Square

[Toolman56]

Hi; okay this kind of a silly quistion, as read and follow there guidelines, i found out the hard way on my 16'' sears craftmen v/s,that the sticker on front of my saw is not zero, but rather off a few degrees , as i follow direction's to square up the table to base to cut straight cut along the side of cut as not to create a bevel cut, i lernt this last Christmas when making ornaments and after making like 123 she said ,she like my bevel cut on the edge, i told her i didnt do that and thats the way the saw was cutting that, so back to shop to see why, so i went back to barnes and noble book store learn how to true a a saw, factory manual no help, but i just got the saw and was still in my baby steps. What's a good way to true up a scroll saw and how many times should you do it. Thanks.

[Rolf]

I check mine whenever I start an intarsia project and several times during the project.
Also before I do any stack cutting.
There are several ways to square your blade and we all have our favorite way.
The simplest is to take a piece of wood, 3/4 or thicker, push it straight into the blade about 1/16. Stop the saw and swing the wood around and bring the just cut slot up to the back of the blade. If the blade slips into the slot easily the table and blade are square.
I attached a couple of pictures (I exagerated the misalignment for clarity)
in this case the table is off about 2 deg.

[workin for wood]

Similar for me. I make cut, then flip board upside down and make a small cut beside the first cut. Measure the distance between the two cuts at the bottom and at the top. If it's not parrallel, it's not square.

[sawdustus]

Thanks Rolf and Jeff. I have been using a small square up against the blade to do my squaring. Much easier your way.
George

[Barefoot1]

I raise the blade all the way up and place my speed square against it. Works well also.

[earlinjax]

I learned the hard way that if you square your saw on Monday, it's no guarantee it will be square on Tuesday.

Earl

[Arcy]

Originally Posted by earlinjax

I learned the hard way that if you square your saw on Monday, it's no guarantee it will be square on Tuesday.

<blonde>
So on which day should I square my saw?
</blonde>



--Rob

[JimSawyer]

I eventually got my self a small square from Woodcraft. I paid $12 for it and I use it often. Especialy since I do a lot of inlay work which means tilting my table a couple of degrees to the left. I do different kinds of scrolling, ( been really into making free standing puzzles lately, and that requires a good square table). nothing wrong with doing it as Rolf and Jeff have said, I just find it quicker and easier to use the square.
Just my 2 cents.

[Plaquerd]

I also use a square, the 90 degree head off a Starrett combination square. It fits nicely under the arm of the saw.
I also use the Wixey digital angle gauge, this tool has been a boon to me for my inlay work. Set the table at 90 degrees, set the Wixey on the table and zero it out, then set the table to the bevel angle you want, the gauge shows the angle.
Turn off the Wixey, set it aside while cutting, when it's time to set the table to a different bevel angle or back to 90 place the Wixey on the table turn it on and Zero the table. It is accurate to a tenth of a degree and it is easy to use. As long as the blade is truly at 90 degrees to the table when you start the set-up with the Wixey it is very accurate.