table saw rumbling

[Alex Zeller]

I would pound on it at all. Get yourself a bearing puller and a gear puller to pull the bearings and pulley off the arbor. It's possible that the set screw is down in one of the belt grooves. If you are positive that there's no set screw I would pull the one bearing off and then try pulling the pulley. It could just be the key and the nut on the end of the arbor is all that holds it. Or it could be the factory forgot to put the set screw in the pulley.

[Ronald Blue]

Pictures might help here. It's hard to fathom there not being a set screw. It's likely not going to be a taper lock pulley and it won't fit the shaft tight enough to be secure without a setscrew. Good luck.

[Barry Versteegh]

Is this a taper lock sheave and bushing type pulley they do not have set screws.

[Bob Riefer]

I'm in the process of figuring out paypal so I can contribute and see pics (my wife has an account I can use, but she's out right now)... But in the meantime, I think I can post and you all can see.

PS - my shop is not normally the tornado-like mess that you're about to witness


IMG_5531.jpgIMG_5532.jpgIMG_5535.jpgIMG_5536.jpgIMG_5537.jpgIMG_5538.jpg

[Jim Becker]

Bob, you don't need a PayPal account to contribute...PayPal is just the clearing house for the transaction on a credit card. When you click to pay, you don't have to put in any PayPal credentials..there's an option for that. When you get to the PayPal screen, click on the light blue button at the bottom labeled "Pay with debit or credit card"

Based on your photos, I think the folks have have suggested a puller of some kind are spot on. That pulley may be there by some "frictional" means. Worse case, call Grizzly and speak to a customer support technician to see if they can clue you into the procedure necessary for you to do what you need to do.

[Matt Day]

If there are spacers (Bushings) on either side of the pulley, and a key on the shaft you don’t need a set screw. That “pitting” could be a material removed to balance it.

Try pushing the arbor through the bearings with a bearing puller if it won’t go with a hammer. If you use a hammer, use a block of wood so you don’t strike directly on the shaft.

“Frictional” means is called a press fit I believe.

There are lots of videos and information on the web about replacing arbor bearings.

[Bob Riefer]

Jim - thanks for the heads up on payment methods, I was able to get that processed now. Also, thank you for all your helpful posts - I see your name in all the threads that I read. Much appreciated!

Matt - I'm hoping you're right that it's a friction fit that can be handled with a gear/bearing puller tool. My local auto store allows such tools to be borrowed and returned for free, so that's a good price :-) I sent the same pics as above to Grizzly (who have been really awesome in replying in detail to my questions) to verify, and then I'll give it a try.

(Yes, watched MANY videos on replacing arbor bearings... thanks for the tip... 100% that I've found so far have set screws on the arbor pulley... my saw's arbor pulley doesn't have those. Once past this hurdle, I think the rest of the process appears doable)

[Jim Becker]

My pleasure to help as always, Bob.

I worked in Collegeville/Trappe many years ago when I lived in Royersford and also played piano with some students at Ursinus in a jazz group as they didn't have a student to do that. My spouse at the time was a student there; hence, the connection. That's a great area and again, I'm so glad you did all the restoration work on your property.

[Jacob Reverb]

Note that pretty much all ball bearings are metric so measure them in metric. Do not try to measure in English units and convert.

Bill - Not sure I follow you here. What's the potential problem with converting from English to metric? All my calipers and micrometers (microYARDS? LOL) are in English units and I want to be sure I don't screw up (again)... I generally just use Google to convert ("0.382 inch in mm") and it's worked so far...

[John Stankus]

In one of the pictures there is a circlip (the picture that says nut already removed). Could the circlip be holding everything in?

John

[Bob Riefer]

In one of the pictures there is a circlip (the picture that says nut already removed). Could the circlip be holding everything in?

John

I don't think so (based on videos I've watch).. I think that clip holds the bearing in place but doesn't directly impact the arbor shaft.


I just heard back from Grizzly... I have to say that I am very impressed with their responsiveness and level of knowledge.

They think that my saw is quite old given the color of the paint and the trunnion yoke.

He confirmed the comment a few posts ago that the "pit" was likely to help with balancing, and that machines of this age range (at least from Grizzly) did not have arbor pulley set screws.

He also told me NOT to use a gear puller... he prefers that I use a block of wood and hammer it out. He didn't tell me why, but he was strong on that point, so I'm going to listen.

With all these pieces of information, I'm going to go for it over the next couple days.

Worst case scenario... the arbor assembly is replaceable for $195. I'd hate to have to resort to that (preferring instead to sink money to a newer tool) but it's an option.

[Bob Riefer]

ARRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRGHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH HHHHHH!

I had it! I totally had it! I had the entire assembly apart, but was having a hell of a time getting the bearings out. They were in AWFUL shape and really stuck in there.

Following videos online on how to remove stuck bearings, I broke the arbor bracket.

I guess I'm off to either purchase the replacement part from Grizzly, or perhaps ebay if I can find it cheaper.

From so happy to so bummed in the span of about 30 seconds.

Darn. I guess I should have soaked it in wd-40 or similar.

[Lee Schierer]

When working with cast iron you need to be very careful. Hitting it with a hammer is always a bad idea as cast iron is brittle. An arbor press or bearing puller are the ideal tools for inserting and removing bearings.

I hope you can find a replacement casting. It might be possible to weld the part you have, but getting the correct alignment will be difficult.

[Matt Day]

Bummer! Sorry that I should’ve explained more about using a hammer with brittle cast iron.

When I remove bearings I usually press them out using a bearing puller. In that case I would hook the arms onto the cast iron, and using a similarly sized socket, push the bearing out. If I was going to use a hammer, I would support the cast-iron.

So sorry that happened! At least you learned something about the properties of cast-iron.

[Bob Riefer]

Sigh, yeah, total bummer.

The Grizzly video on the topic, and their email written instructions both said to hammer the bearing out... the email even said NOT to use a puller. So I (incorrectly) assumed I was in good shape.

$240 gets me a new and complete assembly (including new bearings) directly from Grizzly, so I should be back in business on Friday when that arrives.

While I have the top off, I'll replace the belts and see if I can figure out a method to funnel sawdust more efficiently to the 4" DC pipe that i have in the cabinet (I have a 2" pipe above the table to the blade guard too).