Deal of the month?

[Cue Guru]

So I had a good score on eBay recently, and I just had to brag a bit. The fiancé just doesn't get it, so she has trouble getting excited over such things...

I have been looking for a good quality Radial Arm saw for a few months now. We had one in the guitar shop, and it was the one thing my partner (wisely) took. If you were on a desert island with only one saw, this is the one to take!

Besides being great for trim work and a boat-load of other tasks, it is how I did my first forearm (well, actually I did the VERY first ones on a router table, but that was scrapped along with a dozen or so others before my first cue was done).

But anyway, I saw the pricing (over $1,000.00 for anything half-decent) on new saws, so I decided to take a shot a eBay. I found a few, and some were quite cheap. Generally the cheap ones were quite scary too... One caught my eye, as it still had the manuals, in spite of being quite old (on year 42 now!) and it had a starting bid of only $50.00. It was close enough to go and get. So I took a shot.

Well, I'm the proud owner of a 1968 DeWalt 10" radial arm saw ladies and gentlemen! Cost: $50.00! Purchased from the son of the original owner. I picked it up in South NJ last night.

The original sales flyer, owner's manual and sales receipt are included! This saw is pristine as well. I'm going to get some pics tonight once it is back on it's stand.

I fully intend to get back at making full splices! Another piece of the puzzle in the shop!:grin-square:

 

[cuesmith]

So I had a good score on eBay recently, and I just had to brag a bit. The fiancé just doesn't get it, so she has trouble getting excited over such things...

I have been looking for a good quality Radial Arm saw for a few months now. We had one in the guitar shop, and it was the one thing my partner (wisely) took. If you were on a desert island with only one saw, this is the one to take!

Besides being great for trim work and a boat-load of other tasks, it is how I did my first forearm (well, actually I did the VERY first ones on a router table, but that was scrapped along with a dozen or so others before my first cue was done).

But anyway, I saw the pricing (over $1,000.00 for anything half-decent) on new saws, so I decided to take a shot a eBay. I found a few, and some were quite cheap. Generally the cheap ones were quite scary too... One caught my eye, as it still had the manuals, in spite of being quite old (on year 42 now!) and it had a starting bid of only $50.00. It was close enough to go and get. So I took a shot.

Well, I'm the proud owner of a 1968 DeWalt 10" radial arm saw ladies and gentlemen! Cost: $50.00! Purchased from the son of the original owner. I picked it up in South NJ last night.

The original sales flyer, owner's manual and sales receipt are included! This saw is pristine as well. I'm going to get some pics tonight once it is back on it's stand.

I fully intend to get back at making full splices! Another piece of the puzzle in the shop!:grin-square:

I'm glad you are happy with your purchase. That being said, a radial arm saw is one of the more obsolete machines in a woodshop. I know Gus made his forearms on a radial arm saw but that is a testament to Gus' jig making talents. Your 68' Dewalt probably has cast iron ways and fairly decent bearings but you'll still have to do a lot of tweeking and jig making before you can do much precission work and when safety is an issue, I consider the Radial arm saw at the top of the list of most dangerous pieces of equipment in a shop. Ask Dickie about the time he was ripping Cocobolo into turning squares on his RA saw! LOL It spit the piece out grazed his head (nearly knocking him unconscious) and continued through the wall which was 3/4" plywood. Soon after I gave my RA away! Dickie followed suit later. Fine Woodworking Magazine once did a "Dream Drop Layout" and nowhere was a Radial Arm Saw. There are other pieces of equipment better suited for anything you can do on a Radial Arm Saw.

 

[cuesblues]

Deal Of The Month

That sounds like a great deal however, the "deal of the month" was the
cigar store indian that sold for $225 at the auction in Denver last Sunday.

Seriously, show some pics, would like to see it.
The operating manual too.

Thanks
Ted

 

[Cue Guru]

Not to be an armchair quarterback, but I would NEVER rip on a RA (or let anyone if they wanted to). I have a cabinet maker's saw for that stuff. Even a cheap-ass contractor's table saw is better suited for that!

Especially something hard and dense! He is very lucky he wasn't killed!

But it IS possible to do. And I have some jigs from making forearms before already; however based on the video I saw of Gus, I will be remaking my jig. He did something that all but guaranteed perfection, and it showed in the final product, as we all know today... I will be jigging the way he did it. I will not guarantee my forearms will look as perfect, but at least I learned something from the man!

Pic of literature...

 

[phread59]

Good buy, you get a hearty "You Suck". That is one of the real RA saws. It will serve you well as long as you don't rip with it. Easy to adjust and holds it's settings well. They are a very handy item to have when building furniture. I wish I had one myself. Ya done good.

Mark Shuman

 

[Cue Guru]

Thanks, Mark.

I remember how much we used that saw at the guitar shop, and it can't be beat for so many jobs.

It sure is nice to be able to see what you are doing- with a table saw, the blade is out of sight, and the radius of the blade is closer at the table (so it is cutting deeper against the table than at the top of the piece you are looking at, which makes cutting the prongs difficult- a lot of test cuts on scrap are required to get the hard stops perfect.

In spite of that, I still prefer the cabinet saw for cutting most of the prong cut, because the cleanliness of the cut is superior to the band saw; although the base of the cut has to be cut with the band saw of course to make it sharp enough...

Off track; thanks for the compliment! I know it will serve me well.

 

[macguy]

Not to be an armchair quarterback, but I would NEVER rip on a RA (or let anyone if they wanted to). I have a cabinet maker's saw for that stuff. Even a cheap-ass contractor's table saw is better suited for that!

Especially something hard and dense! He is very lucky he wasn't killed!

But it IS possible to do. And I have some jigs from making forearms before already; however based on the video I saw of Gus, I will be remaking my jig. He did something that all but guaranteed perfection, and it showed in the final product, as we all know today... I will be jigging the way he did it. I will not guarantee my forearms will look as perfect, but at least I learned something from the man!

Pic of literature...

What is the video you make reference to?

 

[Cue Guru]

There is a video on YouTube that is an interview of Gus by wide world of sports (i think) where he shows the components of the cue all laid out on the table- sort of a step by step.

Once I saw the way the forearm block is cut, and that he was using a radial arm saw I knew exactly what he did to make sure it comes out 'perfect' and will be doing the same thing with my new set up.