I have a Dewalt DW745 jobsite table saw and I'm struggling with accuracy. Sometimes, it just doesn't cut square. I can align the workpiece against the fence, but it tends to drift away from it after the blade. I often find myself fighting to keep it pressed against the fence, making it impossible to use a push stick. I plan to check the squareness of both the blade and the fence in relation to the T-slot. If that looks fine, what should I check next? Also, while cross-cutting some strips to size the other day, one piece got stuck at the end of the cut and almost kicked back. Now, it seems like the blade has moved about 1mm to the left, affecting my scale. What could have caused this? The blade isn't bent, and the fence is locked in place, running on a rack and pinion.
2 Answers
Honestly, the way you described operating the saw sounds really unsafe, and you’re lucky there weren’t more serious issues. It’s a jobsite saw, so it might always be a bit finicky. I’d recommend checking that the blade is aligned with the miter slot first, and then ensure the fence is parallel to that. You might want to slightly angle the back of the fence away from the miter slot for safety. It's also strange that your blade position changed after the kickback; I’d contact the manufacturer to make sure everything’s in working order.
When using the table saw, you should always apply some force towards the fence to keep your workpiece tight against it. Also, crossing cuts without a sled or miter gauge isn't safe! If you're using a miter gauge, avoid using the fence, as the offcut can get caught and cause kickback. Instead, you can use a block of known dimension secured in front of the blade to guide your piece up against it. This will give you enough room to prevent binding when the offcut separates.
Why is that? I thought the fence was enough to guide it.
Yes, I'm considering getting a miter gauge too!
Thanks for the tips! It’s really odd that the blade moved like that.