My Table Saw Aligner Jr. finally arrived the other day. Today I put it on the saw and took some measurements.The blade is 0.01 (10 thou) out of parallel from the miter slot, measured from the front to the back of the blade with the blade raised all the way.I just measured the blade plate. I know you're supposed to measure the same tooth front and back, but it's really difficult to move the blade by hand and have it end up in the right place because of the belts. Is this really a critical issue?The fence is 0.02 (20 thou) out of parallel from the miter slot. The back of the fence is further away than the front (which is the better direction to be out by).At these "close enough"? Are they worth worrying about to try and get better or will I just end up chasing a level of precision that's not practical to achieve?

If the fence and blade skews are in the same direction you could be off by as much as 1/32" over 7 or 8 inches. To me this is too much.I was able to get my WW II blade parallel to the miter slot within +/-0.0005". (I can't do that with non-Forrest blades though.)My Unifence diverges from being parallel with the miter slot by about 0.004 at the back of the blade when compared to the distance away at the front of the blade.Happily, when I re-check I find that there is no measurable movement over time.RBRoy Smith wrote:

Aligning table saw -- how close is close enough?

Feb 07, 2004 24 Replies

Rate this thread:

Leon 22 years ago

I thought that the Shipping was a bit strong also but, My local service in Houston is not a slouch. They have computerized sharpening machines that even recognize a blade that they have sharpened before. While I thought that they did a good job for the many years that I used them, I was unhappy with the results. The blade cut more quickly but the cut was also more rough than before they resharpened it. They sharpen to 600 grit IIRC. I used the blade for 2 months and then tried to tilt the blade while it was elevated in the zero clearance insert... ;~) Don't do that. This time I sent it to Forrest for sharpening, to bring it back to factory specs, test cut, and to ship it back for $17 more than the local shop charges to just sharpen. The blade cut like new when I got it back. IMHO the Forrest service is the best and worth the extra for shipping.

formatting link

Vote

Leon 22 years ago

Make my last sentence, Adjust the fence and not the blade.

Vote

Bob Davis 22 years ago

Hey, Leon, I'm in Houston, too! We should compare notes. I drop my blades off at the Cutting Edge. I'm pretty sure they sub the work out to MVP Sharpening. Is that who you used? I swear my 50T freud was better than new when I got it back. I've not let them have a go at my WWII yet, but its so new that it has not needed resharpening yet.

I know what you mean about tilting the blade. :-)

Bob

Vote

Leon 22 years ago

Yeah Bob, The Cutting Edge is or was sending off to MVP.. I have been using MVP since the late 80's when they also sold power tools. They do a good job but Forrest whips them IMHO. I will say however, there could have been a slight problem with my Forrest when I took it into MVP but still I think the quality of cut was not as good after sharpening. Unfortunately MVP does not or did not flatten blades at the time. I believe that checking for flatness and reflattening if necessary should be done while being sharpened now. The blade cut good as new again.

Vote

Bob Davis 22 years ago

Thanks for the feedback. I'll keep that in mind when its time to sharpen the Forrest.

bob

Vote

Join the Discussion

Have something to add? Share your thoughts — no account required.

Didn't find your answer?

Ask the community — no account required