installing the upper saw guard

cactusoj · Post by **cactusoj** » Wed Oct 22, 2008 11:00 pm

A newbie here. Just purchased a Mark V at the local county fair and finally got it delivered and in the process of setting it up. Searched the forums to no avail so asking here. I finally found the locking nut that I have to loosen to allow the slotted riving knife? part of the saw guard to be inserted between the movable part that tightens against the knife to hold it in place. It said that I have to make sure the blade and knife are lined up directly behind each other but I have no idea how to move the blade or the knife so they line up. The knife seems to be one blade width to the left of the blade when standing on the speed control side of the machine which i assume is the front. After looking at the pictures in the book that came with the Mark V, I noticed my guard seemed to be much higher then those in the picture. After looking closer, I noticed that one of the blades formed by the long slot was stopping on the lower saw blade cover and after pulling out on it a little the knife seemed to seat completely and the top of the upper saw guard was much closer but not touching the blade as it shows in the pictures. The knife is still offset a little so I guess I still need to line up the blade and knife.
I tried a test cut and had the knife catch the wood being cut requiring me to move it a little to get the knife to enter the kerf? It seem to bind against the fence when I did a rip test.

How do i line up the blade and the knife so the wood does not catch? I understand that the knife is part of the kick back reduction but right now it is more of a henderance then a help.

Thanks
Cactusoj

a1gutterman · Post by **a1gutterman** » Thu Oct 23, 2008 12:23 am

cactusoj wrote:A newbie here. Just purchased a Mark V at the local county fair and finally got it delivered and in the process of setting it up. Searched the forums to no avail so asking here. I finally found the locking nut that I have to loosen to allow the slotted riving knife? part of the saw guard to be inserted between the movable part that tightens against the knife to hold it in place. It said that I have to make sure the blade and knife are lined up directly behind each other but I have no idea how to move the blade or the knife so they line up. The knife seems to be one blade width to the left of the blade when standing on the speed control side of the machine which i assume is the front. After looking at the pictures in the book that came with the Mark V, I noticed my guard seemed to be much higher then those in the picture. After looking closer, I noticed that one of the blades formed by the long slot was stopping on the lower saw blade cover and after pulling out on it a little the knife seemed to seat completely and the top of the upper saw guard was much closer but not touching the blade as it shows in the pictures. The knife is still offset a little so I guess I still need to line up the blade and knife.
I tried a test cut and had the knife catch the wood being cut requiring me to move it a little to get the knife to enter the kerf? It seem to bind against the fence when I did a rip test.

How do i line up the blade and the knife so the wood does not catch? I understand that the knife is part of the kick back reduction but right now it is more of a henderance then a help.

Thanks
Cactusoj

Cactusoj!
My 1995 Mark V model 510 has clear instructions in the owners manual.
"If the riving knife is not centered with the saw blade, follow these steps:
a. Notice which way the riving knife is not centered with the saw blade.
b. Unclamp and remove the upper saw guard, then remove the blade and lower saw guard.
c. Use a 5/32" Allen wrench to adjust the stop screw (211) located below the lower saw guard's collar, as seen in Fig. B-112.
*If the riving knife is to the left of the saw blade, back out the stop screw (counter-clockwise).
*If the riving knife is to the right of the saw blade, screw in the stop screw (clockwise).
d. Re-install the saw blade, lower saw guard and riving knife, according to Steps 88 through 92. If the riving knife is still not centered on the blade, repeat this Step 93."

I hope this helps!

You must be referring to the Western Washington Fair (Do The Puyallup)! I might have seen you there. The demonstrator was a very nice guy, wasn't he? I see that you live in Gig Harbor. I live on the Peninsula, a bit West of Purdy. I drive daily on SR16 across the bridge. If you like, I could stop by and help you with this. You can send me a Private Message with your phone number.

charlese · Post by **charlese** » Thu Oct 23, 2008 2:49 am

Hi, Cactusoj! Like Tim said the adjustment is a screw that actually moves the saw guard over to align the splitter and anti kickback pawls. Yes the splitter should be about 1/8" above the blade.

Hope you get to meet up with Tim! He can offer some real good tips.

shydragon · Post by **shydragon** » Thu Oct 23, 2008 5:52 pm

It sounds if you bought this brand new. If so, when setting this up, you should start on page 1 and anally walk throught all the setup steps. By not doing this, you might be missing other key points. In saying this, I don't mean to sound like a jerk, but, I found out personally, if I don't do it this way, something gets missed and you are wondering, gee, why is this happening.