Question on Delta 34-441 Table Saw

[Brent Campbell]

I was recently gifted a Delta 34-441 Contractor Table Saw from about the mid 1980s. It should clean up nicely, and be adequate for my needs.

One question I have is on the "throat plate" that goes around the blade (the one with the slot for the blade). I am used to saws having four screws holding the throat plate onto the bed. This one appears to have a hook on one end and just sits there and relies on the weight of the throat plate to hold it. There are four screws in the throat plate but they appear to be just for leveling the plate. There are no holes drilled in the tabs that hold the plate to receive them. Also, they are painted (on the bottom) with what looks like original paint.

Is this normal or is my saw missing something? I consulted an online version of the owners manual and it gives no details of this.

Also, what about using a stacked dado head cutter with such an arrangement? How would I secure a sacrificial throat plate?

[Steve Eure]

That is normal. My Delta just has a tab that slides into the outboard side of the saw. It has a hole for your finger to remove, and has 4 small holes for a screwdriver to go through to level. I have a dado insert that is the same. No issues.

[Holmes Anderson]

That's normal. There are four leveling screws and a pin at the back of the plate to prevent it from being kicked out by the blade and a thin jammed offcut. If you make a zero clearance insert then you can use a small screw to perform the function of the pin. A zero clearance insert without the retaining pin/screw will eventually be launched at you. Metal throat plates with opening sized for a dado stack are sold. If the original guard/splitter/pawls are missing then you would be wise to make or buy a splitter. The MJ splitter and zero clearance phenolic plate are a nice combo.

[Brent Campbell]

Where would I find the "MJ splitter" ?

[Brent Campbell]

Oh, and thank you both for your help!

[Rick Potter]

I bought a couple UHMW inserts for my Unisaw, and simply put a small finish nail in the spot where the original one had the pin. I also use a small screwed on piece of flat stock on a couple. Both work fine.

For dado's I made one out of 1/2"particle board , added the above finish nail, and clamped a board over the top while I raised the dado blade through the insert. Drill a slightly small hole for the finish nail, so you don't split the particle board. Wax it when done or use 1/2" melamine like I did Made several for various size dado's. Been in use 20 years.

Oops, EDIT: Using 1/2" particle board works perfect, because you have just enough height to add the four small flat head adjustment screws to the bottom of the insert. Or go fancy with hex head set screws to adjust from above.

[Bruce Wrenn]

Delta started using that design on the Unisaw, in 1937. Not sure it will stand the test of time though.

[Jim Becker]

You can make an "infinite" number of thoat plates from MDF or plywood to accommodate various uses for ZCI, etc. These can certainly incorporate simple splitters, too. The "art" of getting your kerf in the plate to match a given blade/dado width can be as simple as clamping a 2x4 over the plate and raising the blade through the plate slowly to just a hair past the cut depth you need.

[Holmes Anderson]

Where would I find the "MJ splitter" ?

https://www.microjig.com/collections/mj-splitter