Tripped saw stop break need fence?

[jason lambert]

Went to use my sawstop for the first time today worked great till about the 3rd piece of wood I went to cut. Then it fired the brake . No extra lost ½ a day going to get a break.

I am not 100% sure why it fired I was doing a close bevel cut on a 2X4. The only thing I can think of is I have a metal incra fence that was really close to the blade and there was to close of a gap and something triggered it. the fence had no marks so the blade definably did not hit it.

Anyhow I looked at the stock sawstop fence (bemire sp?) and that is not metal so if that was the case you would never have that issue. So I want to bolt a piece of some sort of really nice and slippery material to my incra fence anyone know where I can get that? I can use MDF or laminate but would prefer something nice like on the bemires fence.

[Tom Veatch]

... So I want to bolt a piece of some sort of really nice and slippery material to my incra fence anyone know where I can get that? I can use MDF or laminate but would prefer something nice like on the bemires fence.



UHMW would be my first choice. Wouldn't be cheap. Here's (http://www.rockler.com/product.cfm?page=1580&filter=UHMW) one source. There are many others so shopping around might get you a better price and/or a larger selection of stock sizes.

[jason lambert]

Not worried about cheap, just want perfect! Breaks are not cheap.

[Clancy Courtney]

Was the wood wet?

[William OConnell]

I use Azek for alot of jigs and fixtures. Sand it and its slicker than snot. Its also relatively inexpensive and machines well

[Rick Gifford]

Jason do you plan to send the brake in to SawStop for testing? They will tell you, or supposedly be able to tell you, what set it off buy the voltage drop pattern.

I know if it was by flesh they will send you a new one, but if they find it to be defective I am sure they'll do the same.

My SS is still in the crate coming out this weekend. I have delayed unpacking waiting on the base to arrive. It wont be here til Monday and I am tired of delaying... I wanna make sawdust.

I have an extra brake on hand, hope I don't need it though. Like to know what you find out about your brake tripping.

[Kevin Groenke]

In our experience (12+ brakes on 2 saws in 3 years) SawStops don't just stop without explanation. In all but 1 of the triggers that we've encountered we or SS were able to pin down a reason.

So you had the blade tilted and had the fence VERY close to the blade?
Did the brake fire immediately upon start-up or part way through the cut?

If the blade hit the fence (I suspect it did) the mark it left would be nearly indiscernible since you had the blade tilted (like a file nick, no more). If the blade went off part way through the cut, blade deflection under load could have caused it to hit the fence.

What kind of blade were you using?
If it was a thin kerf blade such deflection is not unheard of. Inspect the wood you cut. Is there NO FLAT on the bevel? V If this is the case theres a very good chance the blade hit the fence. I would definitely get a sacrificial board on the fence before making another cut of this sort: UHMW, Starboard, phenolic, phenolic ply or, if it comes down to it, baltic birch would work well.

The latest generation of SS brakes have "wet wood detection" which results in the saw shutting down (and getting the flashing light code) rather than triggering the brake.

-kg

[Scott Rollins]

When my sawstop brake activated. It was when it touched the miter fence. The brake fired so quickly the paint is the only thing it removed. The metal is uncut, but lightly burnished. The paint fleck it removed was about 1/64" and triangular shaped lke the ATB blade I was using. The only way I found it was by re-tracing the path of the fence through the edge of the blade ( a new one and an new brake later). I now use a piece of MDF with sandpaper on it to cover my miterfence. The miter fence edge is set about 1/2" to the left of the blade. The MDF provides a very good Zero clearance cut as well as a excellent marker for where the blade will cut.

[Peter Quinn]

I took the UHMW off my PM fence and replaced it with a scrap of mahogany sanded and waxed. I hate UHMW fences in most cases, I find them too slippery and uncommunicative. I like a fence with just enough resistance to provide feedback during a cut. Phenolic birch might be a better option.

[jason lambert]

It is the latest break, saw is bran new, newer style break. The wood was a 2x4 from BORG not wet, at least I don't think so I cut several before. This was the first bevel cut I tried about a 38deg cut. I think the fence was just to close as I stated if the fence was not the Incra and metal I don't think I would have had a issue. That is my current theory. There are no marks on the fence started the saw and it blew right away I don't think I even touched the wood to it. Blade did spin free and did not touch the fence, I alwas check. Anyhow SawStop offered to replace the break for free when I called them and they will analize it to see what happened. I am courious, For now I am blaming the fence and my tequnique have some learning to do at least it worked and I did put on a aftermarket fence that they did not test. I love the fence just nees some modification for this saw but I will reserve judgement till I get the test back.


The Blade was a
Amana RB1020 Euro-Rip Ripping with Cooling Slots and Anti-Kickback Feature 10-Inch x 20 Tooth FT 5/8-Inch Bore Saw Blade
About a $50 blade, the blade seems ok since it ididn't even have a chance to spin up to speed.

[Kevin Groenke]

The miter fence edge is set about 1/2" to the left of the blade.

Scott, keep in mind that if you tilt the blade and use that miter gauge, the aluminum may again be in the path of the blade. This is a lesson that we and many others have learned the expensive way.

-kg

[Mike Goetzke]

Try this for UHMW stock.

http://www.eurekazone.com/products/detail/uhmw.html

Mike

[Cary Swoveland]

Scott, keep in mind that if you tilt the blade and use that miter gauge, the aluminum may again be in the path of the blade. This is a lesson that we and many others have learned the expensive way.

-kg
That happened to me too. Only event so far. Cary

[Todd Bin]

I know this may sound crazy, but when you said 2X4 from the Borg and you didn't think you even started the cut the first thing that came to my mind is that stupid bar code that is STAPLED in the end of the 2X4. Did you make sure there were no metalic objects in the wood.

This nearly happened to me on some maple I bought from my local wood source. The staple was no longer there but the metal "nubs" were left in the wood.

Enjoy the saw. It is great.

[Stephen Edwards]

I took the UHMW off my PM fence and replaced it with a scrap of mahogany sanded and waxed. I hate UHMW fences in most cases, I find them too slippery and uncommunicative. I like a fence with just enough resistance to provide feedback during a cut. Phenolic birch might be a better option.

Thanks for the Mahogany idea. I have some laying around that will work just fine for the saw fence.

[jason lambert]

I did pull all the staples, but I will go double check. I asked saw stop and cutting a staple is no problem there fear is a little piece of metal will get flung around with the blade and short between the break and the blade triggering it. I didn't eve get that far I didn't even start to cut the wood.

[Nathan Hawkes]

Well, I don't know a thing about the Saw Stop except for that I want one, but I know a much cheaper source for UHMW poly than those listed so far:



http://www.mcmaster.com/

[Cary Swoveland]

One thing to watch in future is the adjustment of the riving knife. 10" blades do vary in diameter somewhat. If you adjust the riving knife for a blade at the smaller end, and then switch to a larger blade, the riving knife could touch the blade, or come uncomfortably close. That happened to me when I adjusted the riving knife for a Freud ripping blades, then switched to a Forrest WW II blades, which is substantially larger in diameter. I noticed the problem and readjusted the riving knife before using the saw.

Cary

[Al Willits]

"""""
In our experience (12+ brakes on 2 saws in 3 years) SawStops don't just stop without explanation. In all but 1 of the triggers that we've encountered we or SS were able to pin down a reason.
"""""""""

Kevin, if I remember right, don't you teach woodworking or some shop class??

Just wondering if your going though 12 brakes in three years what people are doing to cause this?

Sounds like the SS is paying for its self in your case...:)

Al

[Eddie Darby]

Perhaps an investment in a wood moisture gauge will prove beneficial if you are working Borg wood, since the wood is rushed from the forest to your car as fast as they can get it. A dry surface is not a good indicator that the rest of the wood is not wet.

[Bruce Page]

Woodcraft sells a multi-ply phenolic covered plywood that is very slick and flat, and looks cool too.
I used it to make a table for my little benchtop BS. It’s pretty neat stuff.

[Kevin Groenke]

"""""
In our experience (12+ brakes on 2 saws in 3 years) SawStops don't just stop without explanation. In all but 1 of the triggers that we've encountered we or SS were able to pin down a reason.
"""""""""

Kevin, if I remember right, don't you teach woodworking or some shop class??

Just wondering if your going though 12 brakes in three years what people are doing to cause this?

Sounds like the SS is paying for its self in your case...:)

Al

Hi Al,

I manage the student shop in the College of Design at the UofMN (mostly used by Architecture students).
http://design.umn.edu/current_students/leo/hall/index.html

Though technically not an instructor, I teach design, technique and machine use daily.

With ~500 students, most of whom have little to no shop experience, the SawStops give significant piece of mind. We've tried very hard to not change any standard operating procedures as a result of having SawStops, though occasionally we will allow/do something that we would not do with a conventional saw.

Most stops have been aluminum fence/jig related. 1 or 2 blade/brake gap, 1 riving knife contact, 1 ruler in the blade, a few weird materials (foil backed foam, black paper).

2 stops have been people, 1 of these was at the end of coast down, 1 was at speed and may have prevented significant injury.

regards
-kg

[Don Bullock]

...1 was at speed and may have prevented significant injury.

regards
-kg

That one paid for the saw!

[Dick Strauss]

Jason,
You may have had wet wood. I've picked up 2x4s at the borgs where the weight varied by 50%. A heavier than normal board usually means it is still very wet.

You may also want to check your zero clearance insert or whatever is on your SS. By tilting the blade you may have accidentally made contact with what might be a metal insert not designed for a tilted blade. I don't know if they provide one for 90 degrees (with zero clearance) and one for tilted blades. I may be way off base here...

[John Lannon]

I sure do appreciate the safety of a Saw Stop. But its gotta hurt to see a 50-100 dollar blade get wasted, especially if its not a injury prevention firing of the brake.

[Don Bullock]

John, in many cases I've seen on wwing forums the blades have been repaired. The brake is so fast that, at the most, three teeth are affected. A lot of the reports I've read state or show that the only damage is that the carbide tips on one or two of the saw teeth have to be replaced.

[Mike Goetzke]

Try this for UHMW stock.

http://www.eurekazone.com/products/detail/uhmw.html

Mike

If you are still looking for UHMW try this (McMaster wants $111 for the same material):

http://www.ptreeusa.com/edirect_041808.htm