Page 1 of 2 12 LastLast
Results 1 to 15 of 26

Thread: New Grizzly 1023SL

  1. #1
    Join Date
    Sep 2007
    Location
    North Georgia
    Posts
    84

    New Grizzly 1023SL

    In a previous thread I sought some information regarding my newly ordered Grizzly G1023SL. Figured I'd share my experiences with the acquisition . . .

    Saw was ordered from Grizzly on Monday 10/26 at 10:00 AM. Figured it would be a week or so making it to Georgia. Salesperson said would only take 3-5 days. Great! I had read some other posts on SC indicating
    Grizzly's shipping delivery was quite fast. I watchted UPS Freight's tracking on the shipment. Within 36 hours my saw moved from Harrisburg, PA to Atlanta, GA. The next day, Thursday, the saw made a 30 minute trip
    from Atlanta to Blue Ridge, GA where UPS handed it off to a subcontracting freight company (Ground Cartage Company). Blue Ridge is 58 miles away. Tracking showed delivery scheduled for Friday 10/30 (4th
    day), so I rearranged my work schedule to be available. No delivery by late in the day, so I called UPS who put me in touch with Ground Cartage. I was told that they should be able to deliver the shipment - get this -
    THE NEXT THURSDAY! (That is 8 days after they received the shipment.) What really got my goat, was when the guy suggested I could drive over and pick the shipment up myself! Called UPS. Two customer service
    persons I spoke with were dismayed. They put me on hold while they called Ground Cartage - said there was nothing they could do. Called Grizzly. VERY helpful customer service person took my information and
    said they would get back to me. There was, of course nothing Grizzly could do - and it wasn't their fault - I just felt they needed to know what UPS Freight had done with their shipment. I received at least four
    calls from Grizzly checking on the situation over the next week . . . and, yes, Ground Cartage sat on my saw for 8 days before delivering it - just as they said they would. In summary, Grizzly gets high marks for
    showing concern and following up repeatedly on something they didn't cause and could do nothing about. UPS Freight did a good job getting the shipment in the general area - but their choice of contractor for end-point delivery in north Georgia . . . well, it just stinks. End of rant.

    Now, to the saw. I've read numerous posts regarding concerns about Grizzly's packing methods - and with my saw spending an extra 8 days "who knows where", I was a bit apprehensive. The Grizzly customer service folks I talked to all emphasized the importance of inspecting the shipment and noting even the slightest damage to packing on the shippping receipt. I would say that, in my case, the packing was in "fair" shape. The cardboard carton was crumpled from weight placed on top of it. The second carton containing the fence parts (at about 100 lbs.) was on top of the saw carton on the truck. This may have been the source of the crumpling.

    DSCN3935.jpg

    On removing the cardboard carton I was pleased to find a thick block of styrofoam fitted to the saw's table and extending maybe 3" below the table. That's some pretty good protection. The palette on which the saw sat was caving on one side. But . . . the packing seems to have done its job - and that's all we really care about, right?

    DSCN3945.jpg
    DSCN3946.JPG

    First order of business in setup is removing the cosmoline from the metal surfaces. Read a lot of whining about how hard this is. Used my favorite solvent: WD-40, a plastic squeegee, and half a roll of paper towels. 30 minutes. Done. No big deal . . . But, let's talk about the finish on the table. VERY NICE. Better that the finish on practically every saw I have looked at. Saw Stop probably has an equal table finish. High marks to Grizz here as well.

    Answers to my previous post requesting mobile base suggestions convinced me to build my own. I temporarlily attached the table extesions so I'd have something to lift by. Here's a picture of assembly to that point.

    DSCN3947.JPG

    Haven't had the time I'd like in the shop this week, but just finished my mobile base tonight. Tomorrow Kubota meets Grizzly, Grizzly meets mobile base. Will post photos.

  2. #2
    Scot, my guess is you will LOVE this saw! I certainly like mine.

    Congrats.

  3. #3
    Join Date
    Mar 2006
    Location
    SoCal
    Posts
    22,492
    Blog Entries
    1
    Great detailed report. Thanks for taking the time to post this. GLad the beast made it to you OK. As a side note, the wings are not handles. Be careful ;-)
    "A hen is only an egg's way of making another egg".


    – Samuel Butler

  4. #4
    Join Date
    Feb 2003
    Location
    Doylestown, PA
    Posts
    7,551
    Quote Originally Posted by glenn bradley View Post
    Great detailed report. Thanks for taking the time to post this. GLad the beast made it to you OK. As a side note, the wings are not handles. Be careful ;-)
    What he said. I've bought a few of these Harbor Freight straps:
    http://www.harborfreight.com/cpi/cta...emnumber=47708
    I then modded mine by cutting of the short piece that's fastened to the metal frame. Cut the hook off the longer strap. Loop the longer strap where the short strap is now. If you don't have access to a heavy duty sewing machine, I've found RooGlue clear bonds this strap pretty well(No warranty expressed or implied, however). You now have a strap that can be used for lifting things or as a clamp for irregularly shaped objects.

  5. #5
    Join Date
    Nov 2006
    Location
    Minnesota
    Posts
    2,285
    I bought that saw a year ago. You will love it!

    Don't pick up the saw by the wings -- you might bend them to where you'll never get them aligned properly.

    Rent an engine hoist for $30-40 for the day. I found this to be the best solution for both my back and the saw.

    Jason
    Attached Images Attached Images

  6. #6
    Join Date
    May 2008
    Location
    Rio Rancho, NM
    Posts
    105
    I am assuming your Kubota has a front loader to lift the saw. Even with the wings already on, make sure your strap is tight up against the cabinet so you are lifting under the main table top, not the wings, as mentioned earlier, you can warp the wings. I lifted my 691 with an engine hoist prior to attaching the wings, you can see my pics in my thread.
    Like you, I was impressed with the finish of the top, and of course, Grizzly's customer service. Enjoy your saw.
    Measure twice - cut twice - Still TOO short!

  7. #7
    Join Date
    Sep 2007
    Location
    North Georgia
    Posts
    84

    Mobile Base & Placing The Saw

    As mentioned in my previous post, I finished the mobile base for the saw last night. Here are a couple pictures.
    DSCN3949.jpgDSCN3950.jpg
    I based my mobile base design on several ideas that had been posted here and elsewhere. The frame is made from yellow pine. Bought the two tightest grain and clearest 2x12x8' I could find. Ripped to 5"+. Glued up and surfaced to a finished dimension of 2-3/4 x 5". Casters are Woodcraft's 3" size that were on sale last week. (Thanks to the SC poster who recommeded these - they are NICE.) 5/16 x 6" lags, 1/4" dados and lots of glue attach the cross supports to the side rails. The cutouts for the casters to form the "outriggers" left 2-1/2" x 2-3/4" of material. This seems to be the weak point in the designs I have looked at, so I was glad for every bit of material I could leave. I wrapped all four interior frame walls with 1-1/2" angle iron attached with 2" lags. The saw actually sits on a piece of 3/4" MDF which rests on the four pieces of 1-1/2" angle. Wanted the saw table to be at the same height as my workbench - which meant the base needed to add 3" to the bare saw height. Sat the finished base on my workbench and loaded it with a guestimated amount of pressure with clamps. Attached the angle iron to allowed an additional 1/32" for sag. Actual sag was 1/16" so I'm within 1/32" and happy with that! Now let's get the saw on top of this thing . . .
    DSCN3951.jpgDSCN3953.jpgDSCN3954.jpg
    Thanks to all for suggestions and cautions regarding lifting the saw. I've actually been giving this a lot of thought over the past week. To make sure no pressure was placed on the table wings, I bottomed out 4" bolts in the center table section's fence mounting holes. I carefully positioned the tractor's loader bucket just in contact with some protecive plywood on the table top and then lashed the saw and bucket together with a lifting strap. Pulled the strap to the inside of the bolts in the table's edge and then along the cabinet top edge to the bolt on the other side. The table wings were not contacted in any way by the strap - the center part of the table did the lifting. This worked well, because I could not only lift the saw, but I could also use the bucket's curl motion to tilt it back and forth so as to set it down nice and level. Here she sits . . .
    DSCN3955.jpg
    You can literally move the whole thing with one finger. Finished adjusting the wings - one was right on, the other took a 1/4" wide paper shim (masking tape too thick). Nice machining Grizzly! Installed the power switch on its bracket. Tomorrow I hope to finish out the fence assembly. An electician friend is coming to keep me out of trouble on the electrical hookup. Question: can anyone with one of these saws tell me if there are mounting holes under the slanted bottom of the inside of the cabinet. I'd like to fix the cabinet to the MDF so it stays centered on the base.

  8. #8
    Join Date
    Nov 2006
    Location
    Minnesota
    Posts
    2,285
    Nice job!

    You have to remove the slanted dust pan in order to access the holes to screw or bolt the machine down to the MDF platform/base. Not a big deal -- I recommend you do it before making any sawdust, though.

    Jason


    Quote Originally Posted by Scot Roberge View Post
    As mentioned in my previous post, I finished the mobile base for the saw last night. Here are a couple pictures.
    DSCN3949.jpgDSCN3950.jpg
    I based my mobile base design on several ideas that had been posted here and elsewhere. The frame is made from yellow pine. Bought the two tightest grain and clearest 2x12x8' I could find. Ripped to 5"+. Glued up and surfaced to a finished dimension of 2-3/4 x 5". Casters are Woodcraft's 3" size that were on sale last week. (Thanks to the SC poster who recommeded these - they are NICE.) 5/16 x 6" lags, 1/4" dados and lots of glue attach the cross supports to the side rails. The cutouts for the casters to form the "outriggers" left 2-1/2" x 2-3/4" of material. This seems to be the weak point in the designs I have looked at, so I was glad for every bit of material I could leave. I wrapped all four interior frame walls with 1-1/2" angle iron attached with 2" lags. The saw actually sits on a piece of 3/4" MDF which rests on the four pieces of 1-1/2" angle. Wanted the saw table to be at the same height as my workbench - which meant the base needed to add 3" to the bare saw height. Sat the finished base on my workbench and loaded it with a guestimated amount of pressure with clamps. Attached the angle iron to allowed an additional 1/32" for sag. Actual sag was 1/16" so I'm within 1/32" and happy with that! Now let's get the saw on top of this thing . . .
    DSCN3951.jpgDSCN3953.jpgDSCN3954.jpg
    Thanks to all for suggestions and cautions regarding lifting the saw. I've actually been giving this a lot of thought over the past week. To make sure no pressure was placed on the table wings, I bottomed out 4" bolts in the center table section's fence mounting holes. I carefully positioned the tractor's loader bucket just in contact with some protecive plywood on the table top and then lashed the saw and bucket together with a lifting strap. Pulled the strap to the inside of the bolts in the table's edge and then along the cabinet top edge to the bolt on the other side. The table wings were not contacted in any way by the strap - the center part of the table did the lifting. This worked well, because I could not only lift the saw, but I could also use the bucket's curl motion to tilt it back and forth so as to set it down nice and level. Here she sits . . .
    DSCN3955.jpg
    You can literally move the whole thing with one finger. Finished adjusting the wings - one was right on, the other took a 1/4" wide paper shim (masking tape too thick). Nice machining Grizzly! Installed the power switch on its bracket. Tomorrow I hope to finish out the fence assembly. An electician friend is coming to keep me out of trouble on the electrical hookup. Question: can anyone with one of these saws tell me if there are mounting holes under the slanted bottom of the inside of the cabinet. I'd like to fix the cabinet to the MDF so it stays centered on the base.

  9. #9
    Join Date
    May 2008
    Location
    Rio Rancho, NM
    Posts
    105
    GOOD JOB with the strap and bucket. Nice pictures of the process. Now have fun making wood dust.
    Measure twice - cut twice - Still TOO short!

  10. #10
    Join Date
    Sep 2007
    Location
    North Georgia
    Posts
    84

    On a sour note . . .

    Well, today I planned to install the fence and other remaining parts and get the saw running. Unfortunately, the back fence rail is defective. It has a crown running the length of it with a high spot of about 3/32" in the center - such that when I align the top of the center of the rail with the top of the saw table, I end up with the rail sloping off toward each side - leaving no support and no adjustment to get the fence to clear the table. Further inspection revealed that the left side plastic fence face is incorrectly sized - or attached too low. It extends below the plastic support pads the fence is supposed to ride on - so it scrubs the table instead of letting the support pads do their job. When the fence passes the right edge of the table, it drops below table leavel and has to be lifted to return to a position over the table. With the crown in the rear rail, I have no vertical adjustment available to make up for this. The way the attachment screw holes are countersunk into the plastic negates the possibility of simply adjusting the face placement. Finally, the locking mechanism cam was misshaped - or incorrectly installed - and would not go down far enough to lock the fence . . . so I pushed a little harder . . . and, of course, the handle snapped off. Disgust. I've read a few compaints about this fence, but didn't place much credence in them. Anybody else have problems like these with a Shop Fox "Classic" fence?

    Called Grizzly and explained. Larry with tech support was nice enough and understood the problems as I explained them. Grizzly is sending a complete fence assembly replacement. Given my experience with delivery of the saw via UPS Freight, I expect about another 1½ - 2 weeks before I might have a functioning saw. The fence arrived in it's own box prominently labeled Shop Fox, so in a way, this is not a Grizzly problem. Presently, I still feel the saw is a quality piece of equipment, but I am dismayed by three problems with the fence . . . and after all, Grizzly choose the fence they would bundle with their saw. My Grizzly satisfactionometer just made a couple ticks to the left . . . but I'm trying to remain positive.

  11. #11
    Join Date
    Nov 2006
    Location
    Minnesota
    Posts
    2,285
    Remain positive. Sounds like it got banged up during shipping. This really is a great machine for the money and worth the extra trouble.

    FYI -- Shop Fox and Grizzly are the same company.

    Jason

    Quote Originally Posted by Scot Roberge View Post
    Well, today I planned to install the fence and other remaining parts and get the saw running. Unfortunately, the back fence rail is defective. It has a crown running the length of it with a high spot of about 3/32" in the center - such that when I align the top of the center of the rail with the top of the saw table, I end up with the rail sloping off toward each side - leaving no support and no adjustment to get the fence to clear the table. Further inspection revealed that the left side plastic fence face is incorrectly sized - or attached too low. It extends below the plastic support pads the fence is supposed to ride on - so it scrubs the table instead of letting the support pads do their job. When the fence passes the right edge of the table, it drops below table leavel and has to be lifted to return to a position over the table. With the crown in the rear rail, I have no vertical adjustment available to make up for this. The way the attachment screw holes are countersunk into the plastic negates the possibility of simply adjusting the face placement. Finally, the locking mechanism cam was misshaped - or incorrectly installed - and would not go down far enough to lock the fence . . . so I pushed a little harder . . . and, of course, the handle snapped off. Disgust. I've read a few compaints about this fence, but didn't place much credence in them. Anybody else have problems like these with a Shop Fox "Classic" fence?

    Called Grizzly and explained. Larry with tech support was nice enough and understood the problems as I explained them. Grizzly is sending a complete fence assembly replacement. Given my experience with delivery of the saw via UPS Freight, I expect about another 1½ - 2 weeks before I might have a functioning saw. The fence arrived in it's own box prominently labeled Shop Fox, so in a way, this is not a Grizzly problem. Presently, I still feel the saw is a quality piece of equipment, but I am dismayed by three problems with the fence . . . and after all, Grizzly choose the fence they would bundle with their saw. My Grizzly satisfactionometer just made a couple ticks to the left . . . but I'm trying to remain positive.

  12. #12
    Scott, any update over the last few weeks? My G1023SL arrived tonight via UPS freight. Picked it up at the facility. The fence box has a large, hole in it; the components look okay but I'm suspicious. The saw box has a small hole at the bottom. I noted these on the shipping statement. Both boxes are waiting in my garage for some extra muscle to make the trip to the shop tomorrow. Also need to run 220V service, so it will be a few weeks before I get to fire this up...

  13. #13
    Join Date
    Sep 2007
    Location
    North Georgia
    Posts
    84

    Replacement fence, final setup

    Grizzly shipped the replacement fence the next business day after I informed them of the problems with the original. It arrived a week later in good condition. I had just enough time before leaving on vacation to install the rails and tube and set the fence in place. All of the parts aligned well. The bottoms of the plastic faces were even with each other and the support pads held the fence about 1/32" above the table. All looked well.
    Today (two weeks later) was my first opportunity to get back in the shop. I adjusted the miter gauge to remove any slop in its track and ran a dial indicator against the blade. I found it to be out by only .0015" - and I would attribute most of that to the blade I'm using. The fence was a bit tight on its tube, so I backed the set screws out a 1/4 turn. Measuring over the center half of table, the fence was closer to the blade on the back side by about .003". I did a slight adjustment here to put the back of the fence away from the blade about .0015". Really, the saw was set up very well by the factory, so I have to agree with previous posters that the factory's setup is well done.
    Made sure everything was tightened down and pushed the green button. Now, the only saw I've ever really used was my trusty 30-year-old 1 HP Craftsman. This is a very a different beast. I was immediately struck by how the blade was up to speed almost instantly . . . and obviously at a much higher RPM than I have every experieced. Had time to make one test cut with a piece of 2x4 YP. Like butter. A very smooth crosscut. I know the cut will be even better when I get a better blade. Frankly, the power made me a little apprehensive - and so did that gaping hole beside the blade using the standard insert. First order of business is fabricating some ZCIs . . .

  14. #14
    Join Date
    Sep 2007
    Location
    North Georgia
    Posts
    84
    Shawn, I wouldn't sweat light to moderate damage to the boxes. Each of the boxes I received was pretty banged up, but they did their job. As long as you don't have any visible damage to the components, you're going to be OK. These machines are so heavily constructed that it would take some serious banging around to cause any real problems. Keep us updated on your setup. Be careful, take your time and do it right!

  15. #15
    Join Date
    Oct 2006
    Location
    Bloomington, IL
    Posts
    6,009
    Nice litle subcompact Kubota!
    Glad its my shop I am responsible for - I only have to make me happy.

Tags for this Thread

Posting Permissions

  • You may not post new threads
  • You may not post replies
  • You may not post attachments
  • You may not edit your posts
  •