# Ryobi Table Saw - Bad cuts



## mnorusis (Oct 17, 2009)

I just purchased a ryobi table saw last week and am having some issues now.

When I cut a piece of wood, it ends up thicker on one end than the other.

For example, I'm trying to cut 1" strips of walnut, and when it comes out, it's 1" on one end and a bit thinner (by about 1/16, sometimes more) on the other.

I've done all of the alignments that the manual says I can do, and I've replaced the blade thast came with it witha Dewalt one.

Does anyone have any idea what would be causing this? Am I doing something wrong or is it the saw?

Any help or insight would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks,
Mike


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## a1Jim (Aug 9, 2008)

Your fence is out of line it needs to be squared up


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## BlankMan (Mar 21, 2009)

Is this a new Ryobi TS or a used one you picked up? I had a BT3000, that was my first TS when I was getting serious about woodworking. Bought it new and I don't think I kept it a year. Sold it and bought a UniSaw. Because no matter how many times I set it up and adjusted it, its repeatability for cuts and its accuracy was just never there. If it's a new one, looking at the Ryobi offerings, those are more of a contractors saw and not a saw that is generally meant for fine woodworking. As I remember, my Ryobi had a fence that locked down in the front and in the back, a good thing I thought. Not so, because it never locked accurately and always had to be tweaked before the cut, otherwise it cut boards like you're describing. If your fence is of that design you maybe be fighting that too. a1Jim is right your fence needs to be adjusted/aligned to be parallel to the blade, but those fences do not look to be a high caliber fence so it may always need to be adjusted.

A note on why I sold it and bought the UniSaw I could not at the time afford. When I decided to replace the Ryobi TS I was looking at Jet and General mostly in the $800 range, I had paid $500 for the Ryobi, this was probably back around 95'-96'. After a while of looking around I said to myself, what if I buy the $800 saw and don't like it either? I had $1000 into the Ryobi with all its attachments (which I thought were really neat and useful), now I'll be out $1800 and be looking to buy a third saw? That's when I bit the bullet and scraped and bought the UniSaw. Never regretted it. Probably one of the best things I ever did.


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## mnorusis (Oct 17, 2009)

Thanks for the info guys. I've tried aligning my fence 2 or 3 times already to no avail. I'll try again, perhaps I'm just not doing it right.

I generally subscribe to the "buy good quality tools" thinking, since I always get burned by low quality tools, but unfortunately a more expensive table saw just isn't in the cards right now.


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## TheDane (May 15, 2008)

Jim and Curt are right … I suffered through a low-end saw (mine was the cheap Delta) and was frustrated every time I used it. I finally bought a Jet and equipped it with a decent fence … made all of the difference in the world.


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## mnorusis (Oct 17, 2009)

Well, I cut it cutting straight. I ended up aligning the fence w/ the miter track.

However, when I cut thin pieces, say 1/2" or less (with the 1/2" strip b/w the blade and the fence) the strip seems to stick towards the end, it's takes more pushing to get it through and the side of the wood burns sometimes… so maybe it's not aligned quite right yet…sigh


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## knotscott (Feb 27, 2009)

Ryobi makes a few different saws. It'd be helpful to know the model #. Maybe someone will know the "easy" method.


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## mnorusis (Oct 17, 2009)

It's the BTS12S

http://www.homedepot.com/h_d1/N-5yc1vZ1xh7/R-100058430/h_d2/ProductDisplay?langId=-1&storeId=10051&catalogId=10053


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## ajosephg (Aug 25, 2008)

"the strip seems to stick towards the end, it's takes more pushing to get it through and the side of the wood burns sometimes"

This indicates that the blade is not aligned parallel to the miter slot - and of course the fence, since you already aligned to fence to the slot. You need to fix this immediately as you are asking for a kickback and a piece of wood in your face or stomach (or whatever else is at tabletop height!)


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## CharlieM1958 (Nov 7, 2006)

I have the same saw, which I used for several years until I was able to get a bigger saw about a year ago.

Are you sure the fence is staying put? The biggest problem I had is that the back of the fence used to drift a bit. You could get it perfectly aligned before the cut, but during the cut the back end would shift to the right a bit. The only workaround I found was to clamp the back of the fence to the table to keep it in place.


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## mnorusis (Oct 17, 2009)

I'll try clamping the fence down tonight. I was also thinking about trying just clamping down a straight piece of scrap that I have sitting around…I figured if that works then the fence is the problem.


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## ajosephg (Aug 25, 2008)

Before I installed a Delta T2 fence (on a "generic" contractor saw) clamping the back of the fence was Stand Operating Procedure, using a Quick Grip clamp.


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## gforce94110 (Oct 26, 2010)

I just bought a Ryobi BTS12S used. I checked to see if the blade is parallel to the miter slot, and it is pretty far off. About this, Joe says above: "You need to fix this immediately as you are asking for a kickback and a piece of wood in your face or stomach." But I cannot figure out how to adjust this. The manual does not address the issue. I've been staring at the bottom of the thing for awhile. Any advice???


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## ajosephg (Aug 25, 2008)

Gforce:

Repair Manual

A link to the assembly diagram is show above. Since I've never seen the innards of this saw it's hard to figure out. But, in general it is a direct drive (motor attached directly to blade). Looking at the diagrams the motor is attached to a bracket assembly which in turn hooks up to the mechanisms to tilt and raise/lower the blade.

The diagram isn't clear on how the bracket/motor assembly is attached to the saw, but there are only two possibilities. It is either attached to the table top, or the cabinet. If it is attached to the table top, slightly loosen the bolts and move the assembly around until the blade is aligned with the miter slot. If it is attached to the cabinet, loosen the bolts that attach the table top to the cabinet and move the top around until alignment is achieved. You may find it necessary to file out some holes to allow for more adjustment. Of course, please tighten the bolts when finished (LOL).

This is easier said than done on this type of saw - good luck.


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## Vrtigo1 (Mar 18, 2010)

Everyone else is right, if the workpiece is hard to push through towards the end of the cut and the wood is burning, the blade is not parallel to the fence. You should align both the blade and the fence to the miter slots. You can use a combination square to get it close, but to do it right you really should use a dial indicator.

On a side note, I prefer to cut small strips so they fall to the outside of the blade whenever possible. I don't know if it reduces the chances of kickback since you'll always have wood between the blade and the fence, but I find it's easier to keep control of a larger workpiece than a smaller one, and anything that keeps your fingers further away from the blade is a good thing. It's not as easy to repeat cuts this way, but if I'm cutting strips to a width of less than about 2", that's how I do it.

BTW, I don't know how your specific fence adjusts, but many of them have small set screws on the face that slides down into the slot on the front rail. You can adjust them to square up the fence.


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## gforce94110 (Oct 26, 2010)

Joe-Thank you sir. Looks like the motor/blade are attached to a bracket (part 23) which is attached to a long rod (no number) that runs just beneath the table from front to back. This rod rotates on its axis to allow the blade assembly to tilt. And this rod is held by three brackets (part 33) to the table top. Each bracket is attached with two bolts (part 30). So I am going to try to loosen the nuts (part 21) on these bolts and see if the assembly can be wiggled. Though a couple of them don't look too accessible. 
Thanks again! I'll let you know how it goes. 
Greg


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## dbhost (Jul 20, 2009)

Read page 30 of your owners manual. Pay particular attention to the line…

"Make two or three test cuts on scrap wood. If the cuts are not true, repeat the process."

Make ABSOLUTELY CERTAIN when you set up the square, that you do NOT have the square in contact with ANY of the carbide on the blade teeth. That will throw your measurements off…


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