Replies

1. 
   jvk | Jan 02, 2008 01:04pm | #1

   Hpefully you still have the manual.  If not go to their website & download it.  Has all the directions for adjustments.

   trimjim
1. 
   echosetter | Jan 03, 2008 07:30am | #2

   Thanks. I have it. It does not have a fix for the problem. I have tried everything the manual suggests. The manual does not have a schematic.<!----><!----><!---->

   If the fence is aligned with the blade, the slide is out of alignment. If the fence is aligned with the slide, the blade is out of alignment. This is either a manufacturing defect or the mechanism for the blade has shifted.

2. 
   jvk | Jan 03, 2008 05:37pm | #3

   Not quite sure what you mean "the blade doesn't align w/ the slide".  The blade should be made square to the fence...(which moves the slide also)check it and adjust using a wide board.  Sounds like you were off before but since the pieces were narrow it just didn't show up as much as a wide board.

   trimjim
1. 
   echosetter | Jan 04, 2008 08:01am | #6

   When the blade is square to the fence, the slide does not move in line with the blade. It moves about 1/8 inch to the right over about 8 inches of slide. I placed the square (which has been checked to be sure that it is square) on the blade and the fence with the slide all the way back and with the blade squared to the fence. As I pull the blade and slide toward myself, the blade does not stay on the square, but moves to the right 1/8 inch over about 8 inches of slide. If I then readjust it so that the action of the slide is squared to the fence, the blade is no longer square to the fence.

   I just wonder if there is some kind of adjustment that I can make at the arbor for the blade.

1. 
   jvk | Jan 04, 2008 02:23pm | #7

   Have you placed a straight edge on the slides to check for straight?  Maybe they're bowed or bent.  Are you adjusting at the lockdown handle & scale?trimjim

2. 
   USANigel | Jan 04, 2008 04:55pm | #8

   I would suggest the rails and fence should be in alinement. The adjustment made via the fence.

   Pick a point on the blade and without rotating the blade check to see if the tracking runs square to the fence.

   If the face of the blade is not parallel to the rails then either the mounting bracket for the motor is machined wrong or the pivot is worn. Tough to tell because the balance spring is very strong.

3. 
   USANigel | Jan 04, 2008 06:39am | #4

   Are you saying the blade is "twisted" when compared to the slides. This would cut a slightly wider kerf than the blade would be expected to.

   Maybe a slide rod should be moved forward in relation to the other? Do you have a picture?

4. 
   Tinkerer3 | Jan 04, 2008 07:50am | #5

   I think what you are experiencing is a phenomenon called "heeling" - at least that is what it is referred to in a RAS.  My old Sears RAS, of forty years ago, needs the heel adjusted out every time I start a new project.  It is hard for me to imagine a saw like yours not having an adjustment for that unless it is built so sturdy it never goes out, which doesn't seem to be true in your case.

   
   

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   Edited 1/3/2008 11:51 pm ET by Tinkerer3

5. 
   echosetter | Jan 06, 2008 12:15am | #9

   Well, I have tried all suggestions. With the rails aligned with the fence, the blade is out of alignment; with the blade aligned with the fence, the rails are out of alignment. I have called customer at DeWalt. The representative was very nice, but only was able to refer me to a repair center, where they will be able to evaluate it at my expense. He said that he had never heard about this problem. The message boards are full of similar complaints. There apparently has never been a recall or technical service bulletin about this.

6. 
   Wood_Jack | Jan 06, 2008 01:16am | #10

   FWIW

   I had a similar, but different, problem with my DeWalt CMS that I also bought a few years ago.  I could never figure out why I had such trouble getting my crown molding miters to come out right.  I am an amateur by the way.  After a few years of experience and wanting to move into a high level of woodworking, I got to checking the fence on my CMS and found out that the two sides were not parallel and in line with each other.  I could align the blade with one side of the fence and then it out be out of alignment on the other side. 

   I relegated the saw to just rough cuts since the saw was out of warranty and I did not want to shell out the money to have a new fence put on it.  I finally decided it would be nice to have the saw working properly and took it to the local DeWalt repair center prepared to pay for the new fence.

   The guy at the counter could see that the saw had not been abused and wrote it up as under warranty.  I was very pleasantly surprised and wished that I had taken it in sooner.  They just called yesterday afternoon to tell me that it was ready for pick up.