Steve H Graham
12-25-2008, 12:12 PM
I have a few questions on setting up my used Powermatic 66. Beware: it is highly likely that these questions will be stupid. I have used the search feature and read everything I could find; hope I'm not going over old ground.
1. I know how to bonk the table so the slot is parallel to the blade. I got some very helpful advice on that, and it gave me an excuse to order some cool stuff from MSC. But do I have to worry about how far forward or back the top is on the base? There's a little play in it. I would assume this doesn't matter.
2. I am going to make zero clearance throat plates with a router. For now, though, does it matter how far to the right or left the blade sits in the current slot? Should I just put it close to the center and be done with it?
3. When I took the top off to move the table, I didn't see the shims on the front side, and they fell out. I am fairly sure there were three on each front bolt, but it's conceivable that I'm wrong. How do I make sure I have it shimmed correctly? Someone told me that if I tightened the bolts without getting the shims right, I could permanently warp the top. I don't see how three points of contact could warp a top, now that I think about it. There are only three bolts.
You know, that guy may have been crazy. I've been worried about the height of the blade with respect to the table, but you change that every time you crank the wheel, so it can't mean anything. And I was worried about the slope from front to back, but a blade is circular, so one angle is the same as another as far as it's concerned. Maybe the only purpose of the shims is to make the table more or less level. I guess you could have a top that is sloped diagonally, but I would think a square held up to the blade would make that obvious.
4. I installed the wings by eyeball, because I didn't know I was supposed to use clever tools to do it. I can't feel any change in height as I run my fingers across the gaps. Should I loosen the wings and line them up with tools (like a piece of jointed wood and some clamps), or should I be satisfied with a difference I can't detect by feel and sight?
5. Is there any point in polishing the top? It's nearly free from dings and pits, but it's black. I rubbed part of it with Sheila Shine to see what it would do. A lot of crap came off, but the appearance of the table was unchanged, so I guess there's a fairly serious layer of oxidation and whatever on there. It may be preventing rust. It reminds me a little bit of a seasoned skillet.
Thanks for the help.
I can't run this silly thing yet; the plug is a 30A job, and it doesn't match my 50A receptacle, so I had to order a new plug. If anyone else is in the same boat, let me advise you to Ebay it. On the web, this part (which is ridiculously simple and presumably cheap to make) sells for $60, but I am having one delivered for about eleven bucks.
People have advised me not to cut up the extra-long rails. I'm still thinking it over. If I could create a cabinet under it and make the entire thing roll, I could conceivably keep the rails. The only benefit I see in this is that I would have space to plop things on while I worked, as well as storage. It would be nice to have a place to leave my incredibly huge miter saw. I am reluctant because it was insane to buy this giant saw to begin with, and it seems like turning it into an eight-foot-long aircraft carrier in a two-car garage is a little psychotic.
By the way, let me ask. Is a huge sliding miter saw of any real use in woodworking? I wanted it primarily for cross-cutting stuff that was too wide to fit on my 10" compound miter saw. HD put it on sale, and I felt like I absolutely had to buy it.
Finally, MERRY CHRISTMAS.
1. I know how to bonk the table so the slot is parallel to the blade. I got some very helpful advice on that, and it gave me an excuse to order some cool stuff from MSC. But do I have to worry about how far forward or back the top is on the base? There's a little play in it. I would assume this doesn't matter.
2. I am going to make zero clearance throat plates with a router. For now, though, does it matter how far to the right or left the blade sits in the current slot? Should I just put it close to the center and be done with it?
3. When I took the top off to move the table, I didn't see the shims on the front side, and they fell out. I am fairly sure there were three on each front bolt, but it's conceivable that I'm wrong. How do I make sure I have it shimmed correctly? Someone told me that if I tightened the bolts without getting the shims right, I could permanently warp the top. I don't see how three points of contact could warp a top, now that I think about it. There are only three bolts.
You know, that guy may have been crazy. I've been worried about the height of the blade with respect to the table, but you change that every time you crank the wheel, so it can't mean anything. And I was worried about the slope from front to back, but a blade is circular, so one angle is the same as another as far as it's concerned. Maybe the only purpose of the shims is to make the table more or less level. I guess you could have a top that is sloped diagonally, but I would think a square held up to the blade would make that obvious.
4. I installed the wings by eyeball, because I didn't know I was supposed to use clever tools to do it. I can't feel any change in height as I run my fingers across the gaps. Should I loosen the wings and line them up with tools (like a piece of jointed wood and some clamps), or should I be satisfied with a difference I can't detect by feel and sight?
5. Is there any point in polishing the top? It's nearly free from dings and pits, but it's black. I rubbed part of it with Sheila Shine to see what it would do. A lot of crap came off, but the appearance of the table was unchanged, so I guess there's a fairly serious layer of oxidation and whatever on there. It may be preventing rust. It reminds me a little bit of a seasoned skillet.
Thanks for the help.
I can't run this silly thing yet; the plug is a 30A job, and it doesn't match my 50A receptacle, so I had to order a new plug. If anyone else is in the same boat, let me advise you to Ebay it. On the web, this part (which is ridiculously simple and presumably cheap to make) sells for $60, but I am having one delivered for about eleven bucks.
People have advised me not to cut up the extra-long rails. I'm still thinking it over. If I could create a cabinet under it and make the entire thing roll, I could conceivably keep the rails. The only benefit I see in this is that I would have space to plop things on while I worked, as well as storage. It would be nice to have a place to leave my incredibly huge miter saw. I am reluctant because it was insane to buy this giant saw to begin with, and it seems like turning it into an eight-foot-long aircraft carrier in a two-car garage is a little psychotic.
By the way, let me ask. Is a huge sliding miter saw of any real use in woodworking? I wanted it primarily for cross-cutting stuff that was too wide to fit on my 10" compound miter saw. HD put it on sale, and I felt like I absolutely had to buy it.
Finally, MERRY CHRISTMAS.