New Steel (GO490)

[alex grams]

Well, after about 4 scheduled deliveries that didn't come through, 2 times loaded on the wrong truck, one that blew a clutch out on the freeway on the way here, and one who couldn't get directions to my house because I don't think he knew any English, my jointer finally arrived.

Observations:

-Call me an idiot, but no where did i see in the instructions that the motor was mounted on the underside of the top of the base, and had to be moved. I figured this out AFTER i had the table mounted on the base, which then required the table to be lifted to remove the bolts from the motor (DOH!).

-Alignment out of the box was good (I will need to get a decent straight edge to finalize the outfeed.

-I get the slap on start-up/shut-down (anyone got a link to link belts? I believe this is 5/8", but any good recommendations/links would be nice)

-Fence isn't 90deg to the table, so have to sit down and work that out sometime. I can adjust it manually to get it at 90, but the locking point of the fence is not at 90, so I need to fix that so its lock point is 90 and i don't have to manually readjust EVERY time i need to move the fence.

I have some jobs coming up that will put a load on it, and can give a better idea of it after that.

Also, due to the start/stop raised panel, my wife has named the machine 'ET'.:rolleyes:

[David Romano]

Alex,
I bought my G0490 2 years ago when they just came out. I've been mostly happy with it. Expect to periodically redo the alignment, so get yourself a straightedge that at least 3 feet long. Don't make a habit of moving the machine around too much, using the tables as handles, esp for lifting and this will minimize the frequency of the realignment. The best way to set the final outfeed height is not witha straightedge at all though, it is actually best done by edge jointing a board. After passing the end of the board over the knives, bring it back over them slowly. You should hear them touch the board, but leave no mark. No sound = outfeed too high. Mark on the board (snipe) = outfeed too low.

The fence has presets that you can fine tune. Even so, keep a good quality engineers square handy. Everytime you move the fence, you should check the squareness. I know this seems like something you shouldn't have to do, but there is enough play in the supports to throw it off. Don't just assume it will be good enough, the rest of your woodworking depends on the accuracy of your milled dimensions, so don't leave it to chance.

That's funny, I had the same thought about "ET"

Have fun with your new machine

David

[Greg Cole]

Alex,
I use a small square to set my fence with on my G0586. If I don't, I get a slight shift from 90* (more on the outfeed side, the infeed side stays put?) as I lock down the handle. I don't move the fence much, so it's no big deal and I always have that little square in a pocket anyway.
The link belts, I can't help with, 'cause I bought 1/2" link belt and wound up replacing the pulleys instead of returning the belt for the "right" size.
As mentioned before, if you don't have a dial indicator... put it on the list right next to buy the straight edge & don't trust the jig to set knife heights even close enough for use. I've had best luck using the gibs to adjust knives and tossing the springs aside, but thats your call. I've got mine to @ .0005' ish & made a big improvement.
I love G0586 just wish for it to widen out over night quite a bit.... and maybe a shelix for it. But I've managed to get great results even on tightly curly maple with some experience & improved technique.

Cheers.
Greg

[Jake Helmboldt]

-Fence isn't 90deg to the table, so have to sit down and work that out sometime. I can adjust it manually to get it at 90, but the locking point of the fence is not at 90, so I need to fix that so its lock point is 90 and i don't have to manually readjust EVERY time i need to move the fence.



Alex, are you saying the fence isn't 90* along the length of the fence (i.e. parallel) or is it actually not perpendicular to the beds? Mine is 90* to the beds, but angled slightly away from the outfeed bed which isn't a problem. Just wanted to clarify the issue.

[Lance Norris]

http://www.ridgidforum.com/forum/images/smilies2/thisthreadisworthlesswithoutp.gif

[Brent Grooms]

I used the 1/2 linkbelt on mine, never even tried to use the supplied one as it was all but tied into a square knot (and was a 1/2in belt). I think most of the slap is from the coverplate over the pully. I did a little tweaking to the cover get more clearance as well as snugged up the belt a bit and no more noise other than the whirr of the linkbelt and the byrd head.:D

[alex grams]

Jake,
The fence is not perpendicular to the beds, it is flat.