Thread: Laguna Fusion set up, alignment and my stupidity

Tighten the 3 bolts more before tapping with a mallet to realign. When you are talking very small movements, having the bolts too loose will mean that you just go back and forth either side of the desired setting. With the bolts already snugged up (technical term ) you should get less movement when you tighten fully.

As stated in one of the other replies, the three bolts need to be loosened just a little - not loosened a lot. Even with the bolts "nipped up", I don't use a mallet or rubber hammer to tap the table into position. I use a small ~100mm cube of off-cut wood. I lightly tap with the wood block. If the result is that your light tap moved the table too far, then tighten the three bolts a little, and try again using light tapping, until you are able to tap lightly and move the table only a thou or two at a time. Once you get the right combination of bolt tightness, and weight of taps, the adjustment can be done in ten minutes work. I've done the adjustment on my Fusion, and on two other brand hybrid/cabinet saws at a woodworking club, and once you find the right bolt tension, and get your "light taps" calibrated, the job becomes straight forward.

Regards,

RoyG

RoyG

Thanks guys for the replies.

A follow up. I did a few cuts. Long and short crosscuts and rips. The crosscuts, using an incra 1000se, were perfect with a really smooth finish and went through it like butter. I'm using a freud thin kerf blade, 40 teeth. Dead straight and square all round using a digital protractor. Rips were also very smooth and dead straight. Ripping with the fence on my right, the fall off piece was perfect but the piece I'm holding just had a just a few small nicks which sanded off in seconds. That could have been an incorrect feed. Ripping the other way was similar. The quality of the rip cuts was good enough to glue 2 boards together with a neat glue line.

So more questions .......

I go back to my original question. Given the quality of the cuts, is .004" to .005" good enough or should I aim for .002" which was the factory setting.
Are those "almost" insignificant nicks when ripping due to the current alignment given the fall off piece is perfect?
If so why are the crosscuts perfect?

I'm not game or have the confidence or expertise to have another crack at alignment given the hours wasted yesterday and the fact that I'm "close" now, maybe close enough, but I still hate myself for making a great setting worse.

Roy or anybody else with experience on a laguna near Melbourne, and I'm serious, would you be interested in earning some money? I'm willing to pay for this and make it worth your while as I don't have the confidence to do it myself. PM me and I'll talk price.

I'm not familiar with the Lagunas so this might be moot, but on my TSC10-HB I did this simple washer replacement (and have since replaced the squares with rounds) and it has made everything sooooooo much quicker and easier.

I don't think this would work on the laguna.

I also don't think anyone is going to take up my offer.

Originally Posted by barribarri

Thanks guys for the replies. Roy or anybody else with experience on a laguna near Melbourne, and I'm serious, would you be interested in earning some money? I'm willing to pay for this and make it worth your while as I don't have the confidence to do it myself. PM me and I'll talk price.

Barribarri,

I'd like to be able to help, but I'm in South East Queensland, so not exactly local to you......

Regards,

RoyG

Thanks Roy but I have an amazing follow up.

After getting my saw last Thursday, I set it up in one part of my garage. Yesterday after doing a few cuts which I was satisfied with, I cleaned up and move the saw to its semi permanent home by part wheeling it and walking it. This morning following your advice Roy I thought I'd have another crack at alignment. I grabbed the dial indicator jig and did the tooth to tooth bit again and got exactly the same reading. In other words perfect. Couldn't believe it so tried other teeth. Still couldn't believe it so attached a straight edge across the blade and almost had no movement from one end to another. Checked the bolts and one was fully tight, one was semi tight and one was lose but not finger lose. Tightened each bolt while watching the dial indicator ended up with a final reading of 1.57 thou. which was better than the factory set one of 1.96 thou. I can only guess that the lose bolt together with moving the saw was enough to move it back to an acceptable position. What a fluke!!!! Now I can relax and start enjoying my saw.

I guess this is like furniture making small indents in the carpet. When the furniture is moved its easy for it to return to its original resting position well that's my theory anyway.

What are you using that will give you a reading down to a resolution of 1.57 thou?

Originally Posted by barribarri

Thanks Roy but I have an amazing follow up.

After getting my saw last Thursday, I set it up in one part of my garage. Yesterday after doing a few cuts which I was satisfied with, I cleaned up and move the saw to its semi permanent home by part wheeling it and walking it. This morning following your advice Roy I thought I'd have another crack at alignment. I grabbed the dial indicator jig and did the tooth to tooth bit again and got exactly the same reading. In other words perfect. Couldn't believe it so tried other teeth. Still couldn't believe it so attached a straight edge across the blade and almost had no movement from one end to another. Checked the bolts and one was fully tight, one was semi tight and one was lose but not finger lose. Tightened each bolt while watching the dial indicator ended up with a final reading of 1.57 thou. which was better than the factory set one of 1.96 thou. I can only guess that the lose bolt together with moving the saw was enough to move it back to an acceptable position. What a fluke!!!! Now I can relax and start enjoying my saw.

I guess this is like furniture making small indents in the carpet. When the furniture is moved its easy for it to return to its original resting position well that's my theory anyway.

can I caution you that you should expect the saw will twist ever so slightly every time you move it.
The reason being that the floor is unlikely to be exactly level.
It's best if, having adjusted the saw, you can leave the saw in the one place.

Originally Posted by Treecycle

What are you using that will give you a reading down to a resolution of 1.57 thou?

A dial indicator that can has gaps of .01mm. My current setting is bang on 0.04mm = 1.57 thou.

Another follow on.

Did the alignment (unsuccessfully, I think) Friday, did a few cuts and moved the saw Saturday, retested Sunday morning and got that great result but when I retested Sunday night (yes I know I'm anal about this) my reading changed a fair bit to over .12 mm (closer to 5.00 thou). I guess the comment about moving the saw and twisting is true.

Here we go again. Loosen the bolts, a little this time, and I'm getting know where again. I just can't do it!!!!!

Even with the bolts fairly loose a tap sometimes does nothing on the pointer of the dial indicator. I know the table has to rotate clockwise.

So my offer of paying someone to sort this out is now back on the table or does anyone a technician that does this for a living.

Originally Posted by barribarri

A dial indicator that can has gaps of .01mm. My current setting is bang on 0.04mm = 1.57 thou.

Now I've got you. Didn't realise you were converting to imperial as I have never seen an imperial dial indicator which reads to that resolution.
Maybe you could get the alignment as best you can and then just move your saw again until you get the reading you are after.

Interesting suggestion Treecycle but its in "home" now. I've completely given up on this. My cuts as mentioned above are very good. Smooth and square. So I might leave it as is and start making something. I actually have started on an outfeed table and I have cut all the legs and cross pieces and ripped the top out of mdf. As I said all these cuts were pretty good.
I'm wondering if my dial indicator jig is the problem or possibly a not perfectly flat surface.

I hope someone responds to my paying offer.

If it is cutting ok and good enough for the project you are on then just go with it. You can always have another go down the track.
I only had a combination square when I set my saw up so perhaps did not have those couple of thou to fret about.
Regards
John