General Questions

[Michael Moscicki]

It's a DeWalt DW788 Type 1 by the way.



1) Is it normal/ok for the table to have what appear to be cuts in it?



2) Any tips to remove those marks?

3) The table has a wax/oil/paste on it. Any sawdust and small pieces stick to the table. Tips to remedy the situation.

4) How powerful should the blower be? It works. Just want to make sure it's not under-performing.

[NC Scroller]

I would clean the table with MEK in a well vented area. After it is dry, a few minutes, apply paste wax with steel wool. You might have to start with 0 steel wool and work down to 0000. Make sure you buff the wax off very well as any left on the table will transfer to your work. You may have some stains left but as long as the work moves smoothly it is OK.

The hole can be a couple things. The blade might be out of alignment. Check it for square right to left and front to back. It could also be the past owner pushed the wood too hard and forced the blade to cut into the table.

[evilbadger]

Michael

The cuts in the table can be from a few things, pushing to hard on the wood, blade tension is loose, blade alignment, table alignment. A common issue with the 788 is the table not being on all the way. Loosen the knob for the angle adjustment then with one hand hold the back of the saw with your other hand push the table towards the back of the saw.

Questions 2 & 3 do as Scott already stated. MEK is kind of strong in my opinion, I usually use WD-40 with the steel wool then clean it with mineral spirits a couple of times and then apply some Johnson's Paste Wax. Boeshield T-9 is another product you can use they have a cleaner also.

The blower is not very powerful it just puts out a little puff of air but it does not take much to blow the sawdust away from the line you are cutting.

[Jim McDonald]

Another explanation for the enlarged blade hole might be someone did a lot of bevel cutting AND pushed the wood causing the blade to eat at the table.

I would wipe the table down a few times with mineral spirits to remove the coating, use steel wool to buff away the marks and then use a few coats of Johnson's paste wax for a new coating.

If the steel wool will not cut those marks, they make a brass wire wheel for your drill. Use a slow speed and moderate pressure.