dewalt power switch problem

[tomsteve]

well, what a scary experience 2nite. went out to finish scrollin an angel i'm workin on and my dewalt 788 woodn't fire up. turned out to be the power switch. what scares me is i bought the dewalt to replace a craftsman. the first problem i had with that one was the power switch!!!! now, i know the dewalt is a much better piece of machinery, but i sure hope i didn't get a lemon. so has anybody experienced this problem!!?!?!??! i still love the saw, though. i know i went a few nites without givin her a kiss.

[lucky788scroller]

yes, blow into that hole on the side of the switch cover. When turning it on, click the switch on fast and firm. If that done work, pull out the screws holding that cover on, and lift it up enough to made sure the wires are still conected to the terminals. Oh, and check the fuse ,its under the motor in the little fusebox marked fuse. Dale

[tomsteve]

well, i pulled the switch off and checked the continuity. screwed with it a bit, but the switch was bad. i took the replacement switch off of the craftsman and used that.

[AKAkopa]

The switch on my Dewalt went bad also. Did all the blowing, sucking, taking apart etc to no avail. Took into the service center (as it is under warrenty) and then waited 10 days for them to get a new switch. Then took the advice of several on here, went and got a foot switch and have taped down (in the on position) and covered the switch on the saw.

Reading this and other forums, I think the switch set-ups are bad on the Dewalts as several have posted theirs have gone bad. Still love my ole yeller dawg tho!

[Jim Finn]

"I think the switch set-ups are bad on the Dewalts as several have posted theirs have gone bad. Still love my ole yeller dawg though." : I have had the same thing happen to mine just today and it is less than 3 months old. I take it to the repair center tomorrow and they have already told me it will take 10 days to fix it.

[thecopperfish]

I've had my ole yeller a couple of years with no switch problems but I vacuum it out every time I use it. Seems like most people recommend a foot switch.
Chris

[AKAkopa]

LOl Actually it just takes minutes to repair--the ten days is how long it takes to get the parts from Deleware I was told. I think they are shipped into Delaware from China and they only order 1 or 2 at a time!

Haven't had much of a chance to run "ole yeller" due to packing for a move since I got it repaired. As stated before I went to a foot switch as I have seen too many posts about these switch problems with the Dewalts. I may try and order one just to have it on hand if mine takes another crap!

[USMC1126]

If you really wanted too, you cold bypass the factory switch and add an external switch in the power cord itself. It would keep the switch away from the dust and is cheap and not hard to do. Let me know if you need any help.

King

[Scroll'ng Dave]

I had the same problem with mine as well. But as opposed to goofing around with the existing switch, I just ordered a new one. It really wasn't that expensive or difficult to replace. It turns out that when I placed my order, I also replaced the clamp blocks, both top and bottom... these were pretty cheap as well; and why not, I was placing an order anyway. Here's the thread to the place I got my parts - they even have blow-up diagrams to make it a little easier to navigate and locate the part you're looking for. Lastly, service was pretty good too!

DeWALT DW788 TYPE 1 parts breakdown on ToolPartsDirect.com

I will also add that while I was waiting for the parts, I bypassed the switch and bought a foot switch - something I've wanted to do for quite a while...