Jet Headache

[warbler]

I have a Jet Supersaw with a sliding fence. Been generally pretty happy with it but made the bonehead move to upgrade the fence by purchasing Jet's Xacta Fence II, rail system and extension table. I spec'd all the parts after extensive discussions with a Jet customer service rep. The owner's manual bears no resemblence to the parts receive. The mounting instructions for the rail don't conform to the design of the table saw. Now that I've disassembled my current rail system to set this up, I am now realizing that the product design for this upgrade was done by some drunk engineer. Now I am trying to get Jet to explain the set-up (or take the stuff back) and can't get anyone who really understands the product.

Has anyone had a similar experience. Any recommendations?

[Jay Pique]

I'm just starting the REassembly of my Jet CTS and I have to say that there have been some interesting discoveries. This was a Woodworkers Warehouse unit, BTW.

Some of the machining of parts is pretty weak, to say the least. Some sleeves are drilled off-center to the point that at the ends they almost break through the sidewalls. One "part" appears to be a sheared off piece of steel bar. It's not square or flat on any surface and has burrs on all edges. The threaded hole is half as short on one side as the other and has roughly 3.5 threads on that side. The gearing on the trunions really hasn't been deburred, and again the holes are off-center to the housings(?).

Most of the trunion assembly still had a bunch of Cosmoline or whatever on it, and the works were pretty gummed up. The owner said he hadn't done a thing to the saw other than make some cuts about 6 times, so I have to assume this was a WW Warehouse assembly and "tune". The fence didn't even lock down properly - it was adjusted so tight that you couldn't even get the full cam to fully close, he just sort of jammed it down until it held. And is it "ok" to put the lock washer between the object to be held and a flat wahser, followed on the outside by the nut?

Further bulletins as events warrant.

JP

**************** Bite sized chunks.

[RonB]

Yes. As I mentioned here before, I had a similar experience the a WMH corporate cousin - Powermatic. My Model 54A jointer is a great machine that exceeded my expectations. The owner's manual absolutely sucked. You cannot expect a book to be easy to use when it doesn't describe the machine on the cover.

RonB

[kkfitzge]

"The fence didn't even lock down properly - it was adjusted so tight that you couldn't even get the full cam to fully close, he just sort of jammed it down until it held."

If it's a standard Jet Fence, that's the way it's supposed to be.

[Patrick Conroy]

"warbler" wrote in news:1124822672.827315.5200 @g47g2000cwa.googlegroups.com:

Have you posted on the Yahoo SuperSaw group? IIRC - there was a recent post about someone upgrading to the new fence.

Sorry if I send you off on a wild goose chase.

I'm a Supersaw owner since October 2002. True "Pioneer" - you can tell by the arrows in the back...

[Jay Pique]

Well I'll be. It feels weird to have so little play. Maybe I can adjust it to allow for a bit more downward movement prior to tightening up.

Thanks - I may have really frustrated myself trying to get that sucker to lock.

JP

[warbler]

Thanks. I will look for the Yahoo Group. Interestingly in a further talk with Jet yesterday, their tech support person acknowledged that they don't even have a user manual for the parts they sent me. He discovered this after retrieving the stuff I purchased from their warehouse so he might have a more intelligent conversation on my problem. He discovered to his chagrin that there is not any setup info or even a picture of the installation. In fact, the box contains NOTHING printed! He was very attentive on the phone and pleasant but also seemed frustrated by the way some of thier products get shipped.

But I spent 3 hours yesterday with some new found info and may just get this puppy to work. Havinging bought Delta and Dewalt equipment (both were a breeze to set up and calibrate) this is a nightmare.

[RonB]

Exactly the attitude I sensed with the Powermatic rep. She started off defensive. When she realized how hosed-up the manual was she switched to apology and frustration. Having worked for a company that was downgraded from Cadillac to Yugo status by its accountants, I was fairly sympathetic (with her, not WMH).

RonB

[kkfitzge]

I agree, it feels funny at first. I use what I would call "firm handshake pressure" to lock the fence, and it's never budged in use.

Here's a setup tip: I noticed that on my Jet Fence, the plastic glides in the locking head didn't contact the fence rail squarely. As a result, the fence would skew (very) slightly as the lock was tightened. A little tape shimming under the glides fixed it.

There is no adjustability for locking play / pressure, unless you want to shave some thickness off the glides.

[Bruce Barnett]

I have this problem. I bent the metal tangs a little, and it helped. It still shifts a little when I tighten. I was going to call Jet and get their advice.