# Table saw heeling



## newbirdhunter (Feb 25, 2013)

Hi there,

Been at this on and off for 2 weeks now. I have a Ridgid R4512 table saw that is not heeling properly; it consistently is out of alignment by 1/16".

I align the saw's trunnions (bolted to top, not cabinet) to my left miter slot using a combination square and the "pick one tooth" method. To align the blade, I loosen all trunnion bolts and move the rear trunnion to the right (when facing the rear of the saw). When the combination square is equidistant from the slot to the blade (front and rear) I tighten each bolt a little until they are all tight making sure as I am doing it that tightening doesn't move the blade out of alignment. I then make sure the blade is at 90" parallel (using a digital gauge).

A little while ago, I performed the above.... again. This time, I figured I would eliminate the wood not being square as the culprit so I took a board and cut it square using my miter saw. I measured all sides and they were the same length. I took that board to my table saw and cut each side in succession. I numbered each cut as I made it. When I was done, cut #4 was 1/16" wider than cut #2 (turning the board counter-clockwise). As usual, my square becomes a trapezoid. I see that squaring stock on the miter saw didn't provide any advantage.

Any ideas or suggestions on how to fix this? All ideas are welcomed. Thanks for reading.

Frank


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## woodnthings (Jan 24, 2009)

*There's heeling and healing*

They sound the same but are completely different. That's what you are doing. :smile:

Aligning the blade to the miter slot, including the fence is the proper method.

Now, if you introduce the miter gauge, that's a different process.
How do you know the miter gauge is at 90 degrees to the miter slot or the blade?

If the miter gauge is 1/2 a degree off from 90, it will show up 4 times that after rotating the board 4 times. Use a draftsman triangle or other "master" square and set the M/G to 90 degrees at the blade. If after doing this AND if you have properly aligned the trunnions ... all should be well. :yes:


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## captainawesome (Jun 21, 2012)

I've had some issues with my 4512 but not that severe. I do my final micro adjustments with all but one of the trunnions completely tight. I then use an F style clamp to the saw cabinet to fine tune the last little bit. 

Also, make sure you raise the blade higher than needed, then lower it back down a turn or two for your final height. I've read that this helps as well.


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## pweller (Mar 10, 2014)

It sounds like you are doing a version of the '5 cut' method to check square. The point of this test is to magnify the error.

So, if you are making 4 cuts on each side of a square, the measured error at the end of your test should be 4 times the actual error from a single pass.

I believe the total error you see from 4 cuts of 1/16", actually indicates a single-pass error of only 1/64". (This is if I understand correctly what you are doing.)


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## knotscott (Nov 8, 2007)

Does your R4512 alignment shift when you raise or lower the blade? That's a well documented issue with many of the 4512s.


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## newbirdhunter (Feb 25, 2013)

pweller said:


> It sounds like you are doing a version of the '5 cut' method to check square. The point of this test is to magnify the error.
> 
> So, if you are making 4 cuts on each side of a square, the measured error at the end of your test should be 4 times the actual error from a single pass.
> 
> I believe the total error you see from 4 cuts of 1/16", actually indicates a single-pass error of only 1/64". (This is if I understand correctly what you are doing.)


Yes sir, it sounds like you understand what I am doing.


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## newbirdhunter (Feb 25, 2013)

woodnthings said:


> They sound the same but are completely different. That's what you are doing. :smile:
> 
> Aligning the blade to the miter slot, including the fence is the proper method.
> 
> ...


Thanks for the reply. My miter gauge was slightly off and I adjusted it. The error now is less than 1/16". I aligned the fence too and the error there is also less than 1/16". Not sure if I should stop here or keep trying to close the gap further. I would like to take on box and small furniture projects.


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