Table saw trouble

pictures speak a thousand words…......could you post one?

-- http://www.furnituremann.ca/

The answer depends heavily on what type of saw we’re talking about here. Could be the fence, the trunnions, etc. What’s the make/model? If you don’t know, a pic might help.

-- Patrick, Chicago, IL www.TenonAndSpline.com

I assume the miter slots are not square with the blade? Some saws have 4 bolts on the outside bottom side of the top that when loosened a some allow you to rotate the top some to align the miter slots. Some saws require you to align the trunnions to get things back in square. If the fence is out of square you will need to adjust the fence alignment. Check the vendors site to see if you can download a manual.

-- Dave Herron, Boise, ID -- “That which does not crash the browser, makes it stronger”

You should try to find a owners manual for it.

-- If you can't find the time to do it properly, how will you find the time to fix it ?

Thanks guys, It is a craftsman table saw, and if I put a square aginst the table and the blade it is just off by a hair, but definatly enough to cause problems

I will try to post some pictures sometime.

If you can’t turn the handle far enough to get it square, then it’s probably just some sawdust
blocking your travel limit.

Tilt the blade and try to clean the part you just exposed by tilting the blade exposes.

-- Gary, East TX -- The longest journey begins with a single step.

Now is a good time to get to know a main item of equipment. If you go right back to basics with the aim of cleaning your machine thoroughly, remove one piece at a time, clean it & put it back together you will get an understanding of the finer parts of how your machine is setup & how you can adjust & fine tune it.

-- Grumpy - "Always look on the bright side of life"- Monty Python

If there is a local woodworking store near you, you might want to check for a class on Basic use and maintenance of the Table Saw. Might be worth taking.

Or, head to the local library and get some books on tuning up a table saw. There are tons of resources out there already written and illustrated – I’d suggest using them as a primary option.

-- Ethan, http://www.merganserwoodworks.com, http://greystonegreen.blogspot.com/

Tipp, you said: “Thanks guys, It is a craftsman table saw, and if I put a square aginst the table and the blade it is just off by a hair, but definatly enough to cause problems”

As others have stated, your trunnions are not square with the miter slots. The first thing I would do is search the Internet for a owners manual for your saw. Then find a book or magazine on how to adjust your table saw. There are thousands of articles on how to do this. But, in a nutshell you have to loosen three trunnion bolts on the Craftsman then “tap” the carriage one way or the other to make the slots even with the blade. A little ‘hint’, don’t tighten one bolt completely before you tighten the others. If you don’t snug each one up a little at a time, the trunnion will “creep” and throw everything out of alignment again.
But, don’t worry if the table is square with the blade, only worry that the miter slots are exactly parallel with the blade. Then you must have the fence parallel with the miter slots.

-- Jim

If the internet comes up short on finding the owners manual, you can order it through Sears. I found a manual for my Craftsman planer by putting the model#, “operating instructions”, and “owners manual” in the Googlr search.

-- Brian, Virginia Beach

Wow Tripp here you have a great forum and a mulitude of responses in just the stoke of a few keys…all the advise is bang on…my first step would be to clean the snot out of it… download a manual get aquited with your new found friend and enjoy the heart of a great shop….Blkcherry

Or better yet….......................post a picture of the trunnion assembly and you wont need a manual for adjusting it. Most of the older Craftsman (contractor saws) are the same setup with a few different looking parts. I have played with a few older ones lately, and they are pretty much the same.