kmmcrafts

I also hope that Joe gets a good experience as I did with the DeWalt I had and that some of the topics I have seen was just that couple lemons that slips past QC. Not only for Joe but any other person that buys a DeWalt saw since they have been proven by many to be a great saw hopefully that trend continues. I would be curious if the new DW says made in china or not, It's just something I read from somewhere.. I honestly don't care where it's made so long as they continue with a quality standard that they are known for.

Well, from what I've "read" the DW saws had moved production to another facility in China instead of the place in Taiwan where they moved to originally when they switched to the types 2 saws. It may be just another issue of getting the moved ( if this is true ) machines or people / and machines dialed in to make a good product again. The type 2 saw got a bad rap because of issues when the first move happen but they eventually made a great saw once all the bugs got worked out. You still see people say stay away from the type 2 saw.. that switch over happen in the early 2000's I believe. Seems like that is when quality control should be the best for checking machines etc.. making sure the parts are made correctly etc.. But then again, new facility, new people etc.. do they know what it's supposed to be in the first place? LOL

That is too bad to hear that the quality of the DeWalt has went down hill, You are not the first I've heard this from unfortunately.

I've talked to a few others with same model saw and they are all that way even the current ones.. some of the others also expressed to Hawk about the issue and got the same basic answer. They offered to let me return it, I chose to keep it as it's not an issue with larger blades like I use the majority of the time, and with the less aggressive cutting you don't need as small a blade like you would with a Excalibur.. That is unless you need a specific fine detail in the pattern itself.. I know one person that also chose to keep it and one that actually took the return option. It's a great saw, just the so called soft start was what I was used to with the older saws, I've grown used to the saw the way it is.. The 3-4 people I know all said that the ad on the site is misleading about having a soft start, I agree with them.. Even suggested they remove it from the site.. maybe they have now but they didn't change it for a long time. They have upgraded their outdated site to show what parts are in inventory and what isn't etc.. They have nice saws but man the website, manuals, and customer service is not the best, though they have improved on customer service too some but I haven't dealt with them much since I don't really need any parts etc.. EDIT: No my Hawk wasn't a first of them, that was the Excalibur being one of the first made from china saws..

You must have had the very old 12 -20 inch saw that didn't have the front tension lever? Shouldn't have to adjust it but one time on the little newer saws.. One in the picture has up front tension. Like I say many times, they all look close to the same but really big improvements on newer ones.

I think the best one is probably the G4, that said I don't have personal experience with one.. but I've talked to others that say they have the "soft start".. I really like the Ultra too. Those two are probably the best made saws Hawk made.. BM series are nice saws, I just don't like that instant on. I called Bushton to ask about the soft start and I think they confused it with delayed start. ( ie the soft start feature of the older saws is just that, you hit the pedal and it "ramps up to speed slowly" ) I asked them about it because they're advertised as having soft start. Their words to me was yes it's soft start, so I said well something wrong with mine then because when I hit the switch its on at instant speed that I have the dial set at. Then they back peddled and said well it's soft start but it's just a quick delay of milliseconds that you hardly even notice, I said okay but with small blades it breaks the blades.. They say they recommend turning the saw on at a slower speed and the manually ramping up to the desired speed.. That's what soft start is supposed to do, I like the saw and not a issue for me since I don't use real small blades often and if I do I use a different saw. But it could be a problem for some folks that mainly use small blades or only have the option for one saw to use.

I actually liked my old saw with the round clamps... Kinda wish I had kept it. I never had a problem with the holder going MIA once I put a new spring clip on.. I know you replaced yours or tried to but it didn't work for you. Kind of feel something isn't right with your saws set up but I'm not there or the one running it so I can't say for sure. I believe your saw is older than the one I had and maybe the position of where the clip mounts to the arm changed or something over the few years difference.. I'm not sure but I never had the holder go to the floor after replacing the worn out clip. I know Hawk made A LOT of changes and upgrades throughout the years.. unlike Hegner who studied their design and fine tuned it before sending them out to customers / users.. Hawk sold what they came up with and took feedback from the users and improved along the way. Unfortunately Bushton doesn't seem to like criticism and think they have built the best saw in the world and it's your problem if the saw isn't exactly how you think it should be. There are things they took away from the new saws that the old saws had and I think it wasn't a improvement.. Probably the biggest pitfall of the new Hawk is they did away with the "soft start" motors.. you hit the pedal and it's instant on at your speed setting which jerks the saw and is a lot of un-needed stress on a blade. I don't have a issue with mine but I could see it being a problem with small blades.. Probably not a great saw if you typically use real small blades.

@OCtoolguy It's what I don't see , I don't see holes in the accessory arm for the "Ultra" blade holder to set in to change the blade.. The Ultra saws blade holders have a small roll pin to go through then and they're notched out so when you place the holder into the hole ( that's not on this saw ) on the accessory arm the notch rest on top of the arm so you can loosen the thumb screw to change the blade. Another give away is the lack of a line-loc flexible air blower tube.. but a lot of those older saws had been upgraded to the line-loc so the lack of holes in the accessory arm is a dead give away that it's a old saw. Everything from 1996 ( Ultra and newer ) to the current BM series have those holes in the arm to hold the blade clamp for changing blades..

I'd pass on it, if it was right around the local area then maybe.. This is a old saw 1995 or older saw with the round barrel clamps and likely the motor that they had issues with. Unless it's been upgraded to a newer motor.. I heard they stopped offering the motor upgrade kits so now if a motor stops you're on your own.

Yeah, Hawk had a lot of different models over the years and some of them aren't worth as a boat anchor, LOL I see way to often people saying those old single speed saws are worth $500+ just because it has the Hawk name and is orange in color.. Unless you really know what you're looking at they all "look" the same at a glance..

Well, reading the instructions and watching a few YouTube videos on this stuff I decided I'm not going to use this for the project I originally bought it for. Partly because this says temps must be 70F or above or it won't dry.. This project is a rush order sort of and our temps went from 70's - 80's last week to snowing and rainy cold this week. Project is to be delivered next week. So spar urethane is going to be the finish for this one. They also recommended using this epoxy on small projects and work your way up to larger stuff once you get some experience using it.. Don't know how small they are saying but this sign is 24 x 15 and the mix I bought here 16oz.. they say 4oz covers about one square ft. Doesn't leave me much to spare if I were to mess something up.. I'll play around when it gets warmer outside and make some coasters or something really small to learn the tricks to the trade of this stuff before I mess up a time sensitive project.

Local sign maker suggested this stuff for finishing an outdoor sign I’m making. Just wondering if anyone here has used this stuff before? If so any tip or advice I might should know about before going all in blind, lol

Think it'll depend on the projects you make. I have the Ridgid brand, bought used with a awesome heavy Ridgid stand for a very good deal, so I don't know anything about the WEN but "other" WEN tools have turned out to be decent for me for the price etc. Like others have said the belt sander doesn't have a lot of surface area so you're not going to sand a real large area. I use it quite a lot to sand the bottom of my desk clocks to be sure they're flat before gluing to the base. I also have a combo belt / disc sander but I have to say it's nice to be able to sit the clock on the table of the spindle sander rather than hope I'm holding it level so when I glue it to the base it's standing straight, LOL.. Also nice that the table top can adjust for angles fairly easy if you do need to sand a angle. I do "carefully" sand the edges of my cutting boards on it too.. If you keep the table top waxed and slick it so the bigger pieces you sand can glide across even though the belt is small if you can move steady you're able to sand those 13 x 17 inch cutting board edges with fairly easy.. you just have to move steady and even pressure. A cutting board doesn't have to be precise like some things might need to be but again, easier to sit it on a flat table and glide it across than to try holding it on my belt / disc sander. I can't say if I've ever used the spindles as I use the belt part most.. so as I said, guess it depends on your projects you make.

Just did a search on alternative waxes on google, here is what it says. What replaces Johnson's paste wax? Minwax seems to work just as well as Johnsons. Also Renaissance micro-crystaline wax. The Renaissance is a lot softer and a little goes a long way.

Me too, not quite 30 years but I bought a can back in 2007 and still using it today and I wax about 2 times a month all the surfaces of the saw tables bandsaw, tablesaw, drill press, planer, and I even do the bottom side of the dremel plunge router so it glides across the wood when I used to us it. I am getting close to being gone as the bottom of the can is bare but still around in the edges. When I found out they was discontinuing it I found a new can on eBay so I bought it. Should last me probably close to the rest of my scrolling years..

You can take those apart and remove the broke one and put it back together, I've read there is a special tool you can use to simplify that.. I've had good luck just soaking the parts in very hot water for a few minutes to help them slide back together easier without cracking or breaking them..

Expect to have to install the table and adjust the angle of it to the blade.. I'd throw away that hold down foot but some people do use it. I'd also check the position of the blade in slot of the clamps. Some folks like to have it in the center of the slot and some like it over to one side or the other.. don't think it really matters so long as both upper and lower clamps are in the approximate same location. You don't really want the top one off to the right side and the bottom one to the left side basically is what I'm getting at. Do that first.. then check the blade to the table and adjust the dial indicator tab to zero it out. Getting it all tuned and dialed in first thing makes for a better overall experience and will possibly save wear on the saw if it's running smooth. If you don't have a small square you can just check the blade to table square by taking a thicker piece of scrap and cutting a notch in it a short way and then back out of the slot spin the board around to the back side of the blade and if the blade is square it should slide right into the slot you just cut.. if not then adjust and cut another slot check again and do this until you get it to easily fit. Don't know how the new DeWalts are these days but I bought my first new one back in 2008 which was a type 2 and it was an awesome saw to use.. I bought the stand with the saw and also would have to say it was the most comfortable saw to sit at that I've owed so far.. Maybe the Hegner is right up there with the 3 legged stand. Agree with Bill, I had the Jim Dandy Easy Lift system.. which made sawing a lot more pleasure. Many folks might say to just tighten the screw where the upper arm pivots.. I would not do that myself as that is eventually going to wear out that joint and deem the saw junk since I believe you'd have to change the whole saw body so basically need a new saw, LOL. I had to rebuild with new bearings in my saw after about 3-4 years of pretty heavy use. But once I did that and used a high grade synthetic grease I never did have another issue. I sold the saw back around 2018 to my sons friend. He don't saw much but still has it.

Thank you Bill ! That helps ease my mind. I'm always wanting to make the best product possible and meet the customer needs / wants as best I can. I went to my local lumber supplier this morning and talked with a couple of the employees that run a side hustle making signs with their CNC's.. They told me the best finish / sealer options was either Spar varnish ( which would need sanded and recoated yearly) or they have a epoxy finish that really works and holds up very well and no need re-coat it basically for a very long time.. Not the cheapest stuff but I personally know this customer and know they'd rather pay more up front than to mess with sanding and sealing every year.

I typically cut my ornaments in stacks of 4 pieces of 1/8" BB ply or 3 pieces of 1/4" solid core ply, or solid wood. Usually on solid wood I plane it down to 3/16 and do stacks of 4 depending on wood type sometimes just 3 pieces. I used to do 5 and sometimes 6 pieces of BBply depending on the situation at hand but I much prefer doing 4 pieces. Years ago I started out doing 6 BBply in a stack to maximize production and I never did anything more or less than the 6 until I came up with a custom order for 8 ornaments. I normally cut all my blanks back then at 8 x 8 inch and could get 4 - 5 ornament sets out of the blank. That custom order for 8 pieces made me do a stack of 4 so I ended up cutting 2-3 more times on that blank of other ornaments and the cutting seemed to go way faster than cutting 5-6 stacked.. That was my comfort zone from then on so I've kind of stuck with stacks of 4 unless I have some odd number of ornaments I need to make where doing a stack of 5 or 6 makes more sense.

The customer sure likes the look of Cherry.. not sure how well Cherry will hold up out in the elements? Anyone know or have any experience with Cherry being outside? I'm wondering now what the best option for a finish might be to help preserve the wood. Whatever type of final finish I go with will need to be compatible with whatever paint I use for painting the carved out areas. I typically use either acrylic craft paints or sometimes if it's all going to be one color I'll just use whatever spray paints I have on hand. I've heard exterior house paint is great on signs and I've done it several years ago on a scrolled sign I had that I used a backer board on for the contrast.. just buy the base paint without any pigment, the paint shops look at you kinda weird when you don't want any mix in it, so I don't know how the house paint would do with the acrylics... Also thought about just using some automotive K2 clear since I have some left from a paint job I did a while back.. again I'm doubtful the K2 clear will do well on the acrylic paints though, LOL Anyway, if anyone has suggestion about using Cherry or finishing suggestions I'm all ears, LOL.. I know I can make it look good for short term, just like to give them something more long term. Their intentions are to screw it to a tree out on the front yard / driveway so it'll be out in the sun / shade? / rain/ and snow... I told them I wasn't sure how long it'd last being out there like that.

Really? I'm putting this throughout my whole lawn then.. save a ton of mower gas too which means more walnut lumber money.. Seriously though that is good to know, I knew it's not good for animal bedding as it poisonous to many animals. I take my sawdust to my brothers mill and dump it in his big pile.. but if I have any exotics, walnut, or glued up panels in the shavings I have to leave my bags with him as there are certain places he can take that stuff too but not for the stockyards or the horse farms etc.

Nice looking fire pit you made, I also have a fire pit and we I typically make enough scraps to not only have kindling wood but most times enough to have 4-5 fires a year just from my scraps.. yep, I mess up and make that much ornamental fire wood, .. No kidding aside on a more serious note, some of the wood I get is rejects because of splits / knots etc.. and I work around those bad areas quite easily doing small scroll sawing works so I do generate a few wheelbarrow loads of scraps every year so it's a win win as the wife and kids love to sit around the fire.. makes great family time for us all.

Had a 1989 Mercury Sable and my truck was broke down. I needed to haul some 10ft pipe for a plumbing project I was working on. I took the back seat out and the pipes fit nicely by laying the front passenger side front seat back as far as it'd go. Guy and his wife was walking to their car and I overheard her say. That car must have a huge trunk. .. I never said a word and had a hard time keeping a straight face and not laugh..

I also should note that they want the sign to be approximately 24 x 15 inches so I'm likely going to need to do a glue up and or choose a plywood. Assume marine ply if I go that route but I'm not sure how well it would carve on the CNC and since this is a scroll saw site, doubt anyone here knows that either, LOL. I'm thinking I'd rather go with solid wood anyway. One issue will be gluing up a 15" wide board since my planner is only 13" wide so all boards will need to be the same thickness when the gluing happens and any uneven parts if any will need to be hand sanded flat. Or I can run a surfacing bit in the CNC..

I knew sooner or later I'd get a request to make a sign for outside use. I actually have had request but kindly turned them away because I know that outside signs don't typically hold their fresh wood look for all that long. So this brings me to the questions that have been asked before probably many times.. what material is best for a outside use. I've read to use deck seal finish for longevity but does anyone know how it reacts to acrylic paints? I may be painting the carved text for contrast and will want to top coat the whole sign. They don't really want to use a light colored wood and prefer something along the colors of Cherry however I'm not certain Cherry is something that would hold up to the elements. They want to mount this on a tree leading up to their cabin so it's not going to be sheltered much at all, LOL So, those wood and finishing pros, what wood should be used and what finishing sealers for the most life out of this sign? Also any tips or suggestions that might help.