I'm starting a project where 45-degree miter cuts are essential, so I
decided to tune my Makita saw a little. I've run into some problems.

The biggest is that I cannot align the fence to the saw blade
properly, without removing one of the four screws. Basically, if I use
all four screws, the left side of the fence hasd to pivot forward
further than the screws allow.

I tried to align it without the screws, just to get the placement
right. Turns out that the two sides of the fence align differently. If
I make one side of the fence 90-degrees to the blade, the other is
just a hair off.

So here's what I'm thinking. If I cut the fence in half, then I can
adjust each side so they're both true. I'd like to avoid that. If I
buy a few fence, there's no guarantee that the new one'll work. I
could build a new fence that can adjust properly with some oak scraps,
but it wouldn't be as nice as the metal one that came with the unit.

Are there any third-party fences trhat work with the Makita? Any other
suggestions?

If you had the fence off the saw all by itself, it sounds as if it
would not be straight, hence, slightly bent. I assume that it is
a one piece aluminum casting like my DeWalt. Would it be possible
to bend the piece back to straight.? Lock one end in a vise or
similar. I think I would try to bend it cold, but a bit of torch
work would make it yield easier. Keep checking with a
straightedge. If the bolt holes are still off, you might need to
ease them to a larger size. The actual angle setting on the
DeWalt requires changing the position of the degree scale.

The saw may have always been that way, but is there a chance it
has been drug around in a truck from job to job allowing it to get
bent at some point?


--
______________________________
Keep the whole world singing . . . .
DanG (remove the sevens)




"BrianSiano" wrote in message
...
I'm starting a project where 45-degree miter cuts are essential,
so I
decided to tune my Makita saw a little. I've run into some
problems.

The biggest is that I cannot align the fence to the saw blade
properly, without removing one of the four screws. Basically, if
I use
all four screws, the left side of the fence hasd to pivot
forward
further than the screws allow.

I tried to align it without the screws, just to get the
placement
right. Turns out that the two sides of the fence align
differently. If
I make one side of the fence 90-degrees to the blade, the other
is
just a hair off.

So here's what I'm thinking. If I cut the fence in half, then I
can
adjust each side so they're both true. I'd like to avoid that.
If I
buy a few fence, there's no guarantee that the new one'll work.
I
could build a new fence that can adjust properly with some oak
scraps,
but it wouldn't be as nice as the metal one that came with the
unit.

Are there any third-party fences trhat work with the Makita? Any
other
suggestions?

On Nov 16, 9:28*pm, "DanG" wrote:
If you had the fence off the saw all by itself, it sounds as if it
would not be straight, hence, slightly bent. *I assume that it is
a one piece aluminum casting like my DeWalt. *Would it be possible
to bend the piece back to straight.? *Lock one end in a vise or
similar. *I think I would try to bend it cold, but a bit of torch
work would make it yield easier.


WHOA!!! Buddy...back away from that bench...come-ON!! I WANT TO SEE
YOUR HANDS!!

*Keep checking with a
straightedge. *If the bolt holes are still off, you might need to
ease them to a larger size.

I own that saw. There is something else going on here. Maybe the pawl
that locks into a notch has bent... but that fence should never be
that far off that you can't adjust it...

Approach with beaucoup caution.

"BrianSiano" wrote:

I'm starting a project where 45-degree miter cuts are essential, so
I
decided to tune my Makita saw a little. I've run into some problems.

Want dead on miters, build a sled.

See Fred Bingham's book for details.

Check local library.

Lew

Bent sides are still parallel. If it were bent, getting one side strait to
the blade would be impossible. After machining literally tons of aluminum,
take it from me, aluminum extrusion is rarely strait or square (let alone to
size). BTW, I've never seen a cast aluminum rip fence. Any that I have ever
seen are extrusions. A casting would be much less accurate, requiring
machining before use. extrusion are ready to go as bought and much, much
stronger.

"DanG" wrote in message
...
If you had the fence off the saw all by itself, it sounds as if it
would not be straight, hence, slightly bent. I assume that it is
a one piece aluminum casting like my DeWalt. Would it be possible
to bend the piece back to straight.? Lock one end in a vise or
similar. I think I would try to bend it cold, but a bit of torch
work would make it yield easier. Keep checking with a
straightedge. If the bolt holes are still off, you might need to
ease them to a larger size. The actual angle setting on the
DeWalt requires changing the position of the degree scale.

The saw may have always been that way, but is there a chance it
has been drug around in a truck from job to job allowing it to get
bent at some point?


--
______________________________
Keep the whole world singing . . . .
DanG (remove the sevens)




"BrianSiano" wrote in message
...
I'm starting a project where 45-degree miter cuts are essential,
so I
decided to tune my Makita saw a little. I've run into some
problems.

The biggest is that I cannot align the fence to the saw blade
properly, without removing one of the four screws. Basically, if
I use
all four screws, the left side of the fence hasd to pivot
forward
further than the screws allow.

I tried to align it without the screws, just to get the
placement
right. Turns out that the two sides of the fence align
differently. If
I make one side of the fence 90-degrees to the blade, the other
is
just a hair off.

So here's what I'm thinking. If I cut the fence in half, then I
can
adjust each side so they're both true. I'd like to avoid that.
If I
buy a few fence, there's no guarantee that the new one'll work.
I
could build a new fence that can adjust properly with some oak
scraps,
but it wouldn't be as nice as the metal one that came with the
unit.

Are there any third-party fences trhat work with the Makita? Any
other
suggestions?

Never mind. I had tablesaw stuck in my head for some reason.

"CW" wrote in message
m...
Bent sides are still parallel. If it were bent, getting one side strait to
the blade would be impossible. After machining literally tons of aluminum,
take it from me, aluminum extrusion is rarely strait or square (let alone
to
size). BTW, I've never seen a cast aluminum rip fence. Any that I have
ever
seen are extrusions. A casting would be much less accurate, requiring
machining before use. extrusion are ready to go as bought and much, much
stronger.

"DanG" wrote in message
...
If you had the fence off the saw all by itself, it sounds as if it
would not be straight, hence, slightly bent. I assume that it is
a one piece aluminum casting like my DeWalt. Would it be possible
to bend the piece back to straight.? Lock one end in a vise or
similar. I think I would try to bend it cold, but a bit of torch
work would make it yield easier. Keep checking with a
straightedge. If the bolt holes are still off, you might need to
ease them to a larger size. The actual angle setting on the
DeWalt requires changing the position of the degree scale.

The saw may have always been that way, but is there a chance it
has been drug around in a truck from job to job allowing it to get
bent at some point?


--
______________________________
Keep the whole world singing . . . .
DanG (remove the sevens)




"BrianSiano" wrote in message

...
I'm starting a project where 45-degree miter cuts are essential,
so I
decided to tune my Makita saw a little. I've run into some
problems.

The biggest is that I cannot align the fence to the saw blade
properly, without removing one of the four screws. Basically, if
I use
all four screws, the left side of the fence hasd to pivot
forward
further than the screws allow.

I tried to align it without the screws, just to get the
placement
right. Turns out that the two sides of the fence align
differently. If
I make one side of the fence 90-degrees to the blade, the other
is
just a hair off.

So here's what I'm thinking. If I cut the fence in half, then I
can
adjust each side so they're both true. I'd like to avoid that.
If I
buy a few fence, there's no guarantee that the new one'll work.
I
could build a new fence that can adjust properly with some oak
scraps,
but it wouldn't be as nice as the metal one that came with the
unit.

Are there any third-party fences trhat work with the Makita? Any
other
suggestions?

On Nov 17, 1:42*pm, "CW" wrote:
Never mind. I had tablesaw stuck in my head for some reason.

Ouch! Was it running at the time? What kind of blade? :-p

"Robatoy" wrote

On Nov 17, 1:42 pm, "CW" wrote:
Never mind. I had tablesaw stuck in my head for some reason.

Ouch! Was it running at the time? What kind of blade? :-p

I was thinking something similar when I read that. More along the lines of
of what kinda surgical procedure was required to extract the table saw?

I've never relied on my miter saw for any cross cut, miter or not that
was part of the design. I cut all parts slightly over sized and do all
cross cuts on the table saw.

I am only speaking of building furniture or any fine work. There is no
way the get the kind of precision and clean cut as you can with a well
tuned table saw and proper cross cutting techniques.

One of the first big lessons for me when building furniture was cut
your parts dead square. If the material is square, the rest is easy. I
usually have a sliding miter as my cut off machine. There is just no
way a heavy motor sliding around on some bars with the inertia forces
and resitance of the cut are going to allow that machine to cut as
accurate as motor in a trunnion having material slide slow past it in
solid cradle (sled).

Howevre, I just snagged a huge cast iron miter trimming knife like
this http://www.lionmitertrimmer.com/ but a little beefier for $20 on
craigs list. So maybe in the near future I'll do miters on the cutoff
saw and clean them up with this if length isn't critical.


On Nov 16, 6:02*pm, BrianSiano wrote:
I'm starting a project where 45-degree miter cuts are essential, so I
decided to tune my Makita saw a little. I've run into some problems.

The biggest is that I cannot align the fence to the saw blade
properly, without removing one of the four screws. Basically, if I use
all four screws, the left side of the fence hasd to pivot forward
further than the screws allow.

I tried to align it without the screws, just to get the placement
right. Turns out that the two sides of the fence align differently. If
I make one side of the fence 90-degrees to the blade, the other is
just a hair off.

So here's what I'm thinking. If I cut the fence in half, then I can
adjust each side so they're both true. I'd like to avoid that. If I
buy a few fence, there's no guarantee that the new one'll work. I
could build a new fence that can adjust properly with some oak scraps,
but it wouldn't be as nice as the metal one that came with the unit.

Are there any third-party fences trhat work with the Makita? Any other
suggestions?

"SonomaProducts.com" wrote in message
way a heavy motor sliding around on some bars with the inertia forces
and resitance of the cut are going to allow that machine to cut as
accurate as motor in a trunnion having material slide slow past it in
solid cradle (sled).

There's a flaw in your argument. The possible lateral movement of the
sliding mitre saw is matched by the possible lateral movement of the sled
moving in a fixed mitre slot on the table saw. All things being equal, if
both are properly adjusted, the differences between the two tools should be
negligible and either can be used in my opinion.

SonomaProducts.com wrote:
I've never relied on my miter saw for any cross cut, miter or not that
was part of the design. I cut all parts slightly over sized and do all
cross cuts on the table saw.

I am only speaking of building furniture or any fine work. There is no
way the get the kind of precision and clean cut as you can with a well
tuned table saw and proper cross cutting techniques.


snip

Have you ever used a properly tuned Makita LS1013? I prefer using my
LS1013 over my Jet JTAS-10XL cabinet saw.

--
Jack Novak
Buffalo, NY - USA

"BrianSiano" wrote

I'm starting a project where 45-degree miter cuts are essential, so I
decided to tune my Makita saw a little. I've run into some problems.

The biggest is that I cannot align the fence to the saw blade
properly, without removing one of the four screws. Basically, if I use
all four screws, the left side of the fence hasd to pivot forward
further than the screws allow.

It may be that I don't understand the problem from your description.

My Makita LS1013 has a split fence, and even if you couldn't adjust the
fences so that both the left and right fences are *dead-on* in the same
plane, you can still cut 45 degree miter cuts by using only one fence and
referencing the desired blade angle to that fence.

IOW, make any rough cuts you need with the work piece against both fences if
you must, but make the final miter cut for accuracy with the work piece only
touching the accurately referenced fence, making sure that the off-cut is
not long enough/does not touch the opposite fence.

AAMOF, and for increased accuracy, it's always been good practice to do that
in any event.

If I misunderstand the problem, my apologies ...

--
www.e-woodshop.net
Last update: 10/22/08
KarlC@ (the obvious)

Well my sleds typically uses both miter slots and I don't build the
big monsters for my stick work like I see most described in the mags,
etc. I go for very lightweight smooth action with positive lock down
adjustable back fence. Next, I always use the same push method and
tweak the fence during setup using the same push action. Just by my
years of experience I can get fantastic repeatable work on the TS
everytime and using many different types of miters saws, Hitachi,
Bosch (my favorite) Makita, etc. I have just never gotten near the cut
or precision anywhere nearly as nice..

Hey, I was expecting more flames than this, I get the same cries from
my shop mates, but I like a well tuned TS and working with a very
light touch and just feel so much more in control, and the work comes
out cleaner IMHO.

OK maybe just IMO.

I will use the SMS for lots of cross cut and miter work, just not on a
frame or any main part that will be part of the squared structure of
my furniture project. If I am building a kitchen cabinet and face
frame it is SMS all he way.

n Nov 17, 1:56*pm, "Upscale" wrote:
"SonomaProducts.com" wrote in message
way a heavy motor sliding around on some bars with the inertia forces
and resitance of the cut are going to allow that machine to cut as
accurate as motor in a trunnion having material slide slow past it in
solid cradle (sled).

There's a flaw in your argument. The possible lateral movement of the
sliding mitre saw is matched by the possible lateral movement of the sled
moving in a fixed mitre slot on the table saw. All things being equal, if
both are properly adjusted, the differences between the two tools should be
negligible and either can be used in my opinion.

"SonomaProducts.com" wrote in message
Hey, I was expecting more flames than this, I get the same cries from
my shop mates, but I like a well tuned TS and working with a very
light touch and just feel so much more in control, and the work comes
out cleaner IMHO.

Well, I have to agree with you in that respect only because I own a table
saw, but haven't yet bought a mitre saw. However, when I do buy one and use
it, I'll expect it to cut as exact as I want it to. It depends on the
project and the type of cut needed. Both tools have their place.

SonomaProducts.com wrote:

Hey, I was expecting more flames than this, I get the same cries from
my shop mates, but I like a well tuned TS and working with a very
light touch and just feel so much more in control, and the work comes
out cleaner IMHO.

OK maybe just IMO.

I agree, and I own very nice examples of a table saw and SCMS. Making a
sled that glides like it's on ball bearings is not difficult.

I use the SCMS for compound miters that will beat up my sleds, stuff too
long for the TS, and out of the shop work.

My Chopmaster SCMS is capable of very fine work, but there is more to go
wrong during the cut, as the reference surface that holds the work is
far smaller than what is available on my table saw. The TS also offers
much better dust collection and view of the work. The TS / sled combo
doesn't toss small offcuts across the room, and allows far safer cutting
of small molding pieces, like returns.

My SCMS is not built into a permanent station with stop blocks, etc...
At one time it was, but I took down the station and reclaimed the space,
as I was still favoring the table saw.

On Nov 17, 5:34*pm, "Swingman" wrote:

My Makita LS1013 has a split fence, and even if you couldn't adjust the
fences so that both the left and right fences are *dead-on* in the same
plane, you can still cut 45 degree miter cuts by using only one fence and
referencing the desired blade angle to that fence.

My Makita has a single-unit fence (I may be wrong about the model
number). The center portion is a C-shaped hollow, to make room for the
blade.

IOW, make any rough cuts you need with the work piece against both fences if
you must, but make the final miter cut for accuracy with the work piece only
touching the accurately referenced fence, making sure that the off-cut is
not long enough/does not touch the opposite fence.

If I misunderstand the problem, my apologies ...

You understand perfectly, actually. Last night, I decided that it was
probably best to align the left-hand side of the fence to the blade.
(Happily, the right-hand side angles _away_ from the cutting area, so
it won't interfere with any cuts.) Maybe in the future, I'll build a
better fence, but this should work for now.