Fibonacci
Member
I have been using a bottom of the line Craftsman table saw for the past few years and really being unhappy with it. When I picked it up, it was what I could afford and it sufficed for my needs of the time. It died a few weeks back. One part of me was glad because I had an excuse to buy a new one, but part of me was sad because I still couldn't afford the one I wanted.
While saving up for a new one, I happened to run across a 1953 Craftsman contractor saw on Craigslist about 8 hours away. I thought it looked like a good deal, but was much too far away to get. I pointed it out to a friend of mine who, it turned out, was driving past there with his truck a week later. I made some calls, secured a deal, and he picked it up on his way past.
When it showed up, it made horrible screeching noises, but basically worked. I spent a couple hours doing a cursory clean and lube, determining that it was just a loose belt and a cracked pulley making the noise. I decided to pull the pulley to fix it and discovered the bearings in the arbor were dragging just a bit. I checked the run-out and decided the bearings were currently good, but did not have much life left.
To make a long story shorter, I debated whether to spend more money now and replace the bearings, or just move forward with it as is and replace them when they failed. Now the saw is spread out across my entire work table and I am picking out powdercoating colors...
We shall see how my first major tool restoration turns out as it develops.
While saving up for a new one, I happened to run across a 1953 Craftsman contractor saw on Craigslist about 8 hours away. I thought it looked like a good deal, but was much too far away to get. I pointed it out to a friend of mine who, it turned out, was driving past there with his truck a week later. I made some calls, secured a deal, and he picked it up on his way past.
When it showed up, it made horrible screeching noises, but basically worked. I spent a couple hours doing a cursory clean and lube, determining that it was just a loose belt and a cracked pulley making the noise. I decided to pull the pulley to fix it and discovered the bearings in the arbor were dragging just a bit. I checked the run-out and decided the bearings were currently good, but did not have much life left.
To make a long story shorter, I debated whether to spend more money now and replace the bearings, or just move forward with it as is and replace them when they failed. Now the saw is spread out across my entire work table and I am picking out powdercoating colors...
We shall see how my first major tool restoration turns out as it develops.
