kmmcrafts

So just wanted to update to say I finally had the opportunity to test this adapter out.. and I gotta say.. It's junk, don't waste your money. It works great until you are actually going to drill and then the vibration or slop in the way it connects it kept stopping on me wiggle the battery around and start working.. Probably a good way to burn up a tool or the battery contacts of it or the battery itself.. I think it's probably best to just use OE style batteries..

Yeah it can be tricky but once you do a few you'll get the hang of it. I did a whole set of drink coasters out of slate of a friends dog that had passed away but can't find only one photo. Then I've done ornaments from BBply. My laser is a CO2 so they are not as great for doing this type of engrave like a diode style laser is.. Also trying to engrave a black dog on black slate was a bit of a challenge LOL.

I see you built a nice enclosure for it.. I love to scroll so I will continue to scroll saw.. but I also love the laser as it can and does help with doing personalization on scrolled pieces as well as full on laser engraving / cutting projects.. My goal isn't to stop scrolling but it is to maybe cut back on adding "new scrolled items".. New stuff will be mostly CNC and Laser stuff.. current scrolled stuff that is decent sellers for me will continue on.. The laser is really simple to use.. but the CNC is a different story. I've been playing quite a lot in the last few weeks with the CNC... and I've learned quite a lot. Having bought both machines at the same time was too much for my brain so I chose the easier one to run since they both run on different programs and file types.. learning one at a time made more sense to me.. some smarter than me could probably swap between the two different drawing and running programs but i kept getting the two programs functions mixed up. I have a router mounted laser to fit into my CNC as well but have not tried that yet.. I Got fairly comfortable with the laser and the functions so now 5 years later I am trying to get more into the CNC side of things.. and because of that I don't have the time to scroll / run the laser/ and try to learn the cnc.. so scaling back on the scroll work make sense and I've been selling the trial and even some of the error pieces come out good enough for a sale as I learn to do better.. The main products I'll be selling will still be scrolled work.. and love to scroll so will continue to scrolled work until I get tired of it or can't do it for whatever reason.. CNC and laser allow me to run them while doing other things like packaging orders or drawing up another cnc pattern file, working on the websites etc... The machines don't pump out production like a lot of people think.. ( at least mine dont ).. a lot of sanding with the cnc stuff.. but maybe because of the type of cutting bits I use.. so many to choose and not cheap like scroll saw blades.. so just the cutter bits is a learning curve on top of all the programs etc. needed to make it work.

I have mine set up to my foot switch for the saw... so when I step on the foot pedal to turn the saw on the vac comes on too..

If you're going to go to the small box like Ray suggested.. you could get one of those free expensive cardboard boxes they toss out at local stores.. or better yet.. order something small from Amazon that you've always wanted and then you get a dust box with your order. LOL That's what I did back in the day with my Dewalt.. I had a box that I cut a small bit out of the one side so it could snug fit and hold itself in place around the lower base portion of the saw. It caught a lot of my small project pieces too.

Not all portraits are created the same so knowing how long it takes is a rough guess.. I've cut 11 x 14 inch portraits that only had 15 inside cuts and could be cut in 30 minutes... I've also cut portraits same size with 1187 inside cuts that took 14 hours to cut.. I don't do portrait type work anymore unless it's done on the CNC.. my CNC design software tells me how long it'll take to carve.. I have a rough idea on how long it'll take to finish sand and seal up with clear.. It's a much more clear and accurate time frame than the wild guess you do with scroll sawing. I've made enough clocks and ornaments to give a good enough estimate.. but portrait work can be tricky.. maybe I just haven't done enough of those to get a good time estimate.. I quit selling them years ago because they are too hard to sell at a price point that is profitable.. For me anyway.. others may have better experiences than I did.

Just for the record, I bought the Scrollando system too and installed it on my Hawk.. I used the same vac (Metro 5000) as the Seyco system uses. I think personally the tubing size is restricting the flow but i might be wrong. Also the hoses for me was a bit on the short side but I am using it on a 26" Hawk so it is a big saw. Have issues with getting the darn suction hoses to stay where I want them etc too. I'm not 100% satisfied with it but at the same time I felt it is more designed for Dewalts and Ex saws.. I feel the same way about my Seyco system. I've burnt up the vacuum on my Seyco system once already.. but I suppose it's not engineered to be in a commercial type setting either, but one has to wonder.. would a $500+ Festool or Fein vacuum hold up to the commercial type use I was throwing at them small Metro vacs.. I saw enough that I was having to empty the Seyco canister once every 2 weeks and really could use a dust bag every couple days.. I've been taking the bag out of the vac and taking it outside to blow out the fine dust that escapes from the dust canister as the fine dust plugs up the air flow of the Seyco Metro Vac and it starts getting loud. I've not invested into anything new yet because I'm honestly sort of getting out of scrolling in a commercial type setting and have been working with the CNC and Laser.. CNC makes dust chips and will be connected to my dust collector soon.. Laser has built in exhaust that I hook to a port that blows outside similar to a dryer vent.

Hopefully they'll post it here as well because it sounds like a interesting read..

It kind of depends on the project for me (ie if very detailed portrait type of cutting that's going to take 12 hours to complete then I typically drill 10 - 20 holes and sit and cut those out then get up to drill more holes and always walk over to the sander to sand the back side burs off of the drilled holes. ) but typically every 20 - 30 minutes I'm getting up and doing something else for around 5-10 minutes. Some projects I might sit a little longer just to complete it if it's almost finished or something. Side Note: I drill the 10-20 holes in those large portrait type patterns and put a tick mark on it so to keep track of how many drilled holes I did for said project.. since that is one thing I'm often asked is how many holes did you have to drill and cut.. Most designers don't count to give that sort of info even though as I understand it... that info can be generated in the drawing software somehow so nobody really has to physically count..

On my Excalibur I have the Seyco scroll saw dust extractor.. It works really well for the dust underneath the saw, however the dust from the top lands onto the table top and as I spin the wood around I end up pushing some of it off the table and onto my lap just like you show here. Almost nothing goes to the floor.. The best set-up I've had so far was just using the dust port on the saw with my big loud shop vac. but the drawback from that is the noise, and the suction is strong enough to hold my board down to the table top.. which doesn't bother me too much so long as I keep the table top wax and very very slick. The only dust that escapes is what the dust blower blows to the side which lands onto the vac hose that is connected to the dust port. Often thought about going back to that set up with a T into the vac hose somewhere so it could have a suction hose off to the side so catch that dust that the blower blows to the side. I would want a much quieter vac though.. and not sure if the suction on a quieter one would be the same or as efficient. Due to the loud vac, I just continue to use the Seyco system as it seems to be a happy middle ground, at least until I can get more business and have some extra cash to buy a quieter vac. or find a good used one on Marketplace.

Well I'm glad you figured that out.. That was my first hunch because it happen to me and then when I posted a message about it I discovered there were a whole lot of others that had the same issue.. Ray at Seyco told me it's very common with these type of saws.. Even if you lower the arm gently, you have to remember that putting tension to the blade is also pulling tension onto those threads. Over time it puts some wear on those threads and depending on how close the tolerances of the threads are in the beginning might determine how long they last. At $55 + shipping for the parts. I opted to just try blue loc-tite and see how that went.. I'm still running the original part. I put loc - tite on before the rebuild I did but while I had it all apart I also redid the loc-tite. There are a ton of folks out there that just wrapped a rubber band around the knob or something and made it hold the position with good results too.

Yeah, I'm kind of thinking the same.. I'm not sure I would have the patients for it. Plus I have a heck of a time just loading up a 1-3 minute video to any of the social sites.. or my Youtube.. due to my crappy internet service which is a bigger reason why I don't do much video.. that's the one downside to living in the boonies.. That said, last year they worked on running or preparing to run fiber optic lines and talked to the guys working.. they said late this spring they hope to have it running off those lines.. so maybe fingers crossed I'll have something with more than the 2gig upload speed, LOL.. Even my cell phone is faster than my home internet. LOL

I don't know Steve I guess.. but he did an amazing job with the rebuild video. I wanted to do video but I had no way of holding my phone and working at the same time, LOL. I need to get some video type equipment to be able to do that sort of thing. I work on a lot of various brands of saws, cnc's and lasers.. everything in between. Not to mention car repair stuff and other puttering around, LOL.. Not to change subject but I seen you have some decent videos. what type of stands and cameras does one need to do this stuff. LOL, I struggle because I like to just get to it and get a job done and feel as though fooling with camera set up just takes way more time than needed.. yet I'd like to be able to do this sort of thing too, LOL Life struggles, LOL

Found the video, I knew it wasn't that long ago that it was posted so I just went page by page until I found the title.

The closest thing I have to any instructions is just the topic where I rebuilt my saw with the Seyco arms etc.. I did this repair prior to the rebuild but I can't remember if I did any write-up or photos on that one and i couldn't find the topic for it. I added the loc-tite again while I had the saw apart for the new link arm system and took a few pictures of what the parts look like etc.. I will say the first time I did it I didn't take the saw completely apart and it was a bugger of a job to do.. The hardest part was getting access to the jam nut on the bottom side of the rod. However I didn't take the back plastic section that is under the knob all the way off so that probably hindered my process of accessing that part. I was trying to not have to take more off than needed but in hindsight I think it'd be easier to remove whatever you have to to do the job.. It came apart a lot easier than trying to get the jam nut started back into the threads of the rod. I had to use some real long needle nose pliers to reach it from the front of the saw, LOL.. Anyway check out this rebuild thread.. Also someone recently ( I think it was Ray ) posted a Youtube video of how to rebuild a Excalibur.. You might try searching for that posting or maybe search YouTube for it. I'll try to answer any questions you might have in the process but it's been some years now that I worked on mine.

Yeah, I have had issues a couple times about getting a response back from Seyco.. I believe Ray has partially retired or is going to be soon. His son ( I think I read ) Mike is going to be taking over.. I sure don't get replies back like I did several years ago. Took 3 months to get a reply back about a part for my Seyco scroll saw dust extractor.. they did say that they switch to a new computer website or something and my email got lost in the old system. He apologized but never offered any kind of discount on the parts I needed and just didn't sit right with me.. Plus I had already replaced the whole vacuum anyway because I wasn't getting anywhere with Seyco. As for the Pegas chucks.. they are great chucks however that's not to say that I haven't seen several topics in the past where people were having issues with them holding tension.. don't know if it was user error or a failure in the chucks.. but I've seen it from several folks over the last few years. You might try taking the set / thumb screws from the original EX chucks and try them in the Pegas ones.. or I suppose you could wait until the new ones arrive too. Also consider swapping the original back to the saw to see if it still happens.. could rule out the chucks or a issue with the saw itself.

Well, I would take it apart and inspect the bearings and sleeves to see what you can find. As for the bearings and sleeve parts.. I believe the rocker arm parts are all the same on these so you might price out bearings and sleeves for each brand of machine including DeWalt and see who has the best price. The easier way though is to buy the assembly from probably Seyco. Do note though.. the aluminum block that these parts mount inside the tube are different on the China made saw. They used different size square tubing to make the arm tubes. So if you buy the whole assembly with the aluminum block you'll have to remove the assemblies from the block and mount them to your existing blocks. Your saw isn't that old and the table doesn't look like the paint is all worn off. I'm more inclined to think your set / thumb screw or your chucks themselves are the culprit. But I'm not there to visually see what is happening and video is hard to go off of sometimes. I didn't think the saw noise was horrible in the video to be something major but then audio on video is deceiving too sometimes. Maybe pull the three allen screws off the plate at the back of the saw and take a peek at the rear pivot bearings. The main bigger one is also a common wear point. I've seen many of these with low hours that had no grease and broke the pivot arm.. Regardless, congrats on the new Pegas.. I don't think you'll regret that decision. When business gets better for me I think I'm going to get one of those too.. Meanwhile I'll keep plugging away on this China made Excalibur that I rebuilt with all new Seyco parts.. and my 2 Hawks and Hegner.

Well I believe the lower arm tube is welded and part of the whole saw base etc.. I may be wrong and possibly it's bolted but I'm pretty sure its welded. IF welded then you've got a major issue and unless you have a welder you might be looking to get a new saw.. I would grab the lower arm tube and try to see if it has any movement / slop.. I'd be more inclined to think the issue is the upper arm and the threads in the rod and thread block worn.. but you don't seem to have issue with the knob at the back adjusting itself like the most common telltale sign of those threads being bad. Maybe also check out the aluminum block that inserts into the tube where the rocker arms connect to make sure the screws are all tight etc.. Since you think it's the lower arm giving issues.. maybe time to take it all apart. I personally have had those bearings go bad more so than the ones inside the saw. I believe because all the sawdust falls down onto the top of all those bearings in the rocker arms etc. and absorbs all the moisture in the grease.. Maybe you got a bad bearing and sleeve in the rocker arms.

I think you'll find your problem is like Thurman said above.. you probably need to adjust the rubber feet. The feet might have been planted to the table very well on the surface of the old table / benchtop.. maybe the new or old bench has a slight low spot and one of the rubber feet is not firm to the bench now. I have a brand new shop and new concrete floor.. my saw will tell me if it has been moved even just the slightest amount because it'll pick up some extra vibration. I place my saws where they'll be permanently parked.. then adjust the feet to that particular spot.. If I move the saw even the slightest amount.. I have to readjust the feet again.

Only thing I really noticed was your blade isn't centered in the table cutout.. But that shouldn't cause any issues that you're having. It does look like it rubs the right side of the table every now and then. May want to loosen the 4 allen heads on the table top and center it better then tighten it back down. There was a couple noises that I heard just as you sped it up or slow it down. I'm not sure what that was I heard. Could it be the blade flexing and hitting the table edge of that hole.. seems like it's far enough away from the edge it shouldn't be hitting it until it's super loose, but doesn't look that loose in the video. LOL.

Just my 2 cents from all that has been tried and done.. If it were mechanical you'd hear something different in the sound of the machine.. If the bearings was worn that bad you'd definitely hear something or see it with the square. Since everything is spot on yet doing this I believe you are losing tension.. I know you mentioned you changed the screws etc.. but if you have been tightening the blade too tight the chucks could have spread apart and not holding the blade like it should.. yeah Pegas chucks can do that too even though they are made better. If you have your original chucks still... maybe swap them out and see if that rules out anything.. Before changing out the chucks.. I know you mentioned you lower the upper arm down easy. What is your process for tightening the blade.. Do you lower it down and clamp the blade and apply tension and done? I have always found that on my Excalibur that I get slack in my blade if I don't tighten it twice.. What I do is clamp the blade tension it then release tension undo the thumb screw and then re-clamp the blade and apply the tension. I find that first time I tension sort of "pulls down on the upper arm" into its true resting place.. If you have the arm adjusted pretty snug maybe you're creating too much friction on that ball.. and it's not lowering the arm all the way into position easily. Behind that upper arm deal that you adjust is a spring loaded ball that sort of drags onto the upper arm for holding it up.. That ball actually should have some lube of some sort on it and it should be able to spin freely.. IF you have that too tightly adjusted it'll wear out the upper arm tube.. I've seen someone in the past showing a photo of how that ball seized up and wore a groove right through the steel upper arm tube. You don't want that so tight it's hard to move.. Should move freely yet have just enough friction to hold up the arm.

The rear tension assembly is probably not the issue then, usually a good way to know is the saw starts lowering or raising the upper arm on its own and you have to keep adjusting the back knob to keep the upper arm parallel.. Seyco does sell the parts but around $55.. Mine was bad but i just took it apart and added blue loc-tite threadlocker and I haven't had any issues since then. There appears to be a screw missing in your first picture of the last post.. if the others are loose that could be your issue.. those square aluminum pieces insert into the arm tubes need to be good and tight as those keep your rocker arms in alignment..

Yeah, 20VMax DeWalt and 20V Bauer Batteries using the adapter so the Bauer battery will fit the deWalt drill..

Maybe we need to start at the beginning of the tune process.. Maybe something has moved out of alignment.. First check the upper arm is parallel to the table top by measuring it ( I like to cut a block of scrap that just fits under the arm and I slide it from the front to the back. ) I think my block is 3 1/4? that just fits, your saw may be different.. One thing that messes with tension on these saws is the threaded rod and or the threaded block that the rod screws into at the back knob on the saw.. The threads wear from the banging they recieve when you lower the upper arm down each time that puts pressure onto those threads and they will wear out over time... the harder you drop the arm down and let it slam to the lower position the harder it is on those threads.. When the threads get worn your saw will lose it's tension just the same way that a slipping blade will do.. you will cuss at the clamps and everything but what the actual problem is, LOL

There is quite a lot of play in both upper and lower clamps and rocker arms in my saws.. There has to be some looseness otherwise it'll put a strain on the motor. Once the tension is on the blade everything should be pretty tight though.