bandsaw guidepost "anti-slop" screw

[pgf]

i'm referring to the screw with a jam nut referenced in post 97098 of this thread: http://www.shopsmith.com/ss_forum/viewtopic.php?t=8542 (wouldn't it be nice if the forum let one link to specific posts?). it's also in the bandsaw manual, on p.16, and called the "Column Post Screw".

i realize that screw hasn't always been there -- it's missing on both my bandsaws (i'm fixing one up for a friend). is there no way to control the guide post's side-to-side play on older machines without that screw? my machines each have about 1/16" of lateral play, measured near the bottom of travel.

for those of you that do have that screw, and who have adjusted it -- how much play do you have? i've read (somewhere on the forum, and i'd appreciate a pointer to the thread, if you remember) that one can add that screw to older machines. is the mod worth it?

paul

[reible]

Yes it is well worth doing the update. If you go to this thread:

http://www.shopsmith.com/ss_forum/viewt ... =10&t=8361

The discussion starts on page 4 but if you are updating your bandsaw you might want to read the whole thread.

Ed

[rpd]

i'm referring to the screw with a jam nut referenced in post 97098 of this thread: http://www.shopsmith.com/ss_forum/viewtopic.php?t=8542 (wouldn't it be nice if the forum let one link to specific posts?). it's also in the bandsaw manual, on p.16, and called the "Column Post Screw".

i realize that screw hasn't always been there -- it's missing on both my bandsaws (i'm fixing one up for a friend). is there no way to control the guide post's side-to-side play on older machines without that screw? my machines each have about 1/16" of lateral play, measured near the bottom of travel.

for those of you that do have that screw, and who have adjusted it -- how much play do you have? i've read (somewhere on the forum, and i'd appreciate a pointer to the thread, if you remember) that one can add that screw to older machines. is the mod worth it?

paul

When I aligned mine (also pre adjustment screw) I used UHMW tape to shim for the proper clearance.
That was three or four years ago and it is working great.

[pgf]

ed -- thanks for the thread pointer. i'll take a look at doing the mod.

ron -- good idea about the tape: i think i actually have some very similar tape in a drawer in the shop.

paul

[paulrussell]

I tightened it until it bound, then backed off just enough to allow the shaft to unbind.

[pgf]

i've now made the column post screw mod to one of my saws. my drill and tap for the 1/4-20 nylon screw left the fit a little loose. perhaps my 13/64 drill was a little large for this application. in any case, some teflon tape on the screw threads snugged it up so it won't loosen by itself. most of the play i was seeing before is gone -- what's left would need more rigid components, i think.

i thought that upper guide adjustment was finicky before! that was nothing compared to starting completely from scratch. wow. :-)

i have to say, i'm not convinced that using double bearings for the upper guide is worthwhile. the side to side verticality adjustment, using the big bracket mounting bolts, is so coarse that it's extremely difficult to center the bearings on the blade at all heights. if the bearings aren't exactly centered, then when the blade pushes back against the gap it's sure to be cocked slighly one way or the other. if there were no gap, the centering wouldn't really be critical at all.

[billmayo]

I recommend reviewing this reference in the Shopsmith Forum posts for adjusting the bandsaw blade tracking starting on 08-05-2011 by JPG40504:
http://www.shopsmith.net/forums/showthr ... djustments

I use this procedure for all the bandsaws I rebuild. As a repeat, I remove the guide column post bracket (70), back out the 2 set screws (68) and adjust the special setscrew (73) outward until the guide lock spring (72) has the blade guide column post (71) snug against the front of the guide column post (70). Then mount the guide column post bracket to the band saw and adjust the set screws so the roller bearing(s) is almost touching the saw blade at any position. Sometimes I have to adjust the special screw (73) inward a slight bit. The nylon bolt (65) reduces the fwd/aft deflection of the blade guide column post (71).

[reible]

The adjustments may be a little more difficult then you hoped for but once you have them done the saw cuts a lot better. It's the dual bearings or going to Carter guides and it is a lot cheaper doing the bearings.

I found it wasn't to hard but you have to go slow, a little at a time and keep checking along the way. Keep the nuts snug to take the play out of the screws and just a partial turn on one then the other. It can become a game you play with yourself to see how well you do..........

Ed

[pgf]

I found it wasn't to hard but you have to go slow, a little at a time and keep checking along the way. Keep the nuts snug to take the play out of the screws and just a partial turn on one then the other. It can become a game you play with yourself to see how well you do..........

to be clear, i wasn't talking about the forward/backward alignment that's described in the manual, and in JPG's excellent pictorial thread. i agree, that's not too hard.

i was referring to the side-to-side alignment, which is controlled by the two bolts with the half-inch heads that clamp the guide bracket to the rear casting. again, it can be done, but unlike the fore/aft adjustment, when you loosen things up to make a small adjustment, it's likely that you'll lose all of your positioning. it felt like a crapshoot every time i snugged the bolts.

but i confess i don't have enough cutting experience with the dual vs. single bearing setups to say whether the dual upper bearings make a big difference -- so i'll take your word for it. especially now that i have it aligned. ;-)

paul