Table Saw Blade Alignment

Hi Ezra,

I have the A-Line-It and PALs kits from In-Line Industries, http://in-lineindustries.com/index.html. I use the dial indicator in setting us my table saw and jointer knives. But if I am in a hurry to set up my table saw fence I generally just use a good steel ruler. I have a Craftsman table saw and its stock fence is the pits. You have to set the blade to fence distance and then align the front and rear of the fence to the miter slot and then readjust the fence to blade distance….... until everything is aligned and set to the proper distance. Using a dial indicator to set the fence alignment in this situation would be a challenge. It is far easier to use a good steel ruler to simply measure the distance.

But the dial indicator works well with setting the blade and miter slot alignment. And it works well for setting the height of my jointer knives. There are other less expensive techniques but I just prefer seeing a read-out on the dial indicator.

Hope this helps.

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

The 3660 comes dead on from the factory. I doubt you will have do much to it.

We used the A-Line-It with great success. Mine is true with a .001 left slant.
If you use the PALS system (I dont’) according to my friend who helped align my blade you can get it to eexactly 0.000

Lee

-- No piece is cut too short. It was meant for a smaller project.

You don’t need to get too scientific Ezra. A decent square & straight edge should be enough.

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

I try and follow the “KISS” (that’s Keep It Simple Stupid) principal so all I ever use is a common framing square. Start by aligning the miter fence near the blade then pull it all the way back. If it’s still square then you’re good to go.

-- Bob Vila would be so proud of you!

Ditto Grumpy and Dadoo.

-- Tim -- http://tmuli.com

If you are looking for an excuse to buy a shop gadget, a dial indicator would help you here, but it’s really not necessary. I’d get one if you want one and own a jointer. Otherwise save the money for a better blade for your saw.

Assuming the 3660 is anything like my 3650, a good quality square is all you need.

I use the Master Plate & Master Gauge.

-- Chris

A good combi square and straight edge will do you fine. Align your blade DEAD-ON with the miter slot THEN you can align your fence to the blade. A lot of folks leave a hair’s width more between the back of the blade and the fence and that’s an okay way to go [BTDT] but I prefer using a splitter. Good luck.

always,
J.C.

-- "Imagination is more important than knowledge" -- Albert Einstein

For fear that I may be repeating what has already been said, if you want to spend the money for a specialty tool, spend it, but I think you may be wasting your money. All that is really needed is a good sqaure and a good steel rule has a 32nd inch scale for fine measurements. The table saw has the miter gauge slot which is perfect for making sure the table top is parallel to the blade. Make minute adjusments and here you need to measure 3 or 4 times before you cut.

-- Brian, Lebanon PA, If you aren’t having fun doing it, find something else to do.