I recently was gifted a Craftsman radial saw. Not a large one, but medium. I have gone over it, and it's all there. Played with the dials and stops and got a feel for it.
It does not have a fence on the V shaped base, which I need to add. I did cut a couple of boards, and it works fine. I'm not sure though of the direction of feed. Do I make the fence in the rear and push the blade into the wood, or make the fence close to me, and pull the blade through the wood.
This may be a simple question, but that's how one learns.
I have heard lots of people say these are nasty and dangerous. To me, anything with a blade is in that category. I think it is up to the user. But are there any inherent dangers with these saws, and things I should watch out for?
Neither...the fence is to the rear just far enough from the rear table so the blade (when down to the table for through cutting) is fully behind the fence.
For a crosscut you then place the material to be cut against the fence (in front of the fence toward you) and pull the blade through to make the cut. This takes some practice to get the hang of to not let the blade grab and overfeed as it will have a tendency to do so if you do not maintain a firm control and have some resistance ready to prevent the carriage from trying to go on its own.
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Just like a TS you don't push where the material will pass the blade so hand(s) are in danger, on a RAS you have to be absolutely sure you place the off hand away from the line of travel of the carriage.
The blade guard should be down and hopefully yours has the attached hanging guards with it and they are also installed. Be sure the kickback pawls are in place as well altho for crosscutting they serve mostly to prevent any tendency of the outside edge to raise since saw travel is out.
And, be sure to have sufficient outboard support for workpieces longer than will be adequately supported on the table itself.
We'll leave ripping until you've master crosscutting... :)
Anybody who says to push through starting the saw outside the material instead of behind the fence on a RAS is, simply, wrong... :)
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Not exactly now I'd describe it--normally (unless one is plowing a groove) the saw is set to be cutting through the wood entirely and there's no difference since the height of the blade is controlled by the arm.
Which is the opportunity I overlooked in earlier response to remind the OP to install a sacrifical cutting layer over the actual finish tabletop.
Tend to agree w/ the hardboard for a different reason (I've never had the minute differences in thickness that average out over a workpiece matter)--the hardboard surface is slicker that is nice, particularly ripping.
Pull the blade-- but always be conscious that it will want to push you hand-- so you are pulling, but holding back at the same time.
There is probably a manual online for yours-- but this one shows where the fence goes.
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Do a lot of crosscutting before you go for any ripping. And if you have a table saw- use *it* to rip.
I had one for years and liked it- I got a better deal on table saw when the RAS died. And now I have a chop saw for precise crosscuts. But I had a lot of fun with the RAS & still have 10 fingers.
I was thinking more about voids in the plywood. OTOH, I've had some plywood lately that has some pretty serious bumps where the plys start/end. Hardboard is great stuff. It doesn't seem to be as available as it once was. Perhaps it's part of the HomeDepoting of America.
The fence goes toward the rear between the two (or more) table boards... the rear one is loose and is tightened against the fence with (often with Craftsman) two locked in place thumb screws.
If you want to rip, the fence can be moved back behind all table boards so that you can rip wider. When ripping, you position the saw opposite to that when crosscutting; i.e. so the blade is spinning away from you and trying to push the board toward you. Be sure the anti-kickback pawls are set properly.
The saw is used by pulling it toward you; since it is also spinning toward you, the teeth push the board being cut down and back toward the fence. Cut by pushing, and the blade will try to flip the board up. Not good.
Not really. As some have mentioned, some blades will try to climb up on crosscuts so keep a stiff arm as you pull. Best is to get a blade made for radial saws...they have a lower - even negative - hook angle.
Radial saws can be really handy for lots of things, primarily dealing with cross cutting. Handy for cross laps on a long board, for one. A sanding disk is handy on them too. I don't like them for ripping even though I ripped a lot of lumber on mine before getting a cabinet saw. I still prefer the radial for crosscuting; problem is that they have a fraction of the power of my cabinet saw, need to keep the blade clean and sharp.
If you wind up using yours a fair amount you might want to mark the outboard teeth on the blade. By that I mean the two teeth that stick out the farthest. Way to do it is lay a framing square on the table with one leg against the fence. Raise the saw so the edge of the teeth just touch the edge of the square and rotate the blade until you find the one that sticks out the farthest. Move square to other side and repeat. I use a red felt tip marker to mark those teeth, also draw a line from them toward the hub so I can spot them easily.
What good is all that? You can now position a board with a knife cut (or pencil mark) by rotating the blade until the proud tooth lines up with it and get a very precise cut.
One other tip...one normally cuts then pushes the saw back behind the fence and turns off the saw before moving the pieces that were cut. When you move the saw in either direction, take care that you do not apply any lateral pressure toward the keeper piece; doing so will deflect the saw a bit and your cut will be less precise than it could be..
And for stopping the blade, there is a brake on the arbor...sort of a shoe at the accessory end. Press down and it brakes the blade.
On 9/28/2011 5:57 PM, snipped-for-privacy@att.bizzzzzzzzzzzz wrote: ...
Oh....hadn't thought internal voids particularly significant so didn't think of them...
For the most part I use the RAS as a cutoff tool and for ripping of heavy stuff so real precision is rarely a necessity altho can do so if need.
I've a 16" ancient Rockwell mounted in a 20-ft bench; the main table is
3" laminated beech strips (original which starts to show the age; since when would a manufacturer ship such an accessory? :) ) and the sacrificial top is 1" soft maple I glued up from some leftover 5/4 stock and ran thru the widebelt sander. Every few years I give it another lick to clean it up a little--it'll undoubtedly outlast me by now...
These saws were recalled because the guards were not compliant with safety regulations. Plenty of craftsmen have used them without injury. Recall info link-
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sure the saw blade you choose has at most 0 degrees hook angle ,even better with negative 5 or 6 degrees as this helps prevent overfeeding and gives you a more controlled cut.
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