Table Saw Inaccuracy

[Greg N]

I have a new Ryobi 10" table saw and I'm having trouble making accurate cuts with it.
Let me explain by example:
I take a piece of 19mm Jarrah decking which I want to rip a 25mm strip off of. First I set the depth of the blade so it's about 5mm higher than the board. Then I measure exactly 25mm from the inside of the blade to the fence. I do this on both the front and back of the blade so that the fence is parallel to the blade. I tighten up the fence, start the saw, and and slowly run the board through keeping it tight to the fence. When I'm done, I end up with a strip that tapers from 25mm to 22mm. I check my measurements from the blade to the fence again and they are still the same. it seems that as I run the board through, the blade tends to move towards the fence and then spring back when it's through. Has anyone else experienced this ? Is there a problem with the saw, the blade, or my technique ?

[craigb]

I have a new Ryobi 10" table saw


That's your problem right there. Take it back. Get your money back and buy a real TS.

Sorry if that's not what you wanted to hear.

Of course there'll probably be plenty of others who'll say that if you only spend the time dicking around with it that you CAN make a silk purse out of a sows ear.

[beejay1]

Couple of things spring to mind:
If the fence only locks at the front then it could be moving out slightly as you pass the work through, this does happen with some fences.
Also, its possible depending on your technique that the work is being allowed to wander off slighty, more common with longer pieces, as it passes through and this is often by as much as the thickness of the blade, in other words the material begins to lean into the blade as it cuts, and not the fence.
One of the good points about the Gripper system some of the guys have bought recently is that it would eliminate this .
beejay1

http://community.webshots.com/user/eunos9

[Harry72]

With the power cord unpluged... grab the blade and give it a wobble see if its got any sideways play... if its like my cheap POS TS the blade cuts nice until it gets a bearing runout wobble, the width of the kerf goes from 3mm to 6mm, typicaly the longer the cut the worse it gets!
The only way to minimise it is to cut for a certain distance(mines about 500mm)then pause feeding the cut for a second or 2... it still leaves a rough edge but its close to being straight, I always cut oversize and trim back with a router and straight edge guide jig/fence.
I'll be upgrading very soon as it slows my production time heaps!
Also if you'll find that the cheap crap fence will flex in the middle as thay are made from a .00000000001mm thick coke can... throw it in the bin and clamp a mdf straight edge on it, make it longer than the width of your table this will allow for some overhang at the front of the table to help keep the piece square against it while doing rip cuts.

Do you have or use feather boards, if not search this forum bound to find out some info how to make and use them.

[Gumby]

I agree with the comment that your problem is the quality of the tool you bought. If you don't want to take it back, I'd suggest buying a Grr-ripper (see elsewhere in these forums) which would mean that you are taking away the tendency for the blade to move during the cut. That solution would be $110 well spent because the Grr-ripper is something you'll use on many machines, upgraded or not over the years.

[numbat]

The other thing to check is that the riving knife is in line with the blade - it is possibly out of line and causing the inaccuracy.

Cheers

[Kris.Parker1]

You could also possibly check that there is no fouling in the fence at the level where either the wood hits it or the saw traverses along it, this could be what putting the cut out. I had the same dramas with a Triton saw and all that had happened was the lower edge of the fence was bent as a result of poor handling from the hardware shop where I originally purchased it. I had to end up taking it back and getting a new fence under warranty.


Cheers

Kris

[reeves]

i ahve a ryobi with similar issues, its ok but if u want better service..get a better saw...cazst iron table and more robest construction..

cheeeeeers

[Greg N]

Thank you all for your replies. I was so impressed to see so many of them, starting within minutes of posting the question ! The first one pretty much summed it up, in a very blunt and realistic way. I also got a good chuckle when reading about the coke can quality of the fence. The blade does indeed move from side to side and well as up and down with surprisingly little force. It seems that the tilt / up-down mechanism is also of coke can quality.
Is this bad news ? On the contrary. This feed back is just what I needed to convince myself that it IS worth upgrading. My problem is that I don't use my saw enough (or make enough money) to warrant spending heaps on a new one, but I definitely do use it enough to find it really annoying. I'm going to start by making my self a couple of feather boards as when I rip long boards, they definitely do tend to move away from the fence. I may also add a GRR-ripper to my wish list.
For the time being, I think I will put up with my POS. using the rip then dress technique, and start keeping my eyes out for a good quality used TS. (look out for my add in buy/sell/swap) My previous TS was a 8" Makita which I picked up for a song, second hand in the US (as with most of my tools). Although under powered, I got 10 years of good use out of it before burning it up beyond repair when ripping through a stack of F27.

[Tikki]

Hi Greg

I bought one of these saws a couple of years ago and had the same problem. I returned it to the hardware store and swapped it for another - same problem! If you lay a straight edge across the bench area at a few different angles, you may just find (as I did) that it is not level. When I returned the second one, the store assistant and I removed three more from their packaging and all had the same problem.

If this is the case with your saw, you can at least expect to get your money back to invest in a better one and not be stuck with a dud!

Good luck :)
Tikki

[adrian]

When a fence is only fixed at one end it will flex when you press the timber hard against it.
I have the GMC table saw and the only way I can get the cut anywhere near accurate is to clamp a straight edge on the other side of the timber and feed the wood through without trying to push it against the fence.
Make a sled for the smaller pieces.