jim Becker]

Do note that if you remove the top, there may be shims under one or more of the four bolts that secure the top to the cabinet. Do NOT get them mixed up...they look like washers but are of precise thicknesses. If they go missing or get put in the wrong position, the saw may not cut accurately when the blade is beveled.

[Jeff Norri]

Personally I would take the motor off and remove the table. If you did that you would find it much easier to move and you would have less chance of damage.

Also with used unisaw you would want to take it appart a bit anyway to give it a once over / clean up.

I Have an old unisaw too and love it!

[Jamie Buxton]

You might consider renting a trailer from U-Haul or the like. They're not very expensive at all. To put a Unisaw inside an SUV, you're going to have to lift some very heavy stuff, and you may need to disassemble and reassemble the machine. If you get the right trailer, you can just horse the saw up some planks into the trailer, and tie it down.

[Matt McGraw]

Thanks for all the input guys.

[glenn bradley]

By the time I went through all the trouble of disassembly (let alone reassembly) I would be thinking how reasonable a small trailer rental would be. JMHO.

[Tom Hamilton]

Matt: If you have not pulled the trigger on this move yet, you might want to check the archives at OWWM.com. (OldWoodworkingMachines) These folks treat Unisaws like car folks treat 63 split window Vetts.


Check in and ask about methods. They rely on gravity and momentum to move heavy stuff.

Worth a peak.

Best regards, Tom, in Houston, who did NOT mow this grass this week.

[Robert Conner]

I moved a two Unisaws at two different times. I used my son's Jeep Cherokee both times. I placed a block of wood against the motor inside the cabinet and lowered the motor on it to take the weight off the brackets and the adjusting arm. I removed the extension table or tables as well as the rails and just slid it inside. I rested one on the back on some cardboard, the other had the mag starter in back so I used a 4x4 to level it.
Make sure you pad the lock mechanism as you slide it in. I actually put the rails on the roof rack since they were too long to fit inside. Leverage is the key here and lots of blankets to avoid scratches.
Robert

[John Thompson]

Ditto Robert on shimming to get weight off brackets and arbors. Uni-saw arbors are known for their delicacy stemming from the design. You can thank trucking companies for the abundance of Factory Re-conditioned Uni-saws as that is the main reason they go back on warranty.

Once you have it on the ground without any large jarring.. the issue becomes of little concern. If you haven't transported it yet, you might consider asking a friend with a pick-up to assist or renting the U-haul as mentioned.

Whatever you do.. be careful getting it up and down and in and out. Once you do... enjoy!

Sarge..

[Matt McGraw]

I have already enlisted the help of my father to help move it. So the weight of lifting shouldn't be an issue. I'm just concerned about the whole cracking of the trunion issue.

[Robert Conner]

They come from the Factory with a large cardboard mounted hard foam block. I would think an 8-12" 4x4 would work as well. Hard to describe but.. Raise the arbor, place the wood between the arbor and side of cabinet ( motor cover must be removed) lower the arbor ( pretty much the same as if you were changing belts) til it contacts the wood continue and the motor weight should now be on the wood transferred to the side of the cabinet.I would place a couple of old towels between the wood and cabinet side as well.
Robert

[Dave MacArthur]

There are about 5 threads on this here at the creek, a search will get you a ton of info. This topic comes up so often, I have saved the url for this thread to my favorites ;)
http://www.sawmillcreek.org/showthread.php?p=597898

Read my post there, motorcycle trailer from Uhaul $25, shop crane from harbor freight (optional, $99). 1 man job with shop crane, safe.