had to ABANDON an MFT table last night... need help!

[stairman]

I'm quite good at diagnosing problms and fixing, repairing, or even fabricating parts...    but I am guessing this has happened to someone before, so why reinvent the wheel!

I have noticed one of the knobs on my MFT table has gotten very difficult to turn.  the others are easy,  loosen, then give 'em a spin...  spin them the other way and snug down and they're locked again.

not this one.  it has gotten worse and worse,  and last night after everything else was packed and ready to go, I tried to foldup only to find the knob was siezed entirely.  table legs locked down and unable to fold, 

fortunately for me, it is in an office unit where it is secure.  -no other workers...
just my Dr and his staff all of whom I know well.

so.. sadly enough, I had to leave the MFT behind (not repacking the truck over that...

SOO!

has this happened to any othrs here?  and HOW do I go about fixing this?
it is extremely tight, and forcing anly feels like the handle is slipping,  not the nut.

any suggestions?

 

[tiralie]

=it is extremely tight, and forcing anly feels like the handle is slipping,  not the nut.

any suggestions?

Is the nut on the other side of the handle properly seated in the hex hole. If so, then pop off the top of the knob (it is in two parts), it should come off by prying a coin or bottle opener into the joint that is at the circumference of the knob and check to see if the bolt inside is indeed striped and turning. If the knob is split or stripped inside then you are pooched and will have to order a new one. If that is the problem, I would probably just carefully break the handle apart save the bolt and order a new knob.

If the knob is not split or stripped go and check again to see if the other side is still seated. I have found that if I over turn the knob, the bolt will unseat and it becomes difficult to loosen the leg because the bolt just spins.
Hopefully that helps.
Tim

 

[stairman]

uh,  -yes,  that helps immensely!  thanks so much for taking the time to write,  I sincerely appreciate it.  I'm sure it is going to be the plastic knob spinning on the nut,  and not a stripped bolt.

I've never looked very closely at the knobs or the way they're made,  as I have not yet had a reason to...
I have been putting in a fair amount of hours since I made my total switch over to ALL Festool,  and it seems that at every job I do, I pickup more work because of the increased quality and absolute cleanliness  the Festool System provides.  At about 8pm last night after 13hrs work, I was ready to pack it up and head home,  when the table knob simply refused to release... 
I'm putting in a couple hours later tonight,  and will be addressing the MFT table as soon as I arrive...
thanks again for the advice. 

 

[tiralie]

Let us know if you get it fixed.
If not take some pictures, and we'll try to diagnose the problem.
Good to hear that your tools are working overtime too and helping you get more work.
Tim

 

[JeromeM]

Another possibility is corrosion of the threads, even Festool isn't immune to poor plating sometimes. If it's that then some penetrating oil will help

 

[sancho57]

Thanks for telling us about this incase anyone of us has to face the same issue.

 

[RONWEN]

=it is extremely tight, and forcing anly feels like the handle is slipping,  not the nut.

any suggestions?

Is the nut on the other side of the handle properly seated in the hex hole. If so, then pop off the top of the knob (it is in two parts), it should come off by prying a coin or bottle opener into the joint that is at the circumference of the knob and check to see if the bolt inside is indeed striped and turning. If the knob is split or stripped inside then you are pooched and will have to order a new one. If that is the problem, I would probably just carefully break the handle apart save the bolt and order a new knob.

If the knob is not split or stripped go and check again to see if the other side is still seated. I have found that if I over turn the knob, the bolt will unseat and it becomes difficult to loosen the leg because the bolt just spins.
Hopefully that helps.
Tim

I just popped the cap off (there is a small screwdriver slot at one spot on the knob cap) of one of my knobs to see what it looks like inside -- in addition to the M8 nut that locks/unlocks the leg there is another lock nut on the end of the bolt that keeps the knob from spinning off and getting lost.  It's possible that the lock nut worked it's way into the first nut and that could be what is keeping the nuts & knob locked tight.  It will be an easy fix to back the lock nut out with a socket wrench.  In either situation it should be a quick fix.

 

[stairman]

that is EXACTLY what had happened.  in retrospect, when I would setup and break down,  the range of motion was getting shorter and shorter until that one just locked-down.  upon popping the cap off a 13mm socket was all I needed to back it  off.

it's back in business now,  and it doesn't appear I even need any replacement parts.

 

[RONWEN]

that is EXACTLY what had happened.   in retrospect, when I would setup and break down,   the range of motion was getting shorter and shorter until that one just locked-down.   upon popping the cap off a 13mm socket was all I needed to back it  off.

it's back in business now,  and it doesn't appear I even need any replacement parts.

If that lock-nut has lost it's "grip" (Did it spin back out fairly easily?) you may want to add a couple of drops of Loctite thread locker -- the "red" Loctite really locks a nut in place, the "blue" may be good enough.  http://www.loctiteproducts.com/p/t_lkr_red/overview/Loctite-Threadlocker-Red-271.htm
http://www.loctiteproducts.com/p/t_lkr_blue/overview/Loctite-Threadlocker-Blue-242.htm