Would you believe I have got another lemon

[Mike.C]

But your original problem was that your blade was almost hitting the insert on the left hand side

Also if the slot in the insert has be been cut in the wrong place and you got one which was alright, you would not need to take any slice off.

Cheers

Mike

 

[Sawdust]

Matt. I have had the triton 5 years and honestly just wanted a change. I consider at my age if I didn't make a change now it would be too late, I reckon I must consider myself lucky if I can work around machinery another 5 years.

And to add a twist to the saga above, if I had been a novice and stranger to woodwork machinery and woodwork forums what would have happened if I had put a 18mm width of timber for ripping in half. 7.5mm offcut 3mm kerf the other 7.5mm would quite probably have dropped down the gullet and most possibly come out again.
And members say cheap at the price.

DW,

Sorry to drag this on but you are missing the point completely. The slot is the shape it is so that the blade can tilt. In so far as it can be, it is a general purpose table insert for general use. I have been using mine for over a year and not had any problems.

If I need to cut anything as thin as you suggest, first of all I will give it some serious thought as it sounds a pretty scary thing to do anyway and if I decided to go ahead I would make a zero clearance insert. Problem solved.

It is cheap at the price and you will realise that when you start shopping around for one which fulfils your requirements. Perfection is an unatainable goal which has no meaning but finding a machine which fits your needs is going to be extremely expensive unless you are prepared to do a few teaks here and there.

I just hope this thread doesn't put anyone of buying one because it's a damned good machine for the price and Axminster are damned good supplier. Not perfect perhaps what what is or ever has been?

Mike

 

[Travis Byrne]

Hello DW
time for my 2 cents worth.
At the end of the day, its your Time and money that is invested.
Its your standards that are to be met!!!! :!:

WE, who are in our seventies, don't need to take crap.

Travis

 

[promhandicam]

snip . . what would have happened if I had put a 18mm width of timber for ripping in half. 7.5mm offcut 3mm kerf the other 7.5mm would quite probably have dropped down the gullet and most possibly come out again.

If I understand you correctly, the piece would only fall into the gap if it was very short - around the length of the slot. If it is longer then it will be supported by the back of the table. If I've got that right, then trying to rip down a 200mm long piece of wood that is only 18mm wide on a table saw, without a zero tolerance insert is rather foolhardy .

That said, in my experience, before making a zero tolerance insert any offcuts that did fall down the gap did exactly that - they fell down - they were never thrown out. As others have said, whatever saw you end up with you will need to make a zero tolerance insert if you don't want a gap that things can fall down.

The following from the Rockler website sums things up quite well:

The fact that there’s such a thing as a zero clearance insert - and that you could probably use one if you do any amount of exacting table saw work - doesn’t mean that the throat plate that came with your saw is poorly designed. It has to allow clearance for the saw blade over your saw’s entire range of possible bevel angle settings, and therefore will always leave some amount of gap. In many situations, a little space between the insert and the blade isn’t a big deal. The insert that came with your saw will work just fine much of the time, and makes changing bevel settings quicker for cuts where small cut-off and perfectly clean cut-edges aren’t a concern.

Steve

 

[Mike.C]

Travis Byrne,

Hello DW
time for my 2 cents worth.
At the end of the day, its your Time and money that is invested.
Its your standards that are to be met!!!!

WE, who are in our seventies, don't need to take crap.

Travis

Travis, your right, and in the end the decision can only be made by DW himself, but if his fellow members who have the same saw or a clone of it are only giving their opinion. The problem is so small and can be corrected so easily, IMHO he would be silly to get rid of the saw.

But as you rightly say it is his money.

Cheers

Mike

 

[tnimble]

With interest I've been following this thread now for a while.

Please lighten up a bit guys!

DW As I look at some of the pictures posted here I do understand your problem. To me the gap look a bit wide on one side and a bit narrow on the other side. That is for a general purpose insert.

Can you tilt the blade to 45 degrees and take a picture with the blade set very low or just measure the gaps in that blade position?

What I guess is that the table, the whole motor, trunnion etc, or the opening in the insert is set about 2mm out of place.

This would mean either losing some bolts and shifting everything in place, align the mitre slot etc and tighten everything or get a correct insert.

Axminster should look into that, they can't except you to do that on your own. Also they do should look all the other parts your fence etcetera. And of course apologise for all the fuss and especially for not showing. What I've heard about Axminster they are good enough to do that for you. So let them help and don't send the ting back. After that you have a pretty perfect saw.


Good luck sorting it all out
Christian

 

[andy king]

As this is such a long thread, I may have missed this, so apologies if it is the case and someone has already said it first, but on a saw capable of tilting it is always the case that a wider gap will be needed to accomodate the tilt, as rightly pointed out by many in the thread.
In this situation it's common practice in the trade to use a sacrificial board of thin stock long enough to sit on the table and support the work, using for instance a piece of 6mm MDF, although this is a trick used more to keep a cleaner cut on two sided veneered boards, but can help in this situation I would imagine.
You make cut far enough to sit on the table safely with enough through the blade to cover the wide gap and support any cuts made and you have a zero clearance without having to cope with making special inserts or swapping them over. A piece of double sided tape will stop it moving if needed.
Making a really thin rip close to the fence may end up with the narrow piece snapping though, so ideally you need to make sure the sacrificial board goes far enough beyond the blade to span the opening an be supported to close the gap and span beyond and onto the table, and if the depth of cut allows, a thicker sacrificial board.
Might not cure any problems you might be having DW, but a tip if needed.

Hope it helps.
Andy

 

[andy king]

Again, apologies if it's already been posted, but the design of fence and full width running rail allows you to relocate the fence to the left of the blade, eliminating the gap if wider stock is used to cut from. You have to get used to a different feed orientation, but again, a workaround if needed without resorting to too much effort.
I would definitely consider some kind of short sub fence for ripping natural timber though, but that's been covered in other threads, and extensively in a recent one if I recall.

Andy

 

[tagnut69]

Just out of interest what was wrong with the other saws you returned ?before getting this so called lemon.

 

[devonwoody]

Thanks for the advice and tips above,
The insert has it stands is very suitable for use when tilting the blade, and forum members solutions and there are quite a few have been appreciated.

 

[devonwoody]

Just out of interest what was wrong with the other saws you returned ?before getting this so called lemon.

One of the saws, the blade used to move sideways when the blade was raised (but not the riving knife) and the other broke down inside the saw cabinet(came of its rails, and did the same the next day after an engineers visit)

 

[WellsWood]

.. what would have happened if I had put a 18mm width of timber for ripping in half. ..

All your other problems aside DW, and I do understand how you feel, I can't help wondering If you've even bought the right tool at all. If the above example is typical of the kind of cuts you make you'd be much better off with a bandsaw - sooo much more suitable for ripping narrow stock, less wastage and a helluva lot safer.

Hope you get sorted, I know how frustrating it is to be dissatisfied with a big purchase like this. I'm with the majority on sending it back though, I think it's a move you'd ultimately regret, you do have to be realistic about what you can expect from machinery at this price point.

 

[Woody Alan]

DW I must just say that I agree with the general consensus of forum feedback here that if you want a saw at a good price you now have one, it's just at that price point you have a couple of adjustment niggles which they will sort out for you and if there is an issue with the fence they will also sort it if you give them a chance.
As to the gap to the side of the blade business my excalibur is the same in this respect. I have been meaning to make a zero clearance insert but haven't actually needed it yet.
I would like to add that of DW's previous two saws one was/is notorious for all sorts of poor quality issues, and the other, well I sent mine back for the same reasons plus a few more so there is a limit to how much you think is "fixable" if the base product is just not right. I believe from what I've seen that this one should be fine when attended to as it should have been in the first place. As to the no show of an engineer OK not good but this sort of thing does happen from time to time.
Alan

 

[Anonymous]

DW

Just a thought. Did Axminster tell you why the engineer would not arrive?

Possibly he spent the extra time fixing someone else's kit, thus providing them with the service they desired rather than leaving with the item still not working only to return another day?

Possible.

 

[devonwoody]

Tony;
Only that he was not coming that day but would be Wednesday this week as originally booked.

 

[devonwoody]

After forum members recommendations and support even via private messages I have buried the hatchet with Axminster.

I have informed Axminster that cancellation of the order be rescinded Wednesday this week but I still reserved the right to claim under guarantees.

I have three broken or damaged pieces to the saw from a trial run through yesterday afternoon.
Mitre guage indicator (plastic broken)
Tommy bar bent and blade nut/spanner soft.
The rip bar measurement indicator estimates not very accurate. In fact I am putting a chesterton ali ruler in the rail that does fit perfectly (25mmwide) other rulers seem to be 25.4 and will not lay in rebate.
The original complaint re the insert on the table has been corrected as per members recommendations.

The thing that swayed me to stay with the saw was the blade setting to the mitre slots is perfect and that means jigs and are naughty things I might get upto should work satisfactory.
I shall most probably keep the Triton workcentre in case I wish to cut up 8x4 sheets etc. outside in the yard because even in a double garage this can be space consuming. Although at the present time I cant see why I would need 8x4 sheets, its not my thing.

Other pics shewn that might be of interest.

How the saw fits my double garage, the sliding table slab is not fitted on rail and would be put up if required.

Axminster throughout the transaction have been polite and not obstructive and prepared to accommodate customer normal service.

Thanks for your interest.

 

[cambournepete]

That's good news DW - I'm sure you'll be very happy with it

 

[NeilO]

DW, like you I found several "imperfections" with the saw...
Spanners far too soft to hold or turn nuts and bolts, built mine with proper spanners..
tommybar didnt meet the cutout in table top, but I hold pretty much anything im tightening..
Mitre guage....but who has ever had a decent mitre guage supplied with their saw, ( i ordered an Osborne EB3, arrived before the saw )
and as for the measure on the guide rail, forget it ....i`ll still be measuring by hand..

but like you I found the mitre slots spot on with the blade , so Im happy with my saw , and Im glad you finally came to terms with yours.., lets hope Axminster see their way to some kind of compensation for your troubles DW...

 

[Mike.C]

Nice one DW, you won't regret it.

Cheers

Mike

 

[paulm]

I can't think of any reason why the measuring scale would not be accurate ?

You do have to calibrate the fence, assuming it's similar to my SIP, by setting the fence a specific known and accurate distance from the blade, loosening off the bolts holding the fence to the piece which contains the magnifying glass and the engraved indicator line, and then adjusting the indicator to that known fence distance befor tightening up again and rechecking for accuracy.

Once done it's entirely reliable and quick and easy to use as normal from there.

On the SIP I also made another indicator and calibrated it to work on the scale on the opposite side of the blade so I can swop table sides as required with no measurement issues.

Not sure if I explained that well, but hoping it's clear ?!!!

Cheers, Paul.