help before i commit arson please ......

[cathiejade]

seriously im at my wits end with this saw right now ! here's my dilema, i switched to a #9 fd blade because i found it cuts my sanding time down a lot for name puzzles and stools .first couple puzzles worked like a charm . then out of the blue everything i cut is crooked, the bottoms of the letters are way out from the tops , making them impossible to put back in from the topside.

#5 and #7's still work fine
table is square ( or appears to be to my eye , i really need a better square procedure )
any wood but finished grade cuts fine it seems with the #9
im taking my time not pushing the wood

any other ideas pretty please ?

[woodsman]

With each larger blade you need to tighten the tension a little more. The blade should have a c sharp ping to it when you have the correct tension set. I have found the tighter the better.

[Powakee]

Cathie
I am running a Dewalt and I had that problem when my table was 1 degree off straight. I ended up (1) putting a new washer behind the tightener thingy; and (2) worked very hard at 'tapping' back and forth until I got the true 90 degrees between the table and blade.

I ended up using that little electronic degree finder and, for me, it worked better than the eyeball test w/ the metal 90 degree tool. I put the rockler site below with that meter. (It's pretty cool).

Wixey Digital Angle Gauge - Rockler Woodworking Tools

So, I am thinking that you still should look at your table blade angle and keep tweaking. It's not fun but that is probably where your issue is (imoho).

John

[ubgoofy2003]

I agree with John. The only two things that would cause that, is, bending the blade or table not square with blade. It is possible that the blade may be dull or not as good a quality as another one. You are a better judge of that. Did you try the cutting process of checking the square of the blade? Hang in there & it will get better as you check things out. Good Luck.

[wood-n-things]

You have some good advice..I check square of my blade 2 ways. I keep a credit card hanging next to my saw all the time. You can make a 1-2 inch cut int eh same size stock you plan on cutting then take that piece of wood and place it behind the blade. if the blade slips in easily you are right on if your table is off you won't be able to slide the blade in the same kerf line from the rear.

Increase tension and slow down your feed rate is the only other thing I can think of. Sometimes if i got to a larger blade for some unknown reason i try to cut faster.

[3_M]

Cathie,
To square the table, take a pice of 3/4" wood and cut about 1/8" into the wood, take it and try to put it in the back of the blade. If it fits, the table is square the the blade. You might try to use the blade a little too long and the blade was not cutting that fast anymore which made you start pushing too hard into the blade and the blade started to cut with a bevel and you started loose control.
FD Mike

[JackM]

As John said, the Wixie is a great tool, I love it.
Remember to first set it to 0 dgrees on the blade, then set the table to 90 degrees.
Jack

[cathiejade]

my saw says thank you for saving it from the fiery inferno it was headed for LOL Im off to give it another whirl from all the good advice and will update Thank you guys your awesome !

[cathiejade]

whewwww I feel so much better !!! the culprit was tension , guess thats the reason the saw has all those extra numbers on the tension huh LOL thank you all so much !

[wood-n-things]

Glad you got it figured out.

[woodsman]

I am glad you posted the fix.