1959 DeWalt Radial Arm Saw Complete Restoration

Very nice job. Quite the outcome. I have an older 8” Black and Decker myself.

-- Max "Desperado", Salt Lake City, UT

What a wonderful saw and restoration job. Well done.

-- We must guard our enthusiasm as we would our life - James Krenov

I love it. Very nice job.

Great restoration – I really like hearing about vintage tools coming back to life.

-- Bill - "Suit yourself and let the rest be pleased." http://www.cajunpen.com/

Very good save! Nice work. I have a vintage (1953) 6” paner I restored this past spring. Your job is better by far.

-- Carpe Lignum - Seize The Wood,

Excellent! I too have a fondness for my “restored” tools.

-- Bob Vila would be so proud of you!

Sweet. Excellent job. I guess you did not have to replace the bearings, etc?

My table saw is from 1954. Someday….

-- Stevethepeeve -- I'm no rocket surgeon

Fantastic job! It looks like it just came out of the box.

-- Charlie M. "Woodworking - patience = firewood"

Wow! Really nice job.

-- You can discover more about a person in an hour of play than in a year of conversation. (Plato)

Thankfully the bearings and windings were good.

-- Dust collectors suck.

nice peice ! years ago i had one quite like it mine as i recall was either a 12 or 14 inch . it was the smoothest machine ive ever run. wish i still had it 1

-- if you aint the lead dog the scenery never changes

Great Job. If I remember right, this model was a bit like a ShopSmith, it had several other tools that mounted on it. I could be wrong on this but I seem to remember a drill and router/shaper, disc sander? Maybe some one else can tell. You really have something to be proud of.

-- Thos. Angle, Owyhee Design, Oregon

I Have a 1953 dewalt powershop and as Thos said there are attachments to go with this sow. I have a jigsaw attachment and a moulder and router and drill bits. You can also find a sander, a radial planer (safeT planer) and a lathe that hooks up to the saw motor with a belt. Good luck finding these tools,it aint easy.

Nice saw. I didnt have to replace any bearings ether.

-- bryano

Yes, there were several different attachments available. Scroll saw, planer, disk sander, overhead router, vertical drill chuck, shaper/molder, dado, ect. All very wonderful and dangerous. I see a lot of them come through the used tool store I work at (see my shop description). Most of them are for craftsman models.

-- Dust collectors suck.

This will make those cross cuts a lot quicker. Nice restoration job!

-- Tom, Surfside Beach, SC - Romans 8:28

If you havent already, Check out or buy a Mr. Sawdust book. It shows you all the operations you can do with a radial arm saw.

-- bryano

I own it.

-- Dust collectors suck.

This almost looks like a brother to your saw…

http://sacramento.craigslist.org/tls/455520199.html

-- We must guard our enthusiasm as we would our life - James Krenov

LOL – Last thing I need, but I called the guy and bought it. Will pick it up later tonight.

-- We must guard our enthusiasm as we would our life - James Krenov

Great! That is an excellent saw. Take the time to get it in good condition and it will reward you. It is small and not super powerful but perfect for my small shop because I can run it on 110v. You can wire it for 220v, however, and then it would probably be a little more powerful. The key is a sharp, negative hook, and especially a THIN KERF blade. The thin kerf blade will give any saw much more cutting power. I really have liked the Freud blade that I put on my saw.

-- Dust collectors suck.

Thanks. I will have to get more specifics on the blade. Also, will look into rewireing it for 220. Biggest trick will be making space.

-- We must guard our enthusiasm as we would our life - James Krenov

The serial number is 248648. I believe it is also a 1959 machine. I will try to get some photo’s tomorrow. I did not get home until after dark.

-- We must guard our enthusiasm as we would our life - James Krenov

Hi, any recommendations for the blade. Looking for a cross-cut blade and a dado set. Thinking any ripping I would do would be on my table saw. Also any suggested accessories that are in the must have category?

-- We must guard our enthusiasm as we would our life - James Krenov

This is the blade I recommend: the LU91R. I think this is what I got for mine. The 8 1/2” was about $90, but well worth it. Ultra fine cross cuts, thin kerf increases power, negative hook angle keeps it safe, and non-stick coating keeps it clean.

As for Dadoing, I don’t use the saw for that. I have a Freud dado set for my table saw. But like I said, the 8” DeWalt RAS is not very powerful. With a full kerf blade It would bog down in hardwoods. Even with the thin kerf blade I go slow, but that keeps the cut more smooth anyway. A Dado would be a lost cause. But Then Again I have barely adequate 110v in my shop. Maybe you will have more luck with 220v.

Most of the accessories seem like novelty to me. Yes, there are many opperation that you could do on the RAS, but it really seems safer and quicker on other tools. The important part is the table. I built mine into a workbench.

About the Mr. Sawdust book, I take it back. I don’t have that one yet. But what I do have is an excelent book called Easy Ways to Expert Woodworking by Robert Scharff. It is out of print but there are still a few used copies floating around on the internet. This book is a great vintage book on radial arm saws and has some design ideas for building tables/benches for the saw to sit in. I got the idea for my RAS bench from this book.

Another great resource is article called SOME TIPS ON DeWalt RADIAL ARM SAW RECONDITIONING by Roger A Hill. This article gives some great history about the saw, as well as a play-by-play for tuning it up. I printed it for my records.

When I was researching my saw, I came across WOLFE MACHINERY. They restore Dewalt Radial Arm Saws commercially for businesses such as lumber yards and cabinet shops. Apperently they bought the rights to the old DeWalt stuff because they have the instruction manual for that model. Call them and they will sell it to you. It is called the DeWalt Power Shop Instruction, Maintenance and Parts Book. I highly recommend owning it. It has tips on using and tuning your saw as well as parts lists and schematics. Buy this book before you start taking apart your saw. You can also probably get parts from WOLFE.

When I found my saw I started by carefully taking every piece apart (and labeling them with painters tape). I then cleaned everything and made sure there was no oil residue before painting it. Be sure to get all of the crap out of the motor, it is probably filled with sawdust mixed with grease/oil. A clean motor will last longer.

The main arm was all steel, and had quite a bit of rust on it, so I did some light rust removal. Then I bought a product which goes on like paint, but I am told it actually chemically bonds to the rust to stop rust from continuing under the paint. It is different than a primer and much better than rustoleum. I forget what it is called but It was dark brown and I could only get it from a paint store. That same paint store helped me perfectly match the colors of the original saw with a durable oil based paint. The off-white speckles were done simply by flicking the paint off a toothbrush with my thumb. Just practice spattering before you do the saw. Also, the fist spatter is always too big, so after every time I dipped the brush in paint I flicked some off on a piece of cardboard.

After Painting I reassembled everything. I gave it all new electrical wires and new generic hardware (nuts, bolts, screws, etc.) The most crucial thing is the table and the fence, however. My best advice there is to build it in a way so that you can replace it and re-level it when needed to keep everything accurate. As far as tuning it up, there is a ton of info in all that literature above.

Oh, and by the way, that “string” attached to the slider is a bungee cord which goes through a pulley on the bench. That lets the saw automatically retract and keeps the saw from sliding forward every time the wind blows (which will happen if your slider bearings are good and clean). Also, make sure you incorporate a dust collector behind the blade. My simple little hood eliminates about 95% of dust when hooked up to my shopvac.

Sorry the long wind, but I hope this helps. I had a lot of fun with that project and I can’t wait to see what you do with yours.

-- Dust collectors suck.

Thanks for all of the great information. I’m kind of bummed about the concern about lack of power for a dado blade. But it should be fun to put it back into good working order.

I’ve got the Dr. Sawdust book on it’s way and will get the other book on order. Thanks again for your help and advise.

-- We must guard our enthusiasm as we would our life - James Krenov

Well this is too cool. I remember my Uncle having this saw in his shop when I was growing up.

-- I've cut that board three times and it's still too short!

Just got this off of Craiglist. It’s exactly the same model. I was looking for the original face plate that you have at the end of the arm. The guy I bought it from put on a metal bar and mounted a switch. Which is my other question, where does the switch mount to? Looking for end plate on arm and hose connection to the blade guard. Now that I know what I have and what it should look like, I might want to restore if I can get those pieces. I checked the other websites, but cannot find anything. If you can point me in another direction, that would be great. Kinda limited here in Hawaii.
I fired it up for the first time in years and it runs sweet. Put on a new blade and did some miter trims on my window and they came out sweet. Didn’t realize how long it would take to mount the table and fence to get it true. Please let me know-

I see these saws pop up every few months. They are not that rare, fortunately. You will find parts eventually. The switch is actually a removable turn-key which fits in a hole on the right hand side of the arm. The key was missing when I found my saw. I ordered a new key which was manufactured by Wolfe Machinery (see above). I also got the ripping anti-kick-back guard from Wolfe. Ask them if they have other parts for your saw.

-- Dust collectors suck.

Thanks for the info on the guard Blake, I need the anti-kickback guard and also a dust collection connector. My copy of of How to Master the Radial Saw came in the mail today. Hopefully this weekend I can get a little work done on it.

-- We must guard our enthusiasm as we would our life - James Krenov

Mahalo for the info. Have not heard back from Wolfe on parts requested. I noticed that this saw had many attachments. Are those functional and readily available? Someone mentioned them in the above threads, but said they were hard to get. Just wondering. They sound like great ideas, but would be more for hobbies and not serious woodwork or construction.

I have another minor problem on my saw. The nut that holds an the motor (loosen to rotate for rip) to the carriage has an arm that is welded to it. The problem is the arm is welded to the blade side so it is in the way when replacing the blade, more of an inconvenience. Before I cut it from the nut, is that an original piece? I don’t see it on the online pics so I am wondering if this is not the original piece and don’t need to be concerned about cutting it to remove.

Let me know. Thanks again!!!

I have never used any of the attachments. They were marketed to hobbyists in the hopes that the only machine they would own was a RAS and then they would buy all the attachments as well. Most of them don’t seem safe or practical.

I don’t think that arm is original.

-- Dust collectors suck.

Blake, Just saw this on your page. What a great project. The saw looks great nice work on the restoration. I hope to be able to find some of the older tools to use in my shop. I volunteer at a state park that still has in service a 1930’s radial arm saw and it works great, just used it last week actually.

CtL

-- Chris L. "Don't Dream it, Be it."

no tool like an old tool…or is that fool ? Nice job on the restoration I can see why it’s your favorite in your shop

-- DocK, WV

Blake great restoration.

-- Karson Southern Delaware karson_morrison@bigfoot.com

Nice job Blake. My 1975 Craftsman RAS was my first stationary tool and I used it for everything til I got my table saw. It is still my go to tool for crosscuts and making tenons. I have been on the lookout for a nice DeWalt but they rarely turn up around here and the shipping would kill you on e-bay. Since I am not far from Sacramento, I think I will monitor the Sac Craigs list til I find one. My Craftsman is getting tired. The bearings are getting worn.

-- Scott - Chico California http://chicowoodnut.home.comcast.net

Blake – thanks for the inspiration. I just finished my 925 restoration

I could not be happier!

Blake,

You did a really nice job with this RAS. You could have easily chucked it for a newer model but instead you have a saw that runs just fine and has a wealth of family history associated with it.

I am sure that your grandfather would be proud of you for restoring his tool.

-- With God's help all things are possible- even woodworking. Woodworking is not just a hobby, it is an (expletive deleted) expensive hobby.

Great Job on the RAS, I have a Dewalt RAS as well, just not sure of the age, when it was mfg.?
It is an 8-1/2” too and I beleive it came from a high school wood shop. I’d like to post some pics and maybe someone could tell me something about it. It’s a great shop tool and I feel real confident of its accuracy.
Again, Great Job

-- -- Only God can Create it. We are blessed to see it, live it, and enjoy its beauty.