Replies

1. 
   dgreen | Nov 27, 2008 03:28am | #1

   Was there a performance problem that prompted the measurement or did you discover the problem when you got out the indicator? I would think you would get more accurate results with a good straight edge and feeler gauges. That long an arm on that small a base would seem prone to error.

    

    

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   Men will never be free until the last king is strangled with the entrails of the last priest.
   ~ Denis Diderot

1. 
   tkiser | Nov 27, 2008 03:36am | #2

   My edges are tapered. I started out using a straight edge and feeler gauges but i use the indicator to set the knives. I did a number of checks and .018 came out the most of the checks.

1. 
   dgreen | Nov 27, 2008 03:56am | #3

   Is the outfeed table flat? 

    

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   Men will never be free until the last king is strangled with the entrails of the last priest.~ Denis Diderot

1. 
   tkiser | Nov 27, 2008 04:31am | #4

   Both plates are flat.

1. 
   dgreen | Nov 27, 2008 04:51am | #5

   If I remember right that jointer does not have an adjustment to compensate for that issue and you will have to shim the outfeed table. I have a manual for that machine and am looking for it to double check. Unfortunately I am also cooking in preparation for tomorrow. I'll keep looking between stirs! 

    

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   Men will never be free until the last king is strangled with the entrails of the last priest.~ Denis Diderot

2. 
   RickL | Nov 28, 2008 04:08am | #6

   I set machines professionally and why would you use such an indicator set up???? The long arm invites error. A straight edge and feeler gauge is the way to check the table alignment.
   If by taper you mean the end of the board is not cutting then you probably have the outfeed table a few thousandths above the cutting circle. This will always give a tapered cut. Your explanation isn't really clear so...

   
   

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   Edited 11/27/2008 8:50 pm ET by RickL

1. 
   tkiser | Nov 28, 2008 03:09pm | #7

   I started out using a straight edge and feeler gauges. I am confidant the dial indicator is an accurate reading. I also use the indicator to set the knives .000 to the rear table. Is there an adjustment to aline the two surfaces?

1. 
   HoustonsProblem | Nov 28, 2008 06:38pm | #8

   I agree with RickL.I am a mechanical engineer and I don't set machines for a living but I do set up CNC Lathes and mills to extreme tolerances when all of our machinists are desperately needed for production.You could say that I set machines for survival.Your dial indicator set up will have massive amounts of sag due to the deflection of the long bar you are using. I would not be surprised if the sag was greater than the 0.018 inch reading that you got by a factor of 2 or more. In addition to sag, the base may also allow some movement, although a good base with good magnets on a very flat table might not. I have found some bases have much more holding power than others. Also, your setup will be misleading for two more reasons.1. You are getting a point contact reading from the dial indicator which will pick up low spots in the table which is a function of the tables flatness and not parallelism.2. You base is also giving you a small area reference and will be prone to altering the measurement due to poor flatness.You should use a long straight edge and place it on the outfeed table so that the thin edge is on the table and the widest part is cantilevered over the infeed table. I would use a straight edge approximately 4 ft long with approximately two feet being registered on the outfeed table. The outfeed table should be higher than the infeed table and you can then use feeler gauges to judge the gap between the infeed table and the straight edge.A straight edge alignment, in this case, will be accurate. You want accuracy here, not unrealistic precision. To illustrate what this means consider the following:Back in the seventies, watch manufacturers provided watches that gave you temperature and they would often do so to a tenth of a degree. However, they would fluctuate at the slightest movement. The temperature reading was given to tenth of a degree precision but the reading was only accurate to the actual temperature by maybe 2 or 3 degrees. In comparison, a good mercury themometer might give divisions of 1 degree, but the temperature shown was accurate to the actual temperature within half a degree.Your setup is highly prone to giving you precise measurements that are wildly inaccurate. Around here, the machinists call that chasing your tail. RickL could tell you what they call it where he's from.

1. 
   tkiser | Dec 16, 2008 11:17pm | #9

   Here is the responce I got from Delta

   Dear Mr. Kiser:Thank you for contacting Delta, Porter-Cable, DeWalt.Attached to this e-mail are the adjustments for your jointer from our Frequently Asked Questions on our web site. This should correct your problem.Should this not correct the issue, we recommend that you either visit one of our Authorized Service Centers or call our technical department at 800 223 7278, M-F, 8am-5:00pm Central Time and choose option # 5.Thank you for choosing Delta.Sincerely,BonnieEnd User Services