Axminster AC216TS table saw nightmare..

[HomeyJay]

I bought this thing yesterday and spent all day putting it together as per the manual. I then tried to adjust the rip fence because it wasn't square and that's where the 'fun' began!

It turns out (confirmed by Axminster) that you can't actually adjust the angle of the fence on this saw without adjusting the rip rail. The Rip fence is fixed to the magnifying glass thing by four bolts on rails (2 of which can be seen in the pic). These allow you to set the zero mark but don't allow the angle of the fence to be adjusted beyond a minute amount.

If you look at the Pic1, you can see how much the Rip rail has to be pulled away from the table on the left hand side to make the Rip fence line up perfectly with the slot on the table!

The second photo shows the view from the left side of the table - you can see just how little of the Rip rail is actually being held in by the screw.
I've already been back to the shop with the fence and they replaced it after looking at it and spotting that it was faulty - that one was even worse!
The fence is firm when fastened but approach your point from the left, lock the handle and the fence will pull itself to the right and still be 1mm off at the top of the table. Approach from the right and it won't correct itself at all, happily wonky and several mm out!
Honestly, I expected much better from these saws. £530 is not peanuts and these faults reek of poor QC and poor design. I dont know if I should just take it back for a refund and get something else or let them try and replace it. They're talking about sending out a new Rip rail but I cant see what that would achieve - it looks fine to me. The real problem is that there is no independent adjustment for the fence and there should be on a machine costing this much.

How they think this is OK is beyond me.

 

[Doug B]

As you’ve found out Axminster’s quality control is the end user, they have an excellent reputation for replacing goods but at the end of the day good service starts with selling merchandise fit for purpose.

 

[Steliz]

I bought one of these a couple of months ago and everything was square and ready to go as I put it together. The only adjustment I had to make was to reset the fence to zero on the ruler.
One problem I did have was with the table extensions as a couple of the welded in place nuts had weld splatter on the threads. An email to Axminster and they sent me a tap and wrench to recut it.
Apart from that, I am very happy with it.

 

[MikeJhn]

As you’ve found out Axminster’s quality control is the end user, they have an excellent reputation for replacing goods but at the end of the day good service starts with selling merchandise fit for purpose.

I am afraid it's the way of the world, with everything being built down to a price, we just have to accept we can't get Festool goods at Lidl price's.

 

[SammyQ]

Jay, as others have posted elsewhere recently, Axminster seems to now be sourcing exclusively in Asian waters, where their quality control (arf! arf!) has such broad tolerances(!!, oh, the irony!!) that they're pointless. Axminster's policy of "keep sending replacements until we/the buyer finds one that is remotely 'what it ses on the tin' and stops bothering us" is as much use as an ashtray on a motorbike. "I would not trust them to sit the right way round on a toilet seat" (Thank you Rowan).

Sam

 

[HomeyJay]

Yeah, sadly that seems to be the way. I've had to modify the fence / fence rail attachment to get the fence at right angles, this is not a permanent fix and I'm going to have to keep my eye on it everytime I use it to make sure that it's cutting square.
The table was also not mounted squarely in the factory so I had to reset that - no mention of how to do that in the manual, of course, but a helpful Ax manager played with the saw and worked out how to do it. He agreed that I should not have to do these things before even using the saw once.
I've never been a great believer in 'fettling' new machines, always equating it poorly finished product. Sadly this seems to be increasingly common with stuff you buy..
Anyway, I'm going to finally get to try it all tomorrow (not even switched it on yet!). If it's not right, Ax will pick it up and refund or replace, depending on what I ask for. I'm even considering one of their 'Trade' range but who know what problems those will bring!

 

[Trainee neophyte]

I bought the table saw in April, and it was accurate out of the box as far as my inadequate tests could tell. I was planning to orders a bandsaw this week, but now I'm all cold feet and nervous - 2,000 miles is a long way to have to send kit back if it is not up to snuff. Do Axminster offer a setting-up service? I wouldn't mind paying a bit extra to have someone find and fix all of this before I have to. I watched a YouTube vid of an Axminster unboxing where the motor cover is smashed. I would say cracked, but that suggests it is usable. The box was undamaged, so it was shipped having been dropped on the motor at the factory, with no thought to sort it out.

I understand Record Power give all their kit a thorough kicking around the factory before they ship it, too.

Anyone know a manufacturer who makes kit that is of useable quality?

 

[sunnybob]

Dont get your hopes up. The first bandsaw I bought (Fox) had a letter just inside the box cover telling me the machine had been run and fully tested for my complete satisfaction.
maybe that was when the circlip that held the top wheel on to the machine was removed?
Or when the guides were so bent out of shape that I had to drill all new grub screws to take their place?

I bought a charnwood disc belt sander, same letter strangely enough. i plugged it into the wall and it started up. If I pressed the stop button on the NVR switch, it stopped. But only for as long as I held the start button in, and then it ran again.

And I am NOT going to restate all three hundred and fifty seven (certainly seemed like it) faults on the axminster drill press. (related in a very previous thread)

Accept that any machinery LESS than festool prices will need (har har) "fettling".

But so far, I've had three machine shipments from axminster, as well as several small packages and nothing has been broken. (And they have to load it on a plane to get to me!, sometimes even sending it to istanbul as well :shock: :roll: (hammer) )

Be wary of utube videos rubbishing company's, it can often be just a troll venting over a perceived slight. There was one listed here a while back. Some SFB complaining his drill press wasnt any good. He was trying to cut a large hole in a piece of hardwood with a tank cutter. The drill was obviously on top speed and he was almost bending the handle he was pushing down so hard, then bitching about the motor bogging down.

 

[transatlantic]

I hope you get it sorted.

Not related to op's particular case, but tools in general :

Personally, I am perfectly happy with having to fettle a cheaper machine. The key is that it HAS to have that kind of adjustability though. I really don't understand why you would ever design a machine with no adjustability in every aspect. Everything should be adjustable! ... even if it was aligned perfectly from the factory!

As the old saying goes, if you can't make it accurately (which depending on the price point, might be impossible) ..... make it adjustable!

I would rather them put more money in the quality of materials, than expect to have a machine that is aligned out of the box. You need to know how to make these adjustments anyway, so I think it makes sense that a little fettling is required on unboxing.

 

[Trainee neophyte]

Dont get your hopes up. The first bandsaw I bought (Fox) had a letter just inside the box cover telling me the machine had been run and fully tested for my complete satisfaction.
maybe that was when the circlip that held the top wheel on to the machine was removed?
Or when the guides were so bent out of shape that I had to drill all new grub screws to take their place?

I bought a charnwood disc belt sander, same letter strangely enough. i plugged it into the wall and it started up. If I pressed the stop button on the NVR switch, it stopped. But only for as long as I held the start button in, and then it ran again.

And I am NOT going to restate all three hundred and fifty seven (certainly seemed like it) faults on the axminster drill press. (related in a very previous thread)

Accept that any machinery LESS than festool prices will need (har har) "fettling".

But so far, I've had three machine shipments from axminster, as well as several small packages and nothing has been broken. (And they have to load it on a plane to get to me!, sometimes even sending it to istanbul as well :shock: :roll: (hammer) )

Be wary of utube videos rubbishing company's, it can often be just a troll venting over a perceived slight. There was one listed here a while back. Some SFB complaining his drill press wasnt any good. He was trying to cut a large hole in a piece of hardwood with a tank cutter. The drill was obviously on top speed and he was almost bending the handle he was pushing down so hard, then bitching about the motor bogging down.

I need to stop prevaricating and hand over the cash. Lots of it, thanks to your pointing out the obvious (bigger IS better). I waited for the Black Friday deal, but strangely only the cheap, nasty bandsaw had a discount. Never mind.

Currently pruning my olive trees, but with a sneaky eye to slicing some planks. I may be pruning a bit too hard, for ulterior motives. Cutting down at the root is still pruning, isn't it?

 

[Jonathan S]

Currently pruning my olive trees, but with a sneaky eye to slicing some planks. I may be pruning a bit too hard, for ulterior motives. Cutting down at the root is still pruning, isn't it?

Have you had any luck with seasoning olive?..... In southern Spain I've tried and failed.

Re your future bandsaw.....have you thought about used?.....would of thought there would be used Italian band saws in your neck of the woods, the Italians make good bandsaws that are rebadged and sent all over the globe, they would also make slicing up Olive wood a dream.

Nothing against Axminster as a company and I always use them to buy German branded stuff, but would not have any confidence in any of there new Axminster branded gear......

Sent from my SM-J530F using Tapatalk

 

[MikeJhn]

The fence looks just like the fence on the previous range and is attached to its slider in the same way i.e. four c/sunk bolts, I would suggest undoing these bolts to see how much movement you can get to line up the fence with the mitre slot, however I would also venture that you will use the side sliding table rather than the mitre gauge and therefore make the slots redundant and really just need to get the fence parallel with the blade, just a thought.

 

[Trainee neophyte]

...
Re your future bandsaw.....have you thought about used?.....would of thought there would be used Italian band saws in your neck of the woods, the Italians make good bandsaws that are rebadged and sent all over the globe, they would also make slicing up Olive wood a dream.

Nothing against Axminster as a company and I always use them to buy German branded stuff, but would not have any confidence in any of there new Axminster branded gear......

Sent from my SM-J530F using Tapatalk

I'm new to all of this, but I have lots of well-seasoned olive wood, inasmuch as it has been sat outside in the log pile for up to 4 years. It doesn't seem to check, crack and otherwise destroy itself too much, but is almost unusably hard - I am hoping the bandsaw will be able to help here.

I haven't look for second hand band saws,because the Greek second hand market is odd - 50 year old knackered kit is virtually the same price as new, because - I don't know why, but it is. My 20 year old truck is worth €7,000 to €8,000 - in the UK it would be spares only for a few hundred quid, even though it still runs perfectly.

However, there are some very cool, huge cast iron saws around - perhaps I could get one of those...get into the sawmill business. You have me thinking now...

Edit - this would be a good example of second hand in Greece: https://www.xe.gr/spiti-kipos/ilektrika ... 65960.html - a DeWalt 3501 of uncertain vintage, for €450 euros. Would that be a bargain? It is "hardly used (honest, guv!), complete with instructions", so it must be as good as new!

 

[sunnybob]

The "perceived value" of stuff is the same in Cyprus. The problem is the greek mentality of not understanding "wear and tear"
Example;
"My grandfather paid 10,000 for this tuck 30 years ago, so you have to pay 10,000 for this truck, plus 10% because I have looked after it so well" (pointing to the hand painted tailgate and the three mis matched tyres, one of which is bald).

Cyprus retail is slowly being dragged into the real world, due to a few global companies finally breaking the stranglehold of just a handful of mega rich distributors, but when dealing with an individual....... :roll: :roll:
11 years ago now, when i first moved here, I wanted a makita jigsaw. The Cyprus main dealer (the ONLY one) had a 30% off sale, the sale price was still TWICE the UK price.

 

[stuartpaul]

Accept that any machinery LESS than festool prices will need (har har) "fettling".

Oh if only that were true!

I had to send back my KS60 because it wouldn't cut accurately at 90 degrees and there's no user adjustment.

It came back and still wasn't square (how square do you want it to be? asks salesman, - at this price I want it spot on!).

I currently don't have a mitre saw.

 

[Trainee neophyte]

Cyprus retail is slowly being dragged into the real world, due to a few global companies finally breaking the stranglehold of just a handful of mega rich distributors, but when dealing with an individual....... :roll: :roll:
11 years ago now, when i first moved here, I wanted a makita jigsaw. The Cyprus main dealer (the ONLY one) had a 30% off sale, the sale price was still TWICE the UK price.

At the risk of derailing this thread, I have just found a supplier of what seems to be the previous iteration of the Axminster Craft bandsaw; the hobby HBS series, only with a "Boston" badge instead. They want €1,000 for the HBS400N - what did the old one go for in English money?

Am I right? https://www.skroutz.gr/s/7973464/Boston-HBS-400-N.html

 

[sunnybob]

Its all greek to me. is there a translate button somewhere?

 

[MikeJhn]

To the OP, have you got it sorted, if not I would be tempted to put the rail on straight undo the fence fixing bolts and give the fence a good push to get it in line (hammer) and then fix it in place whilst its in line perhaps even a couple of clamps against the end of the table may help.

Let us know how you get on?

 

[HomeyJay]

Hi,
I’ve worked out that there’s a couple of things wrong with the saw, one of which I’ve ‘fixed’ temporarily. The problem with the squareness of the fence is down to the 4 fixing bolts that are countersunk to the mounting plate beneath. These holes have simply been drilled in the wrong place but the bolts can’t be moved because of the countersinking - even if you slightly re-position them, they simply go back to the original position when tightened because of the countersinking.

I simply added some washers between the bolt and the plate and this largely negated the effect of the countersinking but it also made the bolts a little too short to fit properly into the plates beneath. The fence is now perfectly square but the bolts work loose very quickly and I have to keep tightening them. I’ve ordered longer bolts and hopefully that will fix the problem permanently.

I’ve had to give up on the sliding table and return it because I simply could not get the cast iron table to be perfectly squared to the pressed steel case of the saw. Unfortunately, the sliding table is fixed to this outer casing so any mis-alignment of the table with the steel outer casing results in a complete mess of mis-alignment of the sliding table. It was like trying to nail a jelly to the wall while playing the bagpipes and I just eventually gave up.

Unfortunately, the sliding table is the main reason why I wanted this model - it’s just what I needed, so now, I’m scratching my head trying to think of what to do next. I could return the saw and get the next model up but that needs a 16A socket so that’s another £200 in addition to the extra £300 for the bigger saw. :shock:

So, that’s where I am at the moment..

 

[Trainee neophyte]

If this particular saw is a Friday afternoon job, why not try swapping it for a new one? If that is also no good, then try the upgrade/more money/sell your kidney for a real saw. I have no complaints whatsoever with mine.