restoring a powermatic 15HH

[Bill Dufour]

I like to use aluminum foil for paint masking. Holds nicely to curves and self holds when crumpled around a feature.
Bil lD

[Thomas Crawford]

I'm super pumped I got the rollers off of the table. Took a lot of googling to figure out how to get those eccentric adjusters out, the end method was a lot of banging around. Unfortunately in the process I knocked the center out of one of the bearings and the outer ring is stuck in the roller. It might make me have to order another roller if I can't get it out.

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[Matt Day]

Pictures of the bearing problem?

[Thomas Crawford]

Pictures of the bearing problem?

You can see I've marred it up trying to get it out, that will clean up fine. There's no lip on the bottom to pound against.

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[Mitch Fenneman]

You might be able to use a hacksaw blade and cut through it at an angle in a few places as far as possible without getting into the roller then take a cold chisel and break it apart. Just an idea of how I've accomplished the task before, might or might not work depending on how far you can cut into the race before getting in to the roller.

[Matt Day]

I got these loaner tools at Autozone to do a very similar thing to my 399.

[Doug Dawson]

You can see I've marred it up trying to get it out, that will clean up fine. There's no lip on the bottom to pound against.

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Slide hammer kit with a bearing puller attachment. You should be able to pick one up at harbor freight that will suffice (it seems like it would be hard for them to screw something like that up.) It's a really useful tool whenever you're dealing with bearing replacements.

[Matt Day]

Doug, i think just the outer race is stuck INSIDE the roller. So a standard puller would do no good. See my previous post.

[Doug Dawson]

Doug, i think just the outer race is stuck INSIDE the roller. So a standard puller would do no good. See my previous post.

Slide hammers can work on the outside _or_ the inside of the bearing. You can also get pullers that do the same, that can be used with a slide hammer. Of course, you usually can't reuse the bearing afterwards, but that's why you're removing it.

[Matt Day]

Gotcha Doug, like this kit:
https://www.harborfreight.com/Slide-...-Pc-62601.html

Similar to what I used.

[Doug Dawson]

Gotcha Doug, like this kit:
https://www.harborfreight.com/Slide-...-Pc-62601.html

Similar to what I used.

More like this:

https://www.northerntool.com/shop/to...QaAkHHEALw_wcB

A lot more flexible, and only slightly more expensive. I have something similar, and with some ingenuity, it has served me well for many years.

Cheaper than taking it out to a shop if you ever plan on doing more than one or if you value your time.

[Thomas Crawford]

I've tried cutting through it with a dremel but it seems rusted in place. Since a new roller is $20 I'm probably going to take an angle grinder to it and see in the end if it will still work. It just needs to hold the bearing and provide minimal friction for a board. Doesn't seem like the extreme edge will matter much.

[Matt Day]

That’s a good point Thomas. Honestly, most, myself included, will recommend you lower those rollers below the bed anyway. They cause more trouble than they are worth unless you are rough planing thousands of board feet. Keep the beds waxed and you don’t need them.

That being said, there is some satisfaction in completing the job. You can get the loaner tools mentioned above for free at an auto parts store. Might as well try.

[Thomas Crawford]

I went ahead and took the angle grinder to it, I think it will still work fine after I grind down all the sharp edges I made.

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[Thomas Crawford]

PRIMED AND PAINTED - so close to getting this thing back together. Sherwin Williams direct to metal oil enamel. Only 450 VOC. Painted outside so I didn't make the shop smell.

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