788 question

[USMC1126]

When I use a smaller blade with my saw (#5 and below) it runs fine, anything over that and there is a pretty loud knocking noise. Anyone have any suggestions? I looked at Rick's website and saw all of that info, just wondering if anyone else has a fix.

Thanks,

King

[USMC1126]

I'll make a video and put it on youtube and post a link.

[USMC1126]

Wow, never realized how long it took to upload a video to youtube. It's about 30sec long and says it will take an hour

[JohnB]

G'day King, I think it has to do with the resolution of the video.
I tried sending a 1 minute video to a friend, via email and after about 1/2 an hour only about 15% was uploaded.
I cancelled the post, reformatted the video to a lower resolution and it took about 5 minutes.

[USMC1126]

Thanks for the info John. I lowered the resolution on my camera but it still took an hour. Hopefully the link works, here it is.

YouTube - MOV000012

Hope someone can help.

King

[JohnB]

G'day King,
The link works, and that's a great way to ask a question and get your message across.
I have an idea or two, but I haven't tried them so I'll see if any of the others have had the same problem and can offer a fix before I open my mouth and maybe put my foot in it.

[pat c]

King, the video on Rick's site is a good fix, mine just started making the same noise. ONE THING HOWEVER...where he shows pushing the rod back so you can take the cover off...........DON'T lift the main arm or push the back more than an 3/4". If you do you'll be taking the saw apart to get the wedge that the rod attaches to back in place. DAMHIK. Also you might try not feeding too fast first before you tear into the saw. I know if I feed too fast it makes the same kind of racket. Good luck with it. Pat

[miniwoodworker]

King, I haven't seen the video (dial-up - sigh). So, this is just 2-cents, FWIW.

Could it be that you don't have enough tension on those larger blades. My 788 tells me, rather loudly, when I don't have enough tension on the blade.

[azbison]

Two thoughts. The rod knocking that was discussed in an earlier post is most likely the case. On my used dewalt, I found that I had a knocking in the table, not the arms. I took the table off, cleaned and lubed the pivot and put the table back on and when it was on and I had the handle screwed down just to contact, I gave the front of the table a few whacks with a rubber mallet to ensure it was fully seated, then cranked down the knob and made it square.

Another passing thought, what happens if you put more tension on? When I put a blade in I tension it really tight, the tension lever is usually between 4 1/2 to a little over 5.

hope some of this helps.... good luck with it.

[lucky788scroller]

After viewing your video , and going downstairs and looking at my saws, before you tear into your saw, check this.
I noticed your thumbscrews are on the left side of your blade holders.I presume the previous owner was left handed. Because the thickness difference in a #5 to a #7, to a #9 blade, the thumbscrew wont turn in as much on every size. Put a number 5 in, and tighten it as you would. Look under the table as you manually make the saw go up and down. Watch the thumbscrew, and see that it clears everything. Then, do the same thing with a #7 or #9 . there is a rinky dink blade guard thing under the table, and if the thumbscrews are mounted to be tightened with the left hand instad of the right, theres a chance the thumbscrew can bang on that piece. With a little thicker blade, the ears on the thumbscrew may be more vertical , causing them to hit there. If you are lucky, that would easily be remedied by either removing that lower blade guard, or reversing the thumbscrews and setscrews. Another thought that just popped into my mind as I type this, is that maybe the whole lower blade clamp is installed upside down.
Also, the tension thing has merit as well. I rarely ever have to move my tension lever all the way to tighten a blade, regardless of size, so be sure the arm is down all the way before tightening the blade clamp.
So, I would say, check under the table for anyplace that may be hitting something first, before tearing into the saw. And if it turns out you need to open up the saw for surgery, Rick has the best instructions on doing that.