so what am i doing wrong??

[stevebuk]

hi guys
first time tonight to get to grips with th hegner, i have removed the lower clamp cover for ease of use but fitting a blade into the clamp is for me a nightmare, i cant seem to get the blade straight and the screw only fit in one way (is that right). I took out the clamp that came fitted with the blade and looked at it to see if i could match it, but the blade either moves off centre or if i put the screw in from the other side it just bends the blade, i cant believe £800 of scrollsaw and it has ***** clamps like this (just ranting)..

your help would be apprciated..

thank you

 

[martinka]

Steve, I slide the blade in until it hits the screw, then pull it back about 1mm, otherwise the screw catches it and tries to turn it. Getting and keeping the blade central is, as you say, a pain, but you very soon get used to it. Putting the screw in from the left will try to force the blade through the hole at the right, hence the bending. Check the end of the screw and make sure it's flat with no burrs on the end. I agree that the clamps are pants on such an expensive saw, but once you get used to it, they work well enough. I'm sure that in a day or three, you'll wonder what the fuss was about. Well, if you can get over the fact that the clamps have limitations.

If the blade isn't central, the end of the blade will bend sideways and eventually break, so it's fairly critical that you get it right. I reckon the clamp ought to be like the Diamond ones with a hole down the middle of the clamp. You can't go wrong with them, though I'll do my best to prove that's a lie. I don't know if it says anything in the UK manual, but I read in the USA manual that you tighten the screw until it touches the blade, then about another 12th of a turn. Seems to work OK for me.
Martin.

 

[stevebuk]

i'll try that martin, thank you, by the way, how far do you put the blade in past the hole, as it were..

 

[mac1012]

hi steve I am trying to visualise what you mean are you trying to clamp a blade in while the bottom blade clamp is in position on the machne ? there is a little moulding to the right of the table top that is shaped like a clamp you positon the blade clamp in there to and put the blade in and tighten up then transfer over to to the saw arm under the spring , the clamp screw faces outwards I can change a complete blade in less than a minute but I do use the quick relase top clamp for all my cutting so the top one never comes out I just flick the tension lever undo the knurled knob to release top of blade then take out bottom clamp with blade still in and place in the clamp jig then undo put new blade in there is a little blade diagram to ensure you got correct way on the jig, tighten up place back in bottom arm tighten top clamp re tension and away you go

mark

 

[stevebuk]

right then thats that sorted (hopefully), it seemed to work anyway, now the next question is , does the top quick clamp screw hold the blade in, or should the gap in the clamp hold it in as the bottom one does..

 

[martinka]

Steve, in the top clamp, the blade is clamped between the two screws. I set the blade so that the end is just above the hole, though the actual amount doesn't really matter. The screw that you tighten with the clock key has a rotating piece on the inner end which bears on the blade, and, depending who you listen to, allows tightening without the blade turning, or allows the blade to swivel whilst cutting. I think it's both, but I always was awkward. The small Allen screw in the left side should never need to be touched.
Martin.

 

[stevebuk]

thank for that..
Question 3, why doesn't the blower blow, there is actually NO air at all coming down the pipe and when i try cutting i have to keep blowing away the sawdust by mouth.
I know folks will say change it to suction, but it still doesn't answer the question..

 

[mac1012]

the quick clamp is far easier and quicker you just put the blade in up to the stop and tighten make sure it is held in place by the top screw tighten it down onto top of the quick release clamp

is the dust blower tube connected to the bellows at the back of machine ? make sure it pushed right in you should have a good flow of air to blow it away otherwise something not connected right

 

[stevebuk]

Perfect mark, thank you.. just need to cut the pipe a little shorter now, as there is miles of it..

 

[Chippygeoff]

Steve. I endorse everything that has been said. The Hegner is unlike any other saw and as a result it will take some getting used to but once mastered it is a joy to use. You will get used to slotting the lower clamp in at the cporrect angle without even thinking about it. There is a hole in the bellows at the back and at the very bottom, the hose should just slide in without any problems and once working is quite efficient. When you have finished sawing for the day release the tension lever and unclamp the blade. If you remove the quick clamp knob be careful as there is a little silver insert that clamps onto the blade when you tighten the chrome knob. Finally, on the very top there is a knurled black knob. This tightens down onto the clamp, screw this down till it is fairly tight and then undo it between a 1/4 and a half turn, you want the clamp just to have a little movement and then it is just right and you are ready to go.

 

[stevebuk]

Thanks guys, i am hopefully getting there slow but sure, just had dinner and i'm going out to the cabin to sort out my lights for it and have a small go at cutting out a pattern, wish me luck..

 

[scrimper]

The questions are all answered now but just to say that my blower pipe kept coming adrift from the bellows at regular annoying intervals, I solved it by simply wrapping a little insulating tape around the pipe for a tighter fit, it has not detached since.

 

[ChrisR]

Steve.

I think I may be the only one, but I never use the quick top clamp when cutting out side cuts, I use two standard clamps as advised by Hegner. The top quick clamp does not allow any movement as it is held tight by the top arm locking screw, if you try and use this clamp with the top arm screw backed off, as you do with the standard clamp it will be at the wrong angle. The quick clamp is only intended for inside cuts and is a slight compromise of the blade action, as it is held tight by the top arm screw.

You have paid a lot of money, for a top of the range saw, a proportion of that cost is for Hegners, research and development cost, so why would you not use as Hegner intended.

When I purchased my Hegner saw many moons ago, I think it came with four standard clamps and one quick clamp, but when purchasing blades I used to include a couple of standard clamps with the order, which means I have approx eight or ten standard clamps.
Now before I start cutting a project and it is one that is going to need more than one blade, I make up three or four blades of required size/type with clamps on, then when the blade edge goes or it breaks, I can slip the one blade out and a new one in, within a few seconds, not loosing momentum or concentration.

A tip I posted on this forum a while ago, was that I have painted a number of my standard clamps bright yellow, these are then used as the bottom clamp, then when a blade breaks and the clamp flips onto the floor, it is easy to locate.

Take care and enjoy the Hegner, you will soon be fitting blades without looking at the bottom clamp arm/holder.

Chris R.

 

[martinka]

A tip I posted on this forum a while ago, was that I have painted a number of my standard clamps bright yellow, these are then used as the bottom clamp, then when a blade breaks and the clamp flips onto the floor, it is easy to locate.

Chris R.

I made a tray from 3mm ply to fit across the width of the saw, below the blade, to catch sawdust and it does a great job, nothing gets on the floor. An added bonus is that it catches the clamp if it drops out when a blade breaks.

Martin.

 

[scrimper]

A tip I posted on this forum a while ago, was that I have painted a number of my standard clamps bright yellow, these are then used as the bottom clamp, then when a blade breaks and the clamp flips onto the floor, it is easy to locate.

Actually that is a very good idea, It's always difficult finding them they seem to manage to flip to the most awkward of places!

 

[mac1012]

I guess I will chuck my methods into the ring !!

as I said earlier I use the quick release clamp all the time a lot of my work is external cuts but you should have it tightened with the top screw as the manual says this promotes quicker blade changing

it has been screwed in that position for the last two years only ever moved for cleaning , I am still using the same clamps the machine came with and I have a spare one that came with the machine , I never change clamps for different blade sizes I use mainly 3 through to 9 I couldn't even tell you what the clamp size is (hammer) I have also on occasion used a number 1 size in the same clamps

works fine for me I can change the blade completely in around 40 secs ( I timed it last night )

I have had one blade breakage in the last two years and that was because I over tightened it :shock:

I don't understand the physics of it but I would have thought the blade and clamps is under more load in an internal cut rather than an external cut where the wood can fall away , so I don't see how using the fixed clamp on external cuts is any detriment to the machine or the rigid quick release clamp , I also read somewhere that the quick release clamp has a bearing in it or something to allow to have it in a fixed position.

I think hegners philosophy is its quicker blade changing when doing fretwork and if your some one who fretwork is almost all internal like portraits etc then you would be using the quick release clamp all the time anyway.

so I just use it all the time but for external cuts 8) I just find it easier and quicker to use , I just change the blade when its worn I don't use different size blades for one piece of work so its a matter of cut , quick change, carry on cutting

I make a lot of products to sell so this method I can just crack on with it , I am in the middle of cutting twenty reindeer for some one and someone asked me yesterday to make them three angels and have just finished some wholesale work where the person provides me the wood and pays me by the hour so this works best for me.

if I had to take more time using the standard clamp on the top to change the blade I may price myself out of work

but you must make sure the top clamp is secure as advised in the manual otherwise it defeats the object of a quick change.

mark

 

[boysie39]

Steve , delighted your saw has arrived at last and you are getting to grips with it . You on many occasions have advised new members that this site is the best place to have problems sorted . Never thought i would ever see you having to use it for that purpose . :lol: It also shows the character of the man who is not too proud to ask for help if he needs it . =D> =D> .
Looking forward to seeing your first piece Steve . You have have probably helped more people by asking these questions than you will ever know ,maybe others who are lurking afraid to ask questions will take heart from this post .

Best of luck .

 

[Bryan Bennett]

Steve hope you get it sorted QUICK it will be worth it.


Bryan

 

[ChrisR]

Mark.

Blade change in 40sec’s, by using the correct fixed clamps for outside cutting, I can change a blade in less than 5 sec’s.

The quick change blade clamp does not have a bearing to let the blade move/rock, it just has a pivot at the end of the tightening screw to stop twisting the blade when tightening the screw onto the blade. The other side is held by the fixed grub screw, so no bearings.
This is not a problem when tightening the fixed/standard clamps as the blade is held by the clamp slot being compressed onto the blade by the machine screw which is not in contact with the blade when tightening.

But if you are happy with your method then that’s fine.

I prefer to use the saw and blade clamps as Hegner intended, and will always advise on this correct method when posting.

As I said in my previous post, we have all paid for Hegners research and development within the cost of our saws, so why would anybody use the saw/blade clamp arrangement other than instructed by Hegner :?: .

Take care.

Chris R.

 

[mac1012]

I don't think it makes much difference chris that's in my opinion never had no problems and it would be too much of a faff for me to be changing from one to the other as I said the effect on the blade is no different
maybe its hegners way of getting people to buy lots of clamps

5 seconds ? do you mean having a blade clamped in two clamps ready to change over ? or do you mean releasing the tension turning the top screw down onto the top blade clamp to hold it in postion while you undo it and release the blade then taking the bottom clamp out with the blade in and putting it in the jig and undoing the clamp and taking the blade out and putting a new blade in (getting it out of a packet ) tightening it then putting back and then positioning it into the top clamp and the blade and then undoing the top screw a little way then setting the tension in five seconds ? if you do, can you post a video please I would like to see it :lol: