# Craftsman 10" table saw



## woodman44 (Mar 23, 2012)

I bought a Craftsman 10 inch table saw model 137.218020.
The blade will not adjust parallel to the table grooves after loosening the six bolts as described in the manual. The best I can do results in an error of about 3/8" when measuring from the front of the blade to the table groove. I cannot get both ends of the blade to align with the table groove within 1/64" as outlined in the adjustment procedure. Any suggestions?


----------



## woodnthings (Jan 24, 2009)

*remove 4 bolts*

Leave the center ones just slightly loose and see if you can rotate the arbor and carriage assembly by hand to get the blade parallel to the miter slot. 

It if will line up, then tighten the 2 center bolts. Then insert the remaining bolts one at a time and snug them up, then give everything a final 1/4 turn more.

If it won't line up using the 2 center bolts, your trunnion holes will have to be slightly enlarged and you need to figure out from the top down which way to elongate the holes. It won't take more than a few stokes of a 3/8" round rat tail file, but it will mean either removing the trunnions or dropping the whole assembly down. If you need to drop the whole assembly it's a good time to really clean out and wash the trunnions from any old grease and dust. Also remove any addition loose parts to reduce the weight. 
If possible turn the saw upside down on it's table....yeah, I know it's a PITA, but this is a one time only process and you may as well do it right.... Been there, done it myself. It's also much easier to see which way to enlarge the holes and which ones upside down. Use star washers under the bolts and you'll find a 3/8" ratchet with a 12" extension will make life a whole lot easier. 
Now, to align the blade to the slots turn the saw on it's back end, so you can see the bolt holes and still measure to the miter slots. I use a tri-square set to the closest dimension possible and check front and back on the same tooth rotating the blade. Once you get the same reading, again tighten the center bolts and replace the outer ones and tighten them also. RECHECK for parallism. 
 bill


----------



## UPNORTFAN (May 22, 2013)

Hello, have a Sears 113.298031 . Had to completely disassemble and rework and reassemble. Had same problem. Finally discovered that whenever adjusting the 3 bolts would always be a little off due to the motor hanging down a little when tightening. Zwolla since worked alone underneath the saw, I devised a way to hold the motor up tight and then tighten the bolts--worked VG and now blade is only thousands off after I released the hold up ropes after tightening the bolts. Key here was to relieve the offset weight of the motor when working on the 3 bolts. Hope works for you.


----------



## knotscott (Nov 8, 2007)

If all else fails while trying to align the blade to the miter slot, settle for aligning the fence to the blade. Be sure the miter gauge is square to the blade. 

Nice review


----------



## woodnthings (Jan 24, 2009)

*just remove the dang motor*



UPNORTFAN said:


> Hello, have a Sears 113.298031 . Had to completely disassemble and rework and reassemble. Had same problem. Finally discovered that whenever adjusting the 3 bolts would always be a little off due to the motor hanging down a little when tightening. Zwolla since worked alone underneath the saw, I devised a way to hold the motor up tight and then tighten the bolts--worked VG and now blade is only thousands off after I released the hold up ropes after tightening the bolts. Key here was to relieve the offset weight of the motor when working on the 3 bolts. Hope works for you.


it serves no purpose when aligning the blade anyhow ...... unless you want to have it running while performing this operation .....:thumbdown::no:


----------



## UPNORTFAN (May 22, 2013)

Agree. Was an afterthought. Need to get brain in motion before speaking--that is why am a Newbe!! In the alignment of the blade checking it was suggested to use the fence. I did not and guessing most only have an original fence not an after market one, I worked off the machined slot on the top. Seemed to work well and felt was more accurate than the fence. As I still have the original fence, when I use it (mostly for rough not cabinet type work) I set my distance by using a sliding home made gauge and line up the fence off the blade front and near then tighten the fence for as close a straight cut.


----------

