I have the opportunity to buy a used Powermatic Artisans Table Saw (also known as model 64A? for $200. It comes with several accessories, but I only care about the saw. Anyway, over the phone the owner told me it has only one problem: a piece of the “worm gear drive” is broken. He said it is a small piece that is part of the blade tilting mechanism. His terms and explanation left me somewhat confused, but he did add that his research revealed it would cost $100 to fix the problem. Do any of you know how easy or difficult it is to get Powermatic table saws repaired in general? Does the phrase “worm drive gear” as a part of the tilting mechanism mean anything to you? I have a worm drive circular saw I use, but I’ve never heard this term in conjunction with a table saw. After the phone conversation I was left with the impression that the owner is a not so knowledgable hobbyist, but that could be part of the sales pitch. If I had more of a budget I would just walk away from this, but the thought of a decent table saw for $300 (after repair?) is tempting enough to warrant this post. It’s a long drive to check out the saw in person, and as it’s Sunday I’ve been unable to get any help from the local tool repair shops. Powermatics web site was less than helpful because my computer had problems dowloading the PDF parts file for the 64A. Thank you for any help you may offer and thank you for reading through this rambling post.
-Steve
Replies
The worm part is a screw thread. It engages an arc-shaped part with teeth. Maybe a tooth is broken off, or the worm is bent (or both). To make this financially worthwhile, you have to know what parts you have to replace, and how much they cost. You probably could do the work yourself, if you don't mind spending a lot of time figuring things out. My first reaction was what was done to break it, and what kind of care the saw has had. If it took a hard bump, there might be other things bent out of square.
steve I bought a powermatic cabinet saw one time I never could adjust it up so it would cut true and tilt or rase and lower the blade without both hands on the weel and a lot of effort, no more used saws I dumped it cheep ,let somone else spend there time on it becarful of used woodworking equp. theres a reason somone is selling it ,deal with people you know or at least you can contack easily Good luck Charlie
Thank you both for the advice. I too was wondering what had caused the internal damage to begin with... In most of my other hobbies it makes tremendous sense to by almost everything used, but I have no experience with used power tools so I'm glad I waited for your words of caution. I'll probably wait until the summer when I can afford to buy a brand new saw. Thanks again.
-Steve
Steve,
I can understand the words of caution, personally I have never bought a used machine and don't know if I would. With that said, I own a model 64 and use it everyday and cant think of a better saw for the money(new)
The most likely cause of this damage would be carelessness. It is avoided by simply loosening the knobs on the wheels that lock in the hieght or bevel.
This seems like a great deal to me, and probably should warrant further investigation. Powermatic (owned by Jet) seems to have good service and claims to keep parts in stock
good luck, Dave
Thanks Dave, for the advice. I'm trying to remain true to my previous statement about waiting until I can afford a new machine, but at $200 I haven't been able to kick the thought of taking the risk out of my head (but I'm working on it). To make matters worse, a rarely used PM 66 with 52" Biesemeyer has come on the local market for $1350 and although the it's well above my original budget, the thought of a big cabinet saw is sorely tempting. I guess I could put off replacing the windows in the house until the summer and buy a table saw now ;). More likely I should stop looking at the classifieds and calm down. Thanks again.
-Steve
Hi Steve,
I bought a used Powermatic 64A for $550 online, after lusting after a cabinet saw. I even considered buying a Grizzly cabinet saw, which I've seen mixed reviews for.
But this 64A is a dream, and I'm sure it'll be the last table-saw I buy. It has a Biesemeyer-style fence, runs quiet, is powerful, and has a large table. Most of all, though, I've built a great crosscut sled for it that makes it a lot of fun to use.
I hope your used one works out!
Rob Kutner
Steve, the first reply from Jim was right. The worm gear drive is a threaded column that rotates, while making contact with the teeth on an arc shaped object, thus tilting the saw. This is typical with most saws. Sounds like the owner is accurate with his information. And it very well could be one of those teeth that is broken. It doesn't take much to brake one. My opinion is that a used table saw from a reputable manufacturer (which is the case in this situation) can be a very smart purchase. My advice would be to go check out. See how it runs. Bring some wood with you to cut. It should still be able to operate even if there is a problem with the worm gear drive. It just won't tilt. Don't shy away from something that takes a little effort. Its easy for some people to say just buy new, but thats because its usually easy for them to that(they can afford it). Its not necessarily smarter though.
good luck
sammer
Thanks, Rob and Sammer, for the words of encouragement. Even if I don't buy it, I may drive out and take a look at it. The more saws I see in action, the more I'll learn to help me make a future purchase. And just maybe, the saw table will be perfectly flat, and the table will cut well, and I might decide it is worth $200. Thanks again for the advice.
-Steve
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