SIP tablesaw rip fence query

[bookman]

I have just purchased a second hand 10" SIP table saw. Everything seems ok other than two queries that you guys will no doubt have the answer to.
1. The rip fence is very sloppy until it is locked, should it not remain parallel to the blade when adjusting the cut width?

2. The saw I have bought has a 16amp blue and white male plug on it. Is this factory fitted, or do you think the previous owner has put it on?

The manual is a wonderfully vague document that doesn't give an awful lot of info. Anyway, any help is welcome.

Bookman :?

 

[OLD]

There is a wheel in the far end of the fence that runs along a rail there is some upwards adjustment in the rail to stop the fence dragging on the table the wheel gets dirty and also needs some wd40. Take the fence of and clean the rubbing strips after all this the fence should run smooth and lock just check its in line with the channel in the table.
You can run it on 13amp but mine got through lots of fuses so i connected it up to 16amp that you have, try it mine may be power hungry..

 

[stewart]

Mine came with the blue 16amp plug fitted from new - it's run fine on this.

 

[bookman]

Sorry, but I think I'm being thick. The fence is running along smoothly enough, but it is easy to move it out of alignment. At the moment I can easily lock the fence about 5mm out of true to the blade. There is lots of lateral movement across the the table from front to back. I have tried adjusting the bolt at the wheel end of the fence but this of course just makes it hard to lock the handle down, and doesn't seem to help with the alignment problem anyway. I'm wondering if this is a technique thing — when you use the rip fence do you slide it along by holding both sides of the front of the fence by the scale with both hands and pushing against the front of the table, or do you simply move it by holding the fence and sliding it? I ask this as the fence seems to easily run out of true if I just slide it along the table. This seems a real problem with the accuracy I was hoping to achieve with this saw. I have tried adjusting the four allen screws on the fence plate but again this doesn't address this problem (if indeed this is a problem?).

And another thing! I have an L-shaped bit of rip fence that is 48cm long that I gather from the manual is an extension to the rip fence. What is this for, and how is it attached to the rip fence? I realise that these must seem really dumb questions, but I'm floundering a bit here!

Thanks for your responses regarding the 16 amp plug, only problem is that the one fitted is a male plug and the 16 to 13 amp fly lead I have bought is also male (I have not seen any female 16-13 amp fly leads). I got a nice chunky 5 metre extension lead with the saw which has a male and female end so obviously the fly lead will not fit the end that should go to the 13 amp power socket. Do I have to simly replace the male plug on the saw by using the female from the extension lead and sacrifice the extension or what? :roll:

 

[stewart]

Hi
My understanding is that it would be better to fit a 16amp plug socket in your workshop circuit- if you run the saw off a thirteen amp plug you're likely to have the fuse blow in the plug from time to time, as OLD experienced. 'Course, I could be wrong...

 

[OLD]

Your saw fence is secondhand so as i explained you need to check its points of contact ,wheel and especially contact strips ,you will also notice a shaped plastic block that will grip the back rail and is part of the lock mechanism adjust this to clear the rail for a low drag slide .There should be no movement in the fence T if there is remove the 4 bolts and tighten the screws inside. the rest is how you move the fence and remember you have the micro adjuster.
To test for 13a just replace the plug

 

[Malcolm R]

I have an L-shaped bit of rip fence that is 48cm long that I gather from the manual is an extension to the rip fence. What is this for, and how is it attached to the rip fence?

The extra fence is attached to the main fence with two long bolts. They should have rectangular heads that slot into the extension, go through the main fence (from one side to the other) and then there should be two plastic knobs to secure.

Position the extra fence on the bade side of the main fence so that it just extends beyond the cutting edge of the blade. This allows the wood to spread after being cut and reduces the risk of kickback. It is particularly important when cross cutting with the mitre gauge.

 

[Pete Robinson]

I bought one of these from a woodworking show and was told by the salesman that it really needs a 16A supply (it is specified in the manual) although it will run off a 13A socket it is not ideal and may tend to blow the fuse!!

Hope this helps!

 

[Mike.C]

Hi Bookman,

This is the sort of thing you are after?

http://apple.clickandbuild.com/cnb/shop ... egoryID=19

I have the 12" model SIP which needs a 16 amp, so I had this dedicated circuit installed.

Hope this helps.

Cheers

Mike

 

[Pete Robinson]

As a qualified electrician by trade I can tell you that you do not have to re-wire your house in order to install a 16A socket outlet, you simply need to remove one of your existing 13A sockets and replace it with a 16A one, like the one in the photo supplied by mike.
Your existing wiring will be able to handle 20A and should be 2.5mm twin & earth cable which should already be connected to a 16A breaker in your fuse box!

Pete

 

[Pete Robinson]

Here is a list of the parts you will need from screwfix
16A plug & socket cat No. 40962 / 97317
25A isolator 15054
The whole lot wil cost you less than £20

No more electrical issues!! job done

Pete

 

[Mike.C]

Pete, The reason I had a dedicated 16 amp circuit installed, was because the old consumer unit fitted in the workshop was the old "Fuse Wire" type (300 year old house :roll: ) and so as he was updating this and installing new wiring, we got him to do the 16 amp at the same time.

I wasn't there at the time, but he did tell us that the fuse in the consumer unit in the house, which feeds the unit in the workshop, needed to be uprated to 32 amp, does that sound right?

Cheers

Mike

 

[Pete Robinson]

The way you have yours is the best possible way, but not knowing bookmans existing configuration, he should be ok without any additional expence.

In the perfect world I would advise to upgrade the wiring, especially if you plan to run anything else at the same time.

 

[bookman]

Thank you all. You're comments are very helpful. I swapped the male 16 amp plug on the saw for the female one from the extension lead that came with the saw so I was able to use the 16-13 amp fly lead I bought from Machine Mart; I then put a 13 amp plug at each end of the extension lead so I can use the existing 13 amp plug socket in my (rather too small) workshop. No problems at all so far other than the lights dip slightly when the saw is first started up, but this is only a momentary thing, not like Frankenstein getting revved up! You're suggestion of setting up a 16amp socket is excellent and I think I will do this anyway just to be on the safe side.

Thanks again to you all.

 

[Mike.C]

Thanks Pete.

Cheers

Mike

 

[bookman]

Thanks to all of you who replied to my cry for help regarding the rip fence etc. I have now had chance to finish setting up the saw and I think it is working ok. Everything appears to cut square and fairly precisely, so for the moment I think I should get on with some work with the saw to get acustomed. The bolts that Malcolm R refers to are unfortunately missing so I'm hoping that SIP will supply me with new ones.

On my very few test cuts with the saw I find there is a little bit of feathering with softwood, and a slight burning on some 50mm oak I tried (the burning could well be me not feeding the saw properly). I suspect a new blade will cure this, do any of you have suggestions for good quality blades? I would prefere to keep to the 254mm rather than going down to 250mm. I want a fairly fine-toothed blade to acheive cuts without feathering on softwood.

Thanks again,
Bookman

 

[Malcolm R]

I am using a CMT Fine Crosscut blade from Axminster (part 300133 - CMT TCT Saw Blade Fine Crosscut - 250mm x 3.2mm x 30mm T60) and have been happy with the results (most of my cutting has been plywood rather than hardwood). One thing to watch is the bore of the blade as this saw has a 1" arbour so you will probably end up having to use a reducing bush.

 

[OLD]

The riveing knife is quite thick so do not use a thin kerf blade and you will need a reduction bush 30mm-25mm i like the industrial CMT blades from axminster 250mm but Summit do blades much cheaper.

 

[bookman]

Thanks guys. I have ordered an eighty tooth blade from Summit — I went for the cheaper option rather than the CMT ones at Axminster which I will probably regret. Will report back when I have fitted and used the new blade. :roll:

 

[mailee]

Hi Bookman, I think you will be happy with the blade I use Summit blades in most of my machines and have found them pretty good. :wink: