Marmotjr Posted January 4, 2017 Report Share Posted January 4, 2017 Craftsman 10" contractors table saw, I noticed the other day my fence was out of alignment, not parallel to the blade. It's off about 1/32-1/16 from end to end. Dragged up the manual and figured out how to make the adjustment. There's 2 machine bolts (6mm hex wrench) that hold the fence to the locking mechanism. These suckers are jammed solid. They're steel, set into extruded aluminum. I've soaked them in 3-1 oil, brought the fence inside overnight to warmup, hit the bolts with a blow torch, and put as much force on the wrench as I dare. Still no movement. Any other tricks I'm missing? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tom Cancelleri Posted January 4, 2017 Report Share Posted January 4, 2017 Kroil oil Sent from my Nexus 6P using Tapatalk Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
treeslayer Posted January 4, 2017 Report Share Posted January 4, 2017 22 minutes ago, Tom Cancelleri said: Kroil oil yep, Kroil. the best stuff i have found for rusted, stuck bolts. shooters use it to remove copper fouling from rifle barrels. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marmotjr Posted January 4, 2017 Author Report Share Posted January 4, 2017 Will try that. Ordering a can as I type. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
freedhardwoods Posted January 4, 2017 Report Share Posted January 4, 2017 1 hour ago, Marmotjr said: .............. hit the bolts with a blow torch.................... Still no movement. Wow. I've never run into a bolt that heat wouldn't bring out, and I've worked on some real nasty ones. . I've never used Kroil, but lots of people swear by it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RichardA Posted January 4, 2017 Report Share Posted January 4, 2017 I used it on my old 53 chevy 3100. love that stuff. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marmotjr Posted January 4, 2017 Author Report Share Posted January 4, 2017 9 minutes ago, freedhardwoods said: Wow. I've never run into a bolt that heat wouldn't bring out, and I've worked on some real nasty ones. Same here, I've done industrial machine repair and that was always my goto fix. This is a 15-20 year old saw, and I'm sure the previous owner (my father lol) never adjusted those bolts after the initial setup. But after the years, one small move, and a big move, it's fallen out of whack. I've had a kickback with this saw, and this, and the lack of a riving knife usable on small cuts, scares the crap out of me to use it now for for small cuts. I do use the huge knife that came with it for bigger cuts, but it's got a large hood and the anti-kick fingers that make cuts under a few inches very difficult to handle. I've made some feather boards on my printer, a couple decent push sticks, the microjig splitter set should be here today, and I picked up a grrrrrripper. But even with all that, an out of alignment fence is no good. Even if doesn't kick on me, the cut won't be square. Soooo.... gotta get these bolts out, and cleanly. The aluminum seems super soft after years of having worked with hardened steel machines, so I don't want to mangle it. I've already had to retap the holes on the far end clamp of the fence to hold it on the table. The screws were falling out as the saw ran, so a couple M5 bolts tapped and hold nicely now. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tom Cancelleri Posted January 4, 2017 Report Share Posted January 4, 2017 If Kroil oil doesn't work, If you can soak it in evaporust, that will work at eating the rust. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marmotjr Posted January 4, 2017 Author Report Share Posted January 4, 2017 While I can't speak for the insides, I don't see any rust. The bolts are clean and black, and almost look new. I'm very surprised at how stuck they really are. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Woodenskye Posted January 4, 2017 Report Share Posted January 4, 2017 Maybe your dad used locktite or something stronger on them when he assembled. It is odd that it wouldn't come off with heat. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
freedhardwoods Posted January 4, 2017 Report Share Posted January 4, 2017 This is a long shot, and it might screw up the aluminum, but you could put a big nut large enough to fit over the hex head of the stuck bolt and weld it as hot as you dare. That would heat the whole bolt cherry red and break the corrosion. It could melt the aluminum bad enough you couldn't even re-tap it though. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
drzaius Posted January 4, 2017 Report Share Posted January 4, 2017 Steel bolts in aluminum can be very stubborn. Something about rust & aluminum oxide that seems to bond better than epoxy. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marmotjr Posted January 4, 2017 Author Report Share Posted January 4, 2017 11 minutes ago, Woodenskye said: Maybe your dad used locktite or something stronger on them when he assembled. It is odd that it wouldn't come off with heat. I doubt this, but it is possible. 9 minutes ago, freedhardwoods said: This is a long shot, and it might screw up the aluminum, but you could put a big nut large enough to fit over the hex head of the stuck bolt and weld it as hot as you dare. That would heat the whole bolt cherry red and break the corrosion. It could melt the aluminum bad enough you couldn't even re-tap it though. It's a round head bolt, and I don't have a power source able to handle my welder. I suck at welding aluminum too, so I really don't want to risk messing it up. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Immortan D Posted January 4, 2017 Report Share Posted January 4, 2017 2 hours ago, Marmotjr said: hit the bolts with a blow torch I think you have to heat the aluminum, not the bolts. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TerryMcK Posted January 4, 2017 Report Share Posted January 4, 2017 Sometimes, counter-intuitively, tightening the bolt slightly before slackening off works although I don't need to tell you to take care with aluminium. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Minnesota Steve Posted January 4, 2017 Report Share Posted January 4, 2017 This sounds like an excuse to buy a new table saw. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wdwerker Posted January 4, 2017 Report Share Posted January 4, 2017 Or buy a new fence ! You could keep the fence if you decide to upgrade the saw one day or sell it with the saw. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BonPacific Posted January 4, 2017 Report Share Posted January 4, 2017 2 hours ago, Woodenskye said: Maybe your dad used locktite or something stronger on them when he assembled. It is odd that it wouldn't come off with heat. I'd give goof-off a try just in case, sounds like there's something very strange going on inside that fence. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
freedhardwoods Posted January 4, 2017 Report Share Posted January 4, 2017 2 hours ago, Immortan D said: I think you have to heat the aluminum, not the bolts. Heating the metal around the bolt and trying to turn the bolt while the metal is hot works real well on steel. I'm a little gun shy about heating aluminum. One second your heating it, the next second it's a big puddle on the floor. I forgot the last part about heating the bolt. You have to let it cool and shrink back to normal size before trying to remove it. The heat along with the expanding and shrinking breaks the grip of the corrosion. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Immortan D Posted January 4, 2017 Report Share Posted January 4, 2017 1 minute ago, freedhardwoods said: Heating the metal around the bolt and trying to turn the bolt while the metal is hot works real well on steel. I'm a little gun shy about heating aluminum. One second your heating it, the next second it's a big puddle on the floor. I forgot the last part about heating the bolt. You have to let it cool and shrink back to normal size before trying to remove it. Yeah I guess you have to be really quick at torching the aluminum. Also heating the bolt yellow hot and then some tapping compound may help. But the problem is we don't know for sure what metal is that bolt made of or coated with. Galvanized metal fumes are really poisonous. That said, if it were my fence, I'd just use oil and an impact wrench. If I blow the head off then I'd deal with that. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
freedhardwoods Posted January 4, 2017 Report Share Posted January 4, 2017 3 hours ago, Marmotjr said: It's a round head bolt, and I don't have a power source able to handle my welder. I suck at welding aluminum too, so I really don't want to risk messing it up. I missed where you said "welding aluminum". You weld the bead inside the big nut to the bolt head creating a huge bolt head. Steel to steel 5 minutes ago, Immortan D said: But the problem is we don't know for sure what metal is that bolt made of or coated with. Galvanized metal fumes are really poisonous. That is true. As long as you have good ventilation, you're ok. I used to weld galvanized panels 8 hours a day. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
drzaius Posted January 4, 2017 Report Share Posted January 4, 2017 How about heating the whole area & then holding an ice cube to the bolt to cool it & then quickly try to break it loose? I wouldn't try heating it to yellow or even red hot because, you know, puddle of aluminum. It'll melt before it glows at all. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ronn W Posted January 4, 2017 Report Share Posted January 4, 2017 Are your sure there isn't a not on the other end of the bolt? I have asked dumber questions! 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wtnhighlander Posted January 5, 2017 Report Share Posted January 5, 2017 Try warming the aluminum with one of those hot air paint removers (hair dryer on steroids), then shooting the bolt with a can of compressed air, those sold for dusting out your pc keyboard. Hold the can upside down, it will blow very cold. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tpt life Posted January 5, 2017 Report Share Posted January 5, 2017 Do they still sell cans of gum remover? Those are a shot of cold. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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