Okay, I'm going to do the best I can to describe my problem, and see
if anyone can deal with it reasonably.
I have my granfather's scroll saw. I would say that my emotional
attachment to this item is slight. If it were COMPLETELY non-working I
would throw it out. It is a really cheapo "Durabuilt" saw made in the
mid 80's overseas. No variable speed, just goes full bore.
However, the motor and everything work just fine, with one MAJOR
exception. The cam holding the blade wobbles like mad, and is
dangerous, not to mention that it's nearly impossible to make a cut.
It would appear that the bolt that serves as the, for lack of a better
term, "axle" for the cam is a bit worn, and so is the hole in the cam.
There is excessive play there, and the part of the bolt that should
have a nut on it has stripped completely. I can throw on a few washers
and make the bolt nice and solid, but there is still a fair amount of
play, I would say a 16th of an inch at the end where the blade is.
There is no easy way to fix this, unless I throw a shim on the side of
the cam, which seems risky.
So, is this fixable for less than the cost of a new cheapo saw, or
should I just toss it and get something else?
If I can give more details, let me know. I would like to fix this
cheaply, but I suspect it's going to take a fair amount of
machine-shop work, and I doubt it would come cheaply.
Mark
A machinist can bore the cam and press in a bronze bushing.
If the shaft bolt has wear, a new one should be run in.
The bushing would be bored to fit the diameter of the bolt.
A moonlight machinist can probably do this for $50 or so.
Hopefully the shaft bolt is threaded into the frame.
If not, the job will be much worse.
It would be great to use ball bearings, if the cam is thick enough.
Can you make us a drawing?
Wilson
Mr. Moose" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
> Okay, I'm going to do the best I can to describe my problem, and see
> if anyone can deal with it reasonably.
>
> I have my granfather's scroll saw. I would say that my emotional
> attachment to this item is slight. If it were COMPLETELY non-working I
> would throw it out. It is a really cheapo "Durabuilt" saw made in the
> mid 80's overseas. No variable speed, just goes full bore.
>
> However, the motor and everything work just fine, with one MAJOR
> exception. The cam holding the blade wobbles like mad, and is
> dangerous, not to mention that it's nearly impossible to make a cut.
>
> It would appear that the bolt that serves as the, for lack of a better
> term, "axle" for the cam is a bit worn, and so is the hole in the cam.
> There is excessive play there, and the part of the bolt that should
> have a nut on it has stripped completely. I can throw on a few washers
> and make the bolt nice and solid, but there is still a fair amount of
> play, I would say a 16th of an inch at the end where the blade is.
>
> There is no easy way to fix this, unless I throw a shim on the side of
> the cam, which seems risky.
>
> So, is this fixable for less than the cost of a new cheapo saw, or
> should I just toss it and get something else?
>
> If I can give more details, let me know. I would like to fix this
> cheaply, but I suspect it's going to take a fair amount of
> machine-shop work, and I doubt it would come cheaply.
>
> Mark
If your emotional attachment is slight,
and you suspect the tool is dangerous,
AND
you can afford to purchase a new saw
or
do without a scroll saw
then
I recommend you convert the saw into scrap metal
Up to a few years ago, scroll saws all had long arms and a motor that drove
the long arms with lots of engineering to avoid the problems of harmonic
oscillations. Take a look at newer saws on the market (almost all price
ranges) and you will notice the change over to only a few inches on the end
of the arms are actually involved in the movement of the blade. IMHO this
improvement has really reduced the vibration you feel on your finger tips
(as you hold the wood while cutting) on most of today's scroll saws. Until
you try cutting on an old scroll saw and then on a newer low vibration one,
most people will not believe the improvement in trying to cut along a fine
thin line.
Just MHO.
Phil
"Mr. Moose" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
> Okay, I'm going to do the best I can to describe my problem, and see
> if anyone can deal with it reasonably.
>
> I have my granfather's scroll saw. I would say that my emotional
> attachment to this item is slight. If it were COMPLETELY non-working I
> would throw it out. It is a really cheapo "Durabuilt" saw made in the
> mid 80's overseas. No variable speed, just goes full bore.
>
> However, the motor and everything work just fine, with one MAJOR
> exception. The cam holding the blade wobbles like mad, and is
> dangerous, not to mention that it's nearly impossible to make a cut.
>
> It would appear that the bolt that serves as the, for lack of a better
> term, "axle" for the cam is a bit worn, and so is the hole in the cam.
> There is excessive play there, and the part of the bolt that should
> have a nut on it has stripped completely. I can throw on a few washers
> and make the bolt nice and solid, but there is still a fair amount of
> play, I would say a 16th of an inch at the end where the blade is.
>
> There is no easy way to fix this, unless I throw a shim on the side of
> the cam, which seems risky.
>
> So, is this fixable for less than the cost of a new cheapo saw, or
> should I just toss it and get something else?
>
> If I can give more details, let me know. I would like to fix this
> cheaply, but I suspect it's going to take a fair amount of
> machine-shop work, and I doubt it would come cheaply.
>
> Mark
On Sat, 05 Aug 2006 00:11:18 GMT, "Wilson" <[email protected]>
wrote:
>A machinist can bore the cam and press in a bronze bushing.
>If the shaft bolt has wear, a new one should be run in.
>The bushing would be bored to fit the diameter of the bolt.
>A moonlight machinist can probably do this for $50 or so.
>Hopefully the shaft bolt is threaded into the frame.
>If not, the job will be much worse.
>It would be great to use ball bearings, if the cam is thick enough.
>Can you make us a drawing?
>Wilson
That was the perfect answer, because it gave me the language I was
needing.
Bushing makes sense.
Shaft bolt is threaded and bolted on the other end of the frame. Of
course, those threads are toast, so that would be a bit of a pain. But
it may be doable.
I'll have to think about this a bit, but thanks a bunch!!
Mark