I reached out to some wise people, and they agreed that I probably needed a new motor for my saw, or at least a rebuilt one. Great idea, but the bank account said now was not the time to spend that kind of money.
HOW TO CHANGE A BELT ON A OLD CRAFTSMAN TABLE SAW UPGRADE
The new saw I had my eye on – which would be a huge upgrade – would require me to rewire the garage woodshop, and spend several times what my original saw cost on the new model. I didn’t really want to buy a new table saw, not really. It was in that condition that I limped along while I figured out what to do. Just sayin’.) If the blade didn’t turn at all, I could quickly turn the saw off, rotate the blade by hand, turn the saw back on, and it would usually start. Most of the time, the saw started, albeit slowly. I would hit the switch, and the saw would just sit there, hum, and blow the breaker.įor the uninitiated, when a major tool chooses to blow the breaker rather than starting the motor, it is a bad thing. All was well until a couple of months ago, when the saw started, uh, not starting. Definitely worth the upgrade! Here’s a link to learn more about them (click here).Here’s my office desk … can you tell that I’m a reader? They also help reduce belt noise and don’t take on the “memory” of the belt’s shape as they age. The links connect together easily, and you can make a belt to suit any saw, regardless of the belt diameter, by just adding or removing links. These belts can be a real blessing for a saw with a traditional V-type drive belt. And when you do, here’s a suggestion: replace the old belt with a segmented “link” belt. For a saw as old as yours, I’d replace the belt just as a matter of course. My guess is, that’s where the slipping is occurring. When there’s no keyway, the only thing that typically holds a pulley stationary on the shaft is a setscrew or two, and that/those could loosen and cause the pulley to slip.ĭrive belts dry out over time and lose their pliability, just like fan belts on a car do. The pulley/shaft connections shouldn’t be the issue unless there are no keyways on the pulleys or shafts to house a retaining key. Sounds like the “transmission” is slipping somewhere - at the belt and pulleys or between the pulleys and the shafts they connect to (arbor and motor). This is likely not the case if your breaker is not popping.Ĭhris Marshall: I agree with Rob’s reasoning here. When the saw blade stops does the motor stop?Īnother possible option, and I have to admit that I am going out on a shaky limb here, is that your electric circuit may be underpowered. I am guessing you have a single belt that may be slipping, either at the arbor or at the motor. Cabinet saws often have three belts or a single super-robust belt to deliver the power to the arbor. The second is how much of that power is effectively being transferred by the drive system. First: how much power is the motor delivering? It sounds like you tested that and it is fine. Rob Johnstone: I am assuming that this is a single belt drive saw (a contractor’s saw?). If you think about it, there are two main factors that determine how much power gets to the saw blade. What am I missing? What more can I do? – Ken The wood is not binding the blade, the wood I’m cutting is dry. I cleaned the underside of the saw very thoroughly and sprayed a lubricant on the arbor, but so far nothing has helped. I had the motor checked out at an electric motor shop and the motor is fine. At first, I thought it was the blade, so I installed a new blade and got the same result. The problem I have is, whenever I cut pretty hard wood 1X (oak or maple) or 2X pine, I get about 2 to 3 inches into the cut and the blade stops. When I took possession of the saw, the cast-iron top was rusty, but it cleaned up very nicely. I recently purchased an older 10” Craftsman table saw (probably 30 to 35 years old).