Excaliber 21

[debs]

I've never posted before but I have stalked for almost a year. About a year ago I got a porter cable saw, which I thought I did pretty good on. But after reading all the posts on this site, I thought I HAD to have an Excaliber 21. Well, my wonderful husband bought me one for Christmas!! Yay, we all say, right? Wrong!!!!! I hate it!! It vibrates something terrible, I can't make a sharp turn for the life of me, among other things. I don't have the heart to tell my husband how much I hate his gift. Any suggestions? Either what I am doing wrong or how to break the news to my husband?

Thanks,
Debbie

[Forester21]

Do you know where he bought it? You might try calling Seyco direct and talking to them. They may be able to help you. SEYCO

I just got my brand new EX21 set up today and tried it out for a few seconds. It ran great. A little vibration when I hit high speed, but I'm sure I will get used to it.
T

[Sunlion]

From what have read debs, it needs a good solid base. However, some have said that over 70% speedwise, there has been some vibration, but yet again, I don't know how they have mounted their saws.

This is something I will have to think about myself as well, as my Ex-21 is in transit as we speak. There have been problems from what I can gather with various parts of the saw, (for example a bolt in the top arm stripping, due to not enough thread depth in a particular conection), but as yet not having used one as yet cannot obviously give any hands on feedback.

But, vibration has been an issue from what I have read until a suitable solid base has been utilised, and I read somewhere that some rubber matting had help too in one example of mating the machine to a sutable strong base.


Sunlion


P.S. just as an sddition to my post. atm, I have a small 500watt machine, mounted on a workbench (this sort http://www.amazon.co.uk/Black-Decker...4690860&sr=8-4)

and even on this very small machine the vibration is intense. because basically it is not a solid base. Anything I leave on the board I have it mounted on, will do a happy dance to the edge and fall off. (small workshop, hence small solutions to mounted equipment.) I will be however be making something more substantial for the excalibur. <crosses fingers>.

[Jan]

I have an EX-21 that is so stable and vibration free that I can put a cup of coffee on it and not have it move while I'm cutting. The saw is mounted on the heavy duty stand that is designed for it. I think that makes a huge difference. One of the things you might check is the forward/backward movement of the saw blade while it is cutting. You can check this by slowing the speed down to very slow and holding a piece of paper so that you can use it as a background while you watch the blade move. If there is a noticeable back/forward movement, the adjustment is easy to do. Turn the saw off, loosen the bolts holding the motor in place just enough that you can turn the motor easily. Don't remove those bolts. Turn the saw back on and turn the motor slowly until the forward/backward movement disappears. Turn off the saw and tighten the bolts. If that is your problem, then a lot if not all of the vibration will go away. Don't give up on that saw yet. It's an excellent machine that needs some loving adjustment!.

Jan

[Sunlion]

Good advice jan, I saw a video review (EX-21) by our old fave, Steve Good, and he did outline that particular alteration.

hehe Jan, cup of coffee, I wish! can't fit one on my little Proxxon. hehe.

[Terry Jay]

debs, I started on the Hitachi version of the Porter Cable and it did a good job, and I even taught it to top feed the blade on larger pieces. I got the EX21 and it is a much better saw. I have not noticed any vibration at all and almost everything is cut at nearly full speed. If you use reverse blades on pieces over around a half inch you can get some jumping of the workpiece, especially if you exert side pressure.

Be sure the fore and aft blade movement is minimal to non-existent.
Be sure the saw is firmly fastened to a solid base. Try to rock the saw and be sure it is solid.
Try using a non-reverse blade so it cuts only on the down stroke
If your work piece has cup or warp it may feel like it is vibrating because it won't contact the table evenly.

And call Ray at Seyco using a phone you can take to the saw so you can see what he is talking about. He is very good and very helpful. 1-800-462-3353

[Fran1942]

Debs, when I bought my EX21 over 6 years ago I set it up and turned it on, and like you I was so disappointed it vibrated so. I called Ray and the first thing he asked is where I had it sitting. He said to sit it on the floor and see if it still vibrated and if it didn't , I needed a better stand for it. My floor is concrete and it didn't vibrate, so I mounted it on a much sturdier bench. You may try this to confirm the vibration problem.
Fran

[tvman44]

Just got my EX-21 2 days ago and have not done much yet with all the Christmas activities but I can stand a penny on edge on the saw table and then run the saw at max speed and the penny stays on edge. Today after I finish baking a couple of cakes with our 7 year old grandson I plan to go outside to the workshop and cut out a couple of pieces I have prepared.
Merry Christmas to all.

[debs]

Thank you all for your replies and suggestions! I will try them out later this afternoon. If the busy holiday activities allow!

Happy Holidays to each and everyone!!

[debs]

Well, I am finally getting along better with the new saw. The only hard time I am having now, is the bottom blade holder. I think I have it set just right, then the blade slips out. I guess I have to make some more adjustments. Probably to the operator, not the machine!

[Danny]

Happy you have gotten some of the bugs worked out with your machine. I have owned mine for over 3 years now and have not had one glich.

[tvman44]

I really like the round knobs you can get for the blade tightening, I find them easier to use than the "T" knobs that come with the saw. I love my new EX21.

[Jan]

One of the things you can do to make sure the blade stays in the holder is to scuff the ends of the blade with sandpaper. Another thing is dipping the blade ends in acetone or denatured alcohol. When the blades are manufactured, oil is used in the process. It's still on the blades when you get them. Getting rid of it helps a lot. So does roughing up the metal. Be careful not to get too much acetone on your skin. It can do harm.

Jan

[Trackman]

I have an EX21 an after I moved the motor there is no var at all. I did have to move the bolts holding the motor to the next set of holes to get it adjusted but after that it is as quite an smooth as a baby's butt.
I top feed my blade into the board an sometimes I get the blade to far up into the top holder an that doesn't leave much for the bottom holder to get a hold of. This may be some of your trouble with the blade. Just my 2 cents worth. lol

[Terry Jay]

debs, use a piece of fine sand paper or steel wool or even solvent on the blade to remove the oil film from the manufacturing process. It only seems to affect the bottom holder but the sandpaper solves it. Just wrap the paper around it and rub 3 or 4 times.
Terry