Trying to get smooth cuts on CS50... and failing!

[GrowUp]

Hello, Foggers!

I'm having a bit of a problem with a second hand CS50 I bought recently. I got it to make some progress on a project i've been working on. Started out with a hired Makita 2704X, but I figured having my own tablesaw would be a good investment, so I looked for a quality machine that was small and portable as well (don't have that much room and don't need large capacity).
After reading up on the possibilities for quite a while I decided on a second hand CS50 (maybe a bit hasty, offer was there, €700/$920).

Anyway,
getting home with the machine and making a few testcuts revealed that the back part of the blade (coming up out of the table) was slightly grabbing the wood while ripping (pine and 4/4 maple and cherry), leaving spiralmarks on the cut. The hired Makita made a glass-smooth cut, perfect for the project (side grain glue-joints). So, on the CS50, i've tried squaring the fence/miter gauge, buying a new blade (48 tooth crosscut blade, I know, the Makita had a high tooth count blade as well and cut perfectly, hence…) and finally adjusting the shims/spacers (see picture) to try and get the blade 'in-line'.

[attachimg=#]

The motor assembly rotates around the vertical tube. The shims are .5mm and .25mm thick, but even trying to fine-tune many times with .1mm thick paper doesn't get me the cut I want. There's always upcoming or down-going spiralmarks, or both!

Looking a bit further showed that the table isn't perfectly flat anymore:

[attachimg=#]

Can anyone help me solve this issue?
Other things I've considered are the difference in power between the Makita (1650W) and the Festool (1200W)?
Perhaps, still, the wrong blade?
Is the miter gauge unsuited for this?

I'm considering selling the table, but am just not sure about what to do!

Thanks in advance,
GU

 

[Ken Nagrod]

Put it on U.S. ebay and sell it for $5,000.  [big grin]

I would check with something better than a framing square for table flatness.  Any machine shops around where you're at?  They could mill the top flat and do any other adjustments for you.  Either you have a bad blade, play in the arbor shaft, a toe-out condition from the blade position being off, rip fence/miter gauge slot out of wack or there's something wacky with the way you're cutting the wood. 

 

[windmill man]

Growup,

You are making the wrong adjustment, If you are getting spiral cutting from the back of the blade , your rip fence is Toe
In (narrower at the back of the blade than the front.) Under the rip fence (at the scale end) you will find allen bolts to make the adjustment. Also check that the clamp at the back end is clamping properly and not moving during the cut.

John

 

[fezza]

As Windmill said, make sure your fence is dead straight with the blade. Also, is the blade a genuine festool blade and the correct thickness, not thicker than the riving knife. I run a cs70, never had any problems. I would never be putting them shims in, if its not the fence/blade, get it in to festool for service, it may be the motor running out of true, but more likely the fence simply needs adjusting.

 

[mattfc]

Growup,

You are making the wrong adjustment, If you are getting spiral cutting from the back of the blade , your rip fence is Toe
In (narrower at the back of the blade than the front.) Under the rip fence (at the scale end) you will find allen bolts to make the adjustment. Also check that the clamp at the back end is clamping properly and not moving during the cut.

John

I would second that.. I don't have the CS50 but the TS55 in a CMS and any cutting issues I have had are either down to a blunt blade (you have eliminated this) or most the time the fence isn't quite square (its not the most precise mechanism either). To check quickly, I would get a short block of wood and place it lightly touching the blade and move the rip fence in, then lock the rip fence and move the block to the back of the blade and see whether its pinches or there is a space. The fence adjustment is easy as per the above