Craftsman power hacksaw rebuild.

The vise seems to be a weak spot on these. I've seen many missing part or all of the vise.

Mine came with a good size "tool makers" angle vise which works, but doesn't allow for any cuts except at 90 degrees. I've considered remaking a vise similar to the original, but like you way too many projects for that to move it from the To Do list to the Actually Do list.

I was kind of amused when I realized that the vise had been replaced, because it is a good size Taiwan made vise that is probably worth more than the $50 I paid for the whole saw.

Mine is an Excel branded saw, but it was made by Covel who also made them for Sears. With the motor mounted underneath, it really makes for a compact unit, quite a bit smaller than my HF 4x6" bandsaw.

hacksaw and bandsaw.jpg
 
Aaron_W said:
The vise seems to be a weak spot on these. I've seen many missing part or all of the vise.

Mine came with a good size "tool makers" angle vise which works, but doesn't allow for any cuts except at 90 degrees. I've considered remaking a vise similar to the original, but like you way too many projects for that to move it from the To Do list to the Actually Do list.

I was kind of amused when I realized that the vise had been replaced, because it is a good size Taiwan made vise that is probably worth more than the $50 I paid for the whole saw.

Mine is an Excel branded saw, but it was made by Covel who also made them for Sears. With the motor mounted underneath, it really makes for a compact unit, quite a bit smaller than my HF 4x6" bandsaw.

View attachment 481580
Click to expand...
With a vise that high are the lift dogs even able to engage and lift the blade on the return stroke?

That is the first thing I had to tune in this saw as someone somewhere at some time reversed them and did away with that function.

Don’t know why you would do that, but the ones I have are like new so I’m not complaining.

Also, I don’t see the vises as a weak spot, but rather very misunderstood in their proper operation, which leads to them being broken easily.

I’ve seen people who could break hammers.
 
Well, Ive made enough progress repairing parts of this and replacing bushings that I can begin paintwork in preparation of final assembly.

I struggled over what paint to use for this as they were made in several different "Liveries" by the different manufacturers. This one was originally the dull grey used for a while by Dunlap and craftsman but I wasnt sure if I wanted that.

When I got the new base it had remnant's of the old school blue that was used at one point in time and it looked like this would be a winner. I happened upon a rustoleium color called "Ink Blue" and it just clicked.


Here its already in primer, but you can see the blue peeking through.

Pretty close.


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I think the color looks just right for this era. Its a matte which helps tone it down and prevents it from being too bright IMO.

Plus this will look good dirty too.




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The blue looks good.

RaisedByWolves said:
With a vise that high are the lift dogs even able to engage and lift the blade on the return stroke?

That is the first thing I had to tune in this saw as someone somewhere at some time reversed them and did away with that function.

Don’t know why you would do that, but the ones I have are like new so I’m not complaining.

Also, I don’t see the vises as a weak spot, but rather very misunderstood in their proper operation, which leads to them being broken easily.

I’ve seen people who could break hammers.
Click to expand...

The vise doesn't seem to be an issue. It might cut into the maximum capacity, but I have bigger saws and have no intent on cutting anything close to the 4x4" these saws are rated for. I wanted a power hacksaw because they are neat, but I went on a saw buying spree about the time I got this little saw. A 14" Davis and Wells vertical bandsaw, 6x10" Kalamazoo horizontal bandsaw and a 7x7" Keller power hacksaw all followed me home within about a year of my getting the Excel so it has fallen way down the project list. All of these saws work, but all also need some attention. The HF 4x6" also just keeps chugging along, long ago earning its purchase price.

Agree, the vise design doesn't seem to be a problem so much as the users. They aren't fast saws, but they are persistent and can cut stock much larger than they are rated for which can't be good for their long term health.
I recently watched a video on Youtube where one of these is cutting a 6 or 7" round of steel, held in place with C clamps. The arm was probably at a 75 degree angle. Amazingly it cut most of the way through, only leaving a small section in the middle where the frame prevented the saw from cutting any deeper.

I'm sure most of the failure points are from abuse rather than poor design. The above mentioned video left me trying to find the number for the SPCM (Society for Prevention of Cruelty to Machinery).
 
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