Help needed for setting up new slider

[Bobby Robbinett]

So I just bought a brand new generic slider and am getting it all dialed in. One thing that I can not figure out is the tracking of the table being parallel to the top or blade. I have my magnetic dial indicator setup on the cast iron top and it is measuring against the edge of the sliding table. The dial indicator is fixed magnetically to the cast iron top and I am measuring the parallelness of the sliding table but not have any luck adjusting it to read within 10 thou forward and back. Is this the correct way to measure this? When the table goes forward it gets farther away and when it goes back it gets closer. I am driving myself nuts trying to get it to be straight throughout its travel forward and back. Any suggestions?

[Johannes Becker]

Hi Bobby,

First of all, adjusting a slider is quite a task and it took me several tries to get it dialed in. For me, the advise from the Felder owner group was instrumental to getting it done. So regardless of brand, I would encourage you to join and search the archives (look for David Best's posts on alignment) / ask your questions there. Using dial indicators shows that you are on the right path. Two or three would be better depending on how the adjustment of your slider works. Here is an outline of the procedure I used:

1) You may want to start with leveling the machine and making sure the table has no twist. A machinist level is helpful for this
2) try getting the table co-planar to the top and a little bit higher than the table (something like 5 thou). Depending on the adjustment mechanism of the table (my sliding table base is riding on eight bolts) this is not trivial since it depends on the position of the roller carriage in the sliding table as well. So you need to get this with the table centered and then making sure that it is not rising or falling to much when going forward or backward. Some description or photos of the available adjustment mechanism would be helpful here.
3) now you are ready to adjust table to blade parallelism. I measured this by clamping a straight edge to the actual blade and the dial indicator attached to the sliding table. The recommendation was to have about 3 thou of toe out per 12 inch to make sure the back teeth of the blade have some clearance. I adjusted mine to even less.

As I said, this is only a rough outline on what I did and other with more experience have done excellent posts on the subject.

[Kevin Jenness]

It sounds as though the sliding table edge is not parallel to the ways, or to put it another way the edge is not parallel to its own path. If it were straight and parallel to its (straight) line of travel the measurement from a point on the fixed table should be constant regardless of the angle between the carriage travel and the main table.

For many operations this is not important. The main thing is getting the table travel parallel to the saw blade (or set with a slight toe-out), the crosscut fence square to the table travel and the rip fence parallel or with a slight toe-out to the blade. I would start by fixing the indicator to the carriage and testing parallelism to the largest blade you have, with the blade at various rotation points to cancel runout. The sliders I have worked on have adjustments on the carriage supports. Then measure against and adjust the rip fence, and finally adjust the crosscut fence.

It's conceivable that the ways and the carriage travel are not straight, which would be a more serious problem. You could test for that by milling two boards clamped to the carriage and offering up the new edges.

If I am right that the carriage edge is not parallel to its path it may cause minor problems when measuring off that edge, which I sometimes do when straightlining a rough edge or a taper. If the table slot is also askew from the ways it may cause problems when using a Fritz and Frans or parallel ripping jig, or setting an auxiliary miter gauge. On the other hand, .010" is a relatively small difference over 8 or 10 feet of travel. How big an issue it is depends on how you use the saw. If the table travel itself is straight (produces a straight edge) and you primarily use the crosscut and rip fences then it may not be a problem at all. The carriage edge and slot are slightly off on my Paoloni but functionally it is fine.

You could mount a router to the fixed table and mill the carriage edge parallel to its stroke, but re-milling the table slot would be another story.

What brand of saw is this? Have you contacted customer service?

This "generic slider" may be an example of "buy once cry once". You don't always get what you pay for, but you rarely get what you don't pay for.

[Michael Drew]

This is solid advice. I just spent a couple days doing pretty much exactly what Johannes suggests....... David Best has everything posted on YouTube as well. No point trying to set the wagon to blade tow out if you have not calibrated it for being coplanar to the cast iron top. I used three dial indicators (as described by Best), a precision straight edge, and a machinists level. It is an iterative process.

Hi Bobby,

First of all, adjusting a slider is quite a task and it took me several tries to get it dialed in. For me, the advise from the Felder owner group was instrumental to getting it done. So regardless of brand, I would encourage you to join and search the archives (look for David Best's posts on alignment) / ask your questions there. Using dial indicators shows that you are on the right path. Two or three would be better depending on how the adjustment of your slider works. Here is an outline of the procedure I used:

1) You may want to start with leveling the machine and making sure the table has no twist. A machinist level is helpful for this
2) try getting the table co-planar to the top and a little bit higher than the table (something like 5 thou). Depending on the adjustment mechanism of the table (my sliding table base is riding on eight bolts) this is not trivial since it depends on the position of the roller carriage in the sliding table as well. So you need to get this with the table centered and then making sure that it is not rising or falling to much when going forward or backward. Some description or photos of the available adjustment mechanism would be helpful here.
3) no you are ready to adjust table to blade parallelism. I measured this by clamping a straight edge to the actual blade and the dial indicator attached to the sliding table. The recommendation was to have about 3 thou of toe out per 12 inch to make sure the back teeth of the blade have some clearance. I adjusted mine to even less.

As I said, this is only a rough outline on what I did and other with more experience have done excellent posts on the subject.

[Warren Lake]

there is a whole series of steps, do you know if the table is even flat. Mine wasnt.

[Richard Coers]

The edge of the table has no relationship to the blade, miter slots, or sliding table. You have to indicate off a staightedge on the blade or the slots.

[Warren Lake]

from memory it does on my saw and was pretty much bang on, same with the rip fence. Been a while since I was measuring on it and have to start again. Thing that was out was table not flat and you will never set up .003 over if the table top itself is not flat.

[Paul J Kelly]

This is a journey for sure.

I spent an afternoon on it.

This video from David Best may help:

https://youtu.be/9s2a02XI3BQ

PK

[Bill Dufour]

I see no reason to think the table edge is even straight much less aligned with anything at all. It is probably as cast and touched up by a hand held grinder to remove any flash and snags. No reason to make it align with anything except stay within maybe 1/4" of parallel with travel so there is not a huge gap to collect gunk.
Bill D.

[Warren Lake]

my table edge to left mitre slot was accurate to zero. The table edge to a precision ground straight edge laying on a table saw blade 14 or 16" was out .0005. Easy to love old machines.

The value of that was putting dial on the sliding table and running it on the table edge showed me exactly how parallel or not parallel the sliding table was traveling in relation to the blade.

There is a guy on the net who ripped over size material with a straight edge clamped to it and running it on that outer edge of his saw. Not that I want to do that but he could do that as stuff was parallel.

Guy I bought the saw from when I got there had loosened all the top bolts and when I said why? he said to lift it off to move it. I said no that wont happen where are the bolts. Likely he had not tried to lift the top bolts off and move it as it cut great as soon as it was running. It wont be set up better till I level out the top more.