devonwoody":1wpoglov said:
if the riving knife is thicker than the saw kerf, won't this cause the knife to jam the timber against the fence after passing blade and knife?
Yes.
DW, you have my sympathies. TSs are very disappointing tools as they come from the manufacturer. Sure, you can get a good one, like Philly's, but at a price. I recently helped Newbie Neil assemble his Jet, and while that is good, it was not without its flaws. IIRC the table and sliding table were not in alignment and couldn't be made so because one of them was not flat.
Myself, I have an old Axminster TS. I have built a new base, rip fence and pulley guard. I use zero-clearance insert plates, cut from polythene chopping boards. I junked the guard and riving knife and mounted my own. I have had the motor rewound. The only original part of the saw is the casting, switch and spindle. Ah! The spindle! The nice, long-nosed, spindle! This is why I keep it. I have sorted to my satisfaction most of the many flaws with this machine, and have something which works for me. I don't recommend many of the things I have done, but I would be lying to claim I haven't done them.
You have to decide to do one of three things:
1. Spend a large amount of money on prefessional kit
2. Buy hobby kit, use it as the manufacturer intended and live with its limitations, or
3. Buy the best you can afford and find your own solutions to the machine's shortcomings.
But if, like me, you opt for option 3 and come unstuck, you, like me, will not be able to claim ignorance of the dangers of so doing.
Very best wishes in your journey.
Steve