TS blade deflection question


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I've got an old end grain butcher block that's been in the family for a long time. It split in half a couple years back, and I figured I better get around to fixing it. I planned to use the TS to clean up the edge a bit on both pieces, hoping I could get clean cuts and glue it back together. Unfortunately the blade seems to have deflected a bit, and the cuts are not quite square. The top seam lines up nice, but the  bottom of the board (I had to cut the board upside down), shows a hairline'ish or more gap along the length. 

 

Any suggestions how to remedy this? I tried to just shave off a minimal amount of material with each pass. Should I have taken more? I've got a freud LU88 thin kerf blade. 

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 The top seam lines up nice, but the  bottom of the board (I had to cut the board upside down), shows a hairline'ish or more gap along the length. 

 

This to me sounds more like your blade isn't square to the table than a deflection problem.  Deflection causes a wavy cut on both the top and bottom of the board...you'll never get a deflected cut to "line up along the length."  I'd double check for square before you blame the blade.  I would have also suggested you try a slower feed rate, but you said that you used skim cuts and got the same results...again, that makes me think squareness issues.  Even a thin kerf blade shouldn't deflect on a skim cut.

 

If you're positive that you're square, check to make sure your blade is actually straight.  After that you could try a blade stiffener.  If that doesn't work I'd be worrying about arbor problems.

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thanks for the help. Since the cutting board has feet, i had to flip it over. the top may definitely not be square. As for the blade, I tried to get it as 90* as possible, but I've only cut thin stock since setting it up. I've got some 8/4 scraps around that I'll try next as a test. damn. spent so much time tuning, but it was my first table saw tune. Keep ya posted as to what I find. thanks again!

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There are quite a few TS setup videos on YouTube -- some are pretty good. I think Marc also put one out on his free site -- think it was for his PM2000, so it would have been several years ago...

 

As the others have said, somethings not square... A bent blade is really doubtful -- and really scary...

 

My first suspect: blade to table surface -- even a 1/2 degree would be quite visible on a thick slab.... it's got to be 90d dead-on... A six inch engineering square is the best tool for the job -- a decent combo square also works well. For heaven's sake, if you've got a value-proposition combo square, verify it's dead-on prior to using it for setups -- you'll save yourself lot's of headache :)

 

Get table to plate 90d --- use a good light source to see even the finest separation. Feeler gauges are a nice to have, but not necessary for this test... Once you've got 90d dead-on, rotate the blade 180 and verify table to plate again. If you don't get it the second time, then we're in for a more in-depth discussion... 

 

Good luck...

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yup. watched all those vids. Read countless old threads about how a pain the 64A is to set up. Just thinking about this was driving me nuts so I went out the garage for the last half hour or so to see what was going on. Looks like we were off eeeeeeeever so slightly. check. check. triple check. try other side. try again. ugh. I've got a good 4" square and 12" combo i kept bouncing back and forth on. the 64A is a bit of a pain to reach under and adjust the set stop on the trunion. I think i'm good. or as good as I can get it for now. I'll have a friend come over and help next week to be safe. I spent a couple hours setting up the saw, but guess I needed just a bit more finesse. 

 

Aside from all this, I don't think this square shaped butcher block is square at all in any direction any more. I took what I think are the best cuts I could, and clamped the pieces together.the consistent gap is no longer there, instead replaced by a little wave(perhaps I rocked a hair mid cut). I just got my IncraHD that I need to setup and dial in. I'll try and use that to get a cleaner straight line next time until I build a cross cut sled. 

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