In home Tool evaluation, Austin Texas

Fence alignment on Table saw, possible bearing replacement on Band saw, Blade wear evaluation, Chop Saw evaluation and so on. I am capable of many mechanical endeavors but can’t tell if my Miter saw noises are normal or the bearing needs replacement.
- Dansaw

My motto for bearings – When in doubt, swap them out :)

Seriously, just dig on in and do it yourself. There is a boatload of info on the net: tutorials, how-to’s, videos, user forums (like here), etc… that will walk you through most of what you would ever want to do. As an added benefit, you become intimately familiar with your machines, how they work, and what to keep an eye on in terms of maintenance and keeping them in good working condition. It’s not hard, and you will thank yourself in the long run.

Cheers,
Brad

-- Brad in FL - In Dog I trust... everything else is questionable

+ 1 for what Brad said and a question. What was it you thought someone at Woodcraft could do?

-- Alaskan's for Global warming!

Look for a woodworkers guild in your town. Then you can meet some likeminded individuals and am sure some people would help you out. Good luck!

Thanks to all. I agree, I do most things myself but wanted to enlist an expert. Woodcraft had offered this service a few years back for setting up new equipment. I will have to post some videos to show why I want other eyes. Table saw has a Forrest blade that has been used, and has slight wobble when about to stop running. Mitre saw and circular saw are doing the same. Band Saw makes a god awful noise and not sure if it’s set up or bearings…..I will get after it. thanks

Does the local high school have shop? Can talk to the instructor – - they have seen every abuse a 14 year old can do to the tools, and keep them running. He can get you going. Of course YouTube is a great resource. there is the obligatory Bandsaw video from Alex Snodgass as he teaches at all the woodworking shows. it is the ‘go to’.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wGbZqWac0jU

The Wood Whisperer did a video… and… he had invited Alex to his shop. – - and he goes in better detail, and this video is only 8 minutes.. the original is 30

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bxVyKsbuwZQ

-- “The two most important days in your life are the day you are born and the day you find out why.” Mark Twain

Quit often it is not the blades, but that should be the first thing you check, use a dial indicator for the most precise measurements. Bad bearings and belts will produce vibration, more so at start-up and shut-down, more so if your machine is on rubber feet. Short belts cause less vibration, long belts such as on a table saw, with back hanging motor produce lots of vibration at start-up and shut-down. Link belts, as mentioned by other LJ’s, produce much less vibration. Bearings are relatively easy , if there is any play, leaking grease, noise such as scraping, or less than smooth revolution change the bearings.

A smooth running bandsaw should not make to much noise. Check the guides, set there clearance using strips of regular 20 lb. paper. Rotate the wheels, if your blade contacts the guides off and on, you may have problems elsewhere, out of round wheels, bad tires, or bad bearings. These are also relatively easy to check. 14” and smaller bandsaws with the motor in the base have long belts and can produce vibration, a link belt will help.

Austin Tx isn’t nowhere. I imagine you have woodworkers close by, more so if a WoodCraft is thriving. Evidently you can rule out WoodCraft, but looks like maybe a club nearby

Plenty of how to on You Tube, thing is there some of them are Yahoo’s. Places like the magazines, and places selling tools may have A to Z on tuning up, just about anything. Several of the publications have stickied how to’s like this one from Wood for a contractor Table Saw

Here there is plenty of help, but we can’t see your tools. If you watch something, that brings up questions, cite the source, and ask about what you are having trouble with.

-- Think safe, be safe

check to see if there is a woodworking club in your area. they’ll be glad to help you out. or put you in the right direction

Why don’t you post what tools you have? There is a Dewalt repair shop in Austin if you have a Dewalt Miter saw.

I am no expert wood worker or tool repair guy but I fixed up 3 Delta table saws, a Atlas drill press, a bandsaw and a couple of jointers. I almost forgot the floor mortiser. I studied each tool 1 at a time. And made each tool work 1 at a time. They all required different levels of repair. The bandsaw took a while as I thought is was the motor since it was running hot. I had a motor shop Hamilton Electric in Austin Texas go through it. It turned out the motor side panel had moved in a small amount which caused the bandsaw belt to barely rub on the bottom wheel. This was overloading the motor causing it to run hot. All I had to do was add washers to space the motor out to fix it. It took me a while to figure it out. I don’t think this is a show up and fix. You may be better off working on the forums some to get you started.

The last year I have been restoring an old American made garden tractor. The spindles were shot on the mower deck and 1 of them was broken. I painted a trailer to match. Now I am upgrading my air compressor to have easy access to air and to paint better.

If I had a bandsaw making noise, I would loosen the guides, and tension the blade and turn the wheels. Probably the noise is from guides improperly adjusted. Bandsaws need adjustment often. Circular blades often wobble at slow speeds, and run true at speed. If you plan to mess with a table saw or miter saw, unplug the saw before fooling with the blade. Then turn the blade, and see if you can feel any roughness or play.

If I had a bandsaw making noise, I would loosen the guides, and tension the blade and turn the wheels. Probably the noise is from guides improperly adjusted. Bandsaws need adjustment often. Circular blades often wobble at slow speeds, and run true at speed. If you plan to mess with a table saw or miter saw, unplug the saw before fooling with the blade. Then turn the blade, and see if you can feel any roughness or play.

- farmfromkansas

Maybe I am misunderstanding what you are trying to say, but the only thing I agree with there is that you should unplug a machine before working on it.

The problem with you getting an “expert” to set stuff up for you is that you’ll have no knowledge or ability to adjust or fix the tools when they inevitably go out of alignment etc. again. Keeping machines aligned and set up properly is not a one time deal. Nor is troubleshooting strange sounds.
Learning how to do this is as much a part of woodworking as learning how to sharpen or measure etc.

-- Sometimes the creative process requires foul language. -- Charles Neil

Manitario. while I agree that having knowledge to do these yourself is valuable. I am thinking first time, it is wise for some to seek help to assure they do it correctly. I wouldn’t expect they weren’t going to be watching, or even recording to have a reference. I have been asked to do this a number of times in the past, I’ve never been asked to do it twice by the same person though.

-- Think safe, be safe

I have been asked to do this a number of times in the past, I ve never been asked to do it twice by the same person though.

- therealSteveN

Lol, you must be a good teacher! I agree, a real person showing you how to set stuff up is super helpful. The OP made it seem though like he just wanted someone to come and set everything up for him which I think would be counterproductive.

-- Sometimes the creative process requires foul language. -- Charles Neil

I really appreciate all the good responses. I will post some videos of what I am hearing and seeing in my shop. I was wanting to learn the specifics of my tools so I can be self sufficient in the future. Just like the original post, you only get so much from what is written. You don’t know, what you don’t know!