I had a nasty problem with my DW 788 today - Scroll Saw Woodworking & Crafts Message Board

Marsha · 09-10-2006, 10:05 PM

And I'm a bit curious, if anyone else has had a similar problem.

While I was working on a project this morning the blade tension mechanism on my saw let loose. No!! I don't mean the blade came loose, I mean the whole mechanism came loose. The saw started making a grinding noise and the tension on the blade was gone. I tightened the blade holder again and started to cut and it happened again, I actually watched the tensioning lever work it's way loose.

I removed the cover and underneath was a large bolt holding the mechanism together. Once I removed the bolt and the lever, I could see some ominous metal shavings and I wondered if I would need a new tensioner. I gave the tensioner a good cleaning, and removed the shavings, when I looked closely at the bolt, I could'nt see any wear. However there was quite a burr around the hole where the bolt came out, so I sanded that down and cleaned away all the shavings. I re-assembled the mechanism and tightened the bolt and everything seems to be working OK for now.
I had noticed prior to the grinding noise, that the tensioner was getting very hard to move.

Has anyone else had an issue like this?
Marsha

lucky788scroller · 09-10-2006, 10:08 PM

I have not heard of this before. Hopefully any others with a yella saw will chime in. Did it appear that the bolt worked itself loose or what? Could you determine where the metal shaving came from?I never tore my saws apart to see whats in there, so I am clueless. Dale

Marsha · 09-10-2006, 10:29 PM

Dale, I was not able to determine where the shavings came from, because there was no wear on the bolt, the threads all look fine. The bolt was not loose, it took a lot of power for me to get it loose. What concerned me the most was, what created the burr, or perhaps the burr was there from the factory and this is what was grinding everytime I moved the lever, The lever rides metal to metal and I wondered if this is where the shavings came from.
Perhaps Rick H. will respond to this thread and enlighten us a bit further. He might even have some info about this on his video, unfortunately I'm unable to download them.
Marsha

Marcel in Longueuil · 09-11-2006, 03:16 PM

Hi Marsha,

I moved your thread here since it definitely is on topic

Regards,
Marcel

09-10-2006, 10:05 PM	#1
Marsha Senior Member Join Date: Jul 2003 Location: Hamilton Ontario Posts: 1,225	I had a nasty problem with my DW 788 today And I'm a bit curious, if anyone else has had a similar problem. While I was working on a project this morning the blade tension mechanism on my saw let loose. No!! I don't mean the blade came loose, I mean the whole mechanism came loose. The saw started making a grinding noise and the tension on the blade was gone. I tightened the blade holder again and started to cut and it happened again, I actually watched the tensioning lever work it's way loose. I removed the cover and underneath was a large bolt holding the mechanism together. Once I removed the bolt and the lever, I could see some ominous metal shavings and I wondered if I would need a new tensioner. I gave the tensioner a good cleaning, and removed the shavings, when I looked closely at the bolt, I could'nt see any wear. However there was quite a burr around the hole where the bolt came out, so I sanded that down and cleaned away all the shavings. I re-assembled the mechanism and tightened the bolt and everything seems to be working OK for now. I had noticed prior to the grinding noise, that the tensioner was getting very hard to move. Has anyone else had an issue like this? Marsha

09-11-2006, 03:16 PM	#4
Marcel in Longueuil Gone to the Dark Side Join Date: Mar 2006 Location: Québec, Canada Posts: 1,131	On topic Hi Marsha, I moved your thread here since it definitely is on topic Regards, Marcel __________________ http://marleb.com DW788. -Have fun in the shop or it isn't a hobby anymore. NOTE: No trees were killed in the sending of this message, but a large number of electrons were terribly inconvenienced.

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09-10-2006, 10:08 PM	#2
lucky788scroller Senior Member Join Date: Sep 2005 Location: wisconsin Posts: 6,260	I have not heard of this before. Hopefully any others with a yella saw will chime in. Did it appear that the bolt worked itself loose or what? Could you determine where the metal shaving came from?I never tore my saws apart to see whats in there, so I am clueless. Dale

09-10-2006, 10:29 PM	#3
Marsha Senior Member Join Date: Jul 2003 Location: Hamilton Ontario Posts: 1,225	Dale, I was not able to determine where the shavings came from, because there was no wear on the bolt, the threads all look fine. The bolt was not loose, it took a lot of power for me to get it loose. What concerned me the most was, what created the burr, or perhaps the burr was there from the factory and this is what was grinding everytime I moved the lever, The lever rides metal to metal and I wondered if this is where the shavings came from. Perhaps Rick H. will respond to this thread and enlighten us a bit further. He might even have some info about this on his video, unfortunately I'm unable to download them. Marsha