RBI Hawk ScrollSaw

I got a RBI Hawk scroll saw that is about 5 years old . It is a great tool and has worked fine.. now it takes spells of running at top speed on its own. Usually it happens in the middle of a cut and scares the dickens out of me! I have to turn off the saw and restart it and it runs fine ... Does anyone else have this problem and if so, how did you fix it ?

Sorry! Thingyens?? Â*'dickens'

Sorry again !! There is a censorship on certain letter combinations that is misspelling my post .... there was NO profanity or dirty word in my post !!!

[Nancy_G]

Yes Fred, this page has some funny censorship. For a while it wouldn't let us talk about carving a 'spoon'... it substituted the word 'thingy'. Now it won't let us use the word 'd*i*c*k' as in D*i*c*k Blick Arts & Crafts Supply Company.
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About the RBI - I had a great little 14' RBI that I was just crazy about. I bought it in '84, I think and used the heck out of it. In '91 the motor fell off!! .... Fell right off onto the floor. I took it downtown to a repair shop and they put it back on, I took it home, turned it on......motor fell off again. Back downtown again to a welding shop. Motor stayed on but the vibration was bad.
So I made one of my bigger mistakes. I bought a super expensive Excalibur with a 30' throat and I hate it. It's slow, hard to adjust the tension, slow, slow, slow. Next time I'll buy another RBI.
But I didn't answer you question, did I? As usual, I just typed :

I've had an RBI 220 for about three years now and use the devil out of it xxx haven't had any problems (yet). If your's is built like mine, sending it back to the factory could be on the expensive side. Suspect a good electronics tech could find the problem in a short while, but finding a GOOD tech might not be easy either.

Old Fred - What I have is the 220 Ultra don't know if the Ultra makes any difference. Anyway, I dug out the manual and consulted the parts list hoping there what a schematic of the speed control. No such luck it's a sealed unit. The 216, 220, and 226 all use the same unit (same motor also). The vaiable speed controller plugs into the wall and then directly to the motor. My guess is, that somethings gone south in the speed control unit. It looks like an easy thing to change out, two plugs (one ac to the wall and one dc to the motor), one screw, the knob, and the nut behind the knob. The only other thing that I can see that it could possibly be is the motor itself, but really doubt that. I'd give RBI a call and confirm all this and if it turns out to be so, fixing it youself sure beats sending that heavy beast back to the factory. In cas you've lost it their number is
1-800-487-2623 hrs 8 to 5 central mon - fri. Hope that helps.

Thanks FatEddy,
I will give them a call... i really like this saw and this is the only problem i've had with it in years !!
By the way, you don't look so fat in person, must be those tight bellbottom pants and Hawaiian shirt !!
ol' fred

Fred - Tight bell bottoms and Hawaiian shirt! You've been peeking in my closet or a ghost from my past when I lived on Guam!!!

You may have your problem fixed by now, but I can tell you that the RBI speed unit, like their saw is probably not an easy fix. May be better off just to order a new one. Don't know what it would cost, but I was at their factory last month for their big once a year sale, and I know the motor is only $100, so the speed control shouldn't be too bad.
To all who see this, if you ever get a chance to go to that sale, by all means do. I already have a 26' Ultra, and I bought a 20' Ultra demo up there for $675. Not a thing wrong with it either. Everything they sell is a bargain. Must have been over 100 16', 20' & 26' saws, plus all kinds of other tools they make at fantastic prices.
I know there are those who will disagree with me, but as far as I am concerned, there is no better scroll saw made than the RBI.
Good luck on your problem if it still isn't fixed. You might call RBI. I have always had good luck with them and they are good people.

Thanks Fire Capt fer the info! Where is the sale at? I thought their factory was in Tennessee somewhere. It sounds like a neat place to go. I might go get me one of them saws. My wife only lets me play with hers about once a month :P
ol' fred