The Sawstop is being RED TAGGED until we get results back from previous brake trips. 7 brake cartridges have been sent off for analysis at Sawstop, results likely not in until next week. One woodshop space will be Red Tagged to reflect this on Skedda.
In the meantime, Asmbly will be purchasing a second Sawstop table saw. Hopefully the purchase will be made today or tomorrow, and the saw will be in place and running by end of day Sat. A second saw has been on the radar for a while, to help with table demand and potentially having the saws be setup for different dedicated purposes. Those details will be ironed out in the future.
Just curious, why does the saw need to be red tagged until then? Was there a concern or false trips or anything like that? Or are we trying to identify common trip causes to avoid them in the future?
Excited for the new saw, will be interested to see where we fit it in the shop
I need to schedule a cut on the table saw with a shop steward. Maybe saturday would be a good time? Im willing to help move equipment to fit in the new saw in exchange. Please send me a message. Thank you!
The new Sawstop is installed and working. The existing Sawstop is still red tagged.
The jointer, plainer, router and drum sander have all been moved slightly. The plainer and the jointer have longer power cords now, but please be mindful of the dust collection hoses. Things are a little tight for the time being. Future plans included shortening the current outfeed table.
Just want to mention a few things. Now that there is a new sawstop, you have two things that were missing on the old one. You have a YELLER triangle plastic gage with an 8mm allen wrench inserted through it. This is the tool that is used to measure the proper distance between the blade and cartridge (the rounded tip is the actual gage). Always check the distance every time you change blades or installing a dado set. If an adjustment is necessary, look at the video in youtube (is kinda long to explain, it would sound complicated but is relatively easy once you see ut)The second part is the blade guard is available but not installed. Is stored with in the miters/push stick area. To install it you remove the riving/splitter knife and insert the splitter in its place. Is easier to install if the guard is in the up position. For those people that are afraid of touching the blade, the guard will insure or keep you from doing so accidentally. It also keeps the dust isolated to the table are and not coming flying at you if you forget to turn on the dust collection.Store the riving knife near the fence so people can find it. Never, ever operate the blade without the guard or the riving knife (unless you’re using a dado set), the chances of kickback are very high if you do so. Also, try to keep the riving knife in their respective machine (black one with the new/silver with the old) the black one is slightly thicker and may not align well in the old machine. The cons of the guard: you cannot use it once you need 1 1/2" wide or narrower stock. It has to anti-kickback pawls that if they are down can mark your stock and often times get on the way with narrower stock. These pawls have to be in the up position to install the guard as you will not be able to insert the throat plate if they are down. Once you get used to getting the pawls out of the way, i doubt the guard will bother you much, is quite slim and works great. And last. The throat plate has a silver bracket in the back, to remove it, lift bracket up, comtinue the motion and comes out easily. To install however, you need to angle the throat plate forward about 30 degrees insert the front before the two screws and continue down insuring the silver bracket is locked in place. Dont worry is Jose proof, if is wrong it doesnt let you lock it in place nor does the throat plate will seat flat flush on the table. Please do not adjust or remove the two black screws in the throat plate housing. Just keep trying to insert the plate at the right angle. The saw is super nice, everything is aligned, mechanically stops at the perfect square (90°) and at 45°. So try not to adjust the stopping screws to meet your needs.
Have we received a report back from Sawstop yet on the cause of the last seven brake trips? If so, when will the results be made public? Is there an after action review process that will lead to enhancements in the woodshop safety class? In the three years I worked at a community college wood shop program, we only had one brake tripped which was due to wet wood.
Thanks,
Michael
The results havent come in yet, maybe today. There have been some replacement parts to address other wear and tear, so it will still be down for a while.
We try to review when the brake trips, to determine if further training is needed, and address that as needed.
The ICS table saw is still down. The new computer guts have been installed, but a new minor problem was found that will keep it red tagged until resolved.
The blade washer has been permanently deformed due to severe over tightening. As a consequence, when you tighten the blade it’s forced into a concave shape. Resulting in what will be a dubiously safe machine. Or worse, result in sub-par cuts!
@JoeN has volunteered to try and reface the washer so that it can remain usable. But we’ll order a replacement as well.
@jiggliemon I cut the washer as close as I could on the lathe before hitting the jaws. I used a flattening stone to clean it up. I used some sandpaper on the hole. I didn’t sand too much so it would not be out of tolerance. I will drop it off tonight
The ICS is back on line. @CLeininger set the riving knife and joe did his surgery to the washer. We can still use the new one, but the old bent washer will work until the new one comes in.
We probably still want to indicate the blade to the table, but our jail-house tests show that it’s close enough to rip safely.
I actually want to keep the PCS as our sled saw, and the ICS as the rip saw. Reason being is that the double miter track sleds will need to be calibrated to each saw, because there’s an appreciable difference in the miter groove dimensions between the two tables.
I agree with the different applications. Cross cutting for the newer PCS. Sheet goods and ripping for the ICS. We could even keep a 90 tooth blade on the PCS, once things settle down.
