# Slitting saw arbor - Disappointing



## Just for fun (May 1, 2022)

I bought a 1" slitting saw arbor from McMaster-Carr, I don't need it right now but thought I would try it out.  I have three different blade and they all act the same, only about 5 teeth do the cutting.

The best I can tell the saws run about .010 out or off center.  I put a dial indicator on the bore of the arbor and measure less then .001 run out.  The cap seems to be within .001 also.  Now there is about .011 free play or looseness in the fit between the cap and the arbor.  It's almost like the cap is being pulled off center with cap bolt when I tighten it down.  It's pretty hard to get a measurement on the blade itself but with my 4" blade I believe I was getting a good measurement which also matched the runout on the cap.

I chucked it up in the lathe in an ER40 collet to get a better look at things.  Just before the cap bold is snug I can tap the cap around to about .001 runout, but as soon as I snug the bold, not tight but just snug it pulls the cap out to .010 runout.

I didn't have the same length bolt, but I did have one about an inch longer, so I stacked a bunch of washers and tightened it down.  I didn't have a blade in there at the time, but it seemed much better, I think I could have tapped it in line with that set-up.   And that is where I quite for the night.

Is that all the better I can expect for fit between the cap and arbor?  I'm going to try another bolt and maybe turn the head down a little just to see if that helps.  It may have to wait until Monday though, my stock of metric is limited.  I don't want to modify anything on the original until after I talk to McMaster-Carr on Monday.  Although a bolt would be easily replaced.

Tim


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## extropic (May 1, 2022)

I'm wondering what design elements are present to support the claim of being "Vibration-Reducing"?
Certainly nothing you described. LOL

At any rate, I would call them and return for refund. Do you have a lathe? Make you're own?


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## mksj (May 1, 2022)

Same story, and I think same arbor. https://www.hobby-machinist.com/threads/what-causes-slitting-blade-mistracking.99172/

I do not believe this is something new, several years ago I heard of similar problems with this brand and I decided to make my own 1" arbor. The cap/head has a 0.0005" clearance to the body, the TIR at 3" from the collet is 0.001" and some of that may be the collet.


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## Provincial (May 1, 2022)

My guess is that if the cap is held by a flat-head countersunk screw, the tapped hole in the arbor or the screw taper (or both) are not concentric.  This would make the cap shift in an attempt to center on the countersink surface.  This would pull the saw away from center.


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## Batmanacw (May 1, 2022)

This is the one I bought. The location of the hole saw is done by the cap but the fit is accurate to the extreme. I doubt there is more than a couple tenths for the saw to slide on the cap step. Then putting the cap on the shank is a very close fit.....I still get plenty of run out on some saws....

Straight Shank Slitting or Slotting Saw Arbors .750" Shank / 1.00" T.I.R. Hole Size / 3.78" Length https://www.amazon.com/dp/B005LPX6X2/ref=cm_sw_r_apan_i_SBX01N1H6XZ943MNQMYW?_encoding=UTF8&psc=1


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## WobblyHand (May 1, 2022)

My Sierra American arbors were drilled off center. This caused the blade to be tilted very slightly.  I broke a saw using it   The cheap and dirty fix is to turn down the socket head cap screw head until there's no interference with the arbor cap.  Then the cap will pull flat against the arbor body.  I had to reduce the screw head diameter by 0.025-0.030" to make mine work.  The arbor cap/screw interference is the root cause of the problem I experienced.  Hope you can fix yours as simply as I could.


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## wachuko (May 1, 2022)

I think I have the same ones… but had not had the chance to check them.

@WobblyHand , you modified the bolt instead of the hole.  Why?  Would it be just as easy to enlarge the hole to avoid interference with the bolt head?

This sucks…I thought your situation was a one-off…looks like these arbors are badly made…


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## WobblyHand (May 1, 2022)

wachuko said:


> I think I have the same ones… but had not had the chance to check them.
> 
> @WobblyHand , you modified the bolt instead of the hole.  Why?  Would it be just as easy to enlarge the hole to avoid interference with the bolt head?
> 
> This sucks…I thought your situation was a one-off…looks like these arbors are badly made…


I chose the bolt because I had spare bolts.  The arbor cap was made correctly, the hole is on center.  It was far easier to just chuck up a SHCS and turn it, than the alternatives.  I modified a spare part rather than the arbor.  When I did this, I wasn't sure if I would return the arbor or not.  Turning the bolt left me with the option to return the arbor.  Altering the arbor eliminated that option.

The right way to fix it is to bore the arbor screw hole true and rethread it for a larger size.  But this makes little sense to do when turning a screw head is more than good enough.


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## markba633csi (May 1, 2022)

Not my favorite design.  I like the ones where the arbor itself does the centering, the cap just retains the blade
That's how I made mine


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## Flyinfool (May 1, 2022)

You stated .011 clearance between the cap and the bore of the arbor. That is your problem. It is the registration of the cap to the arbor and the cap to the blade that will determine the ultimate possible run out. If that clearance is nice and tight like it is supposed to be then it is unlikely the bolt can pull the cap off center. The bolt should NOT be able to have an effect on the run out. But you also do not want it to be trying to pull it off center either or that will insure that it is always at max run out possible. If everything is correct the ONLY part of the bolt that should ever touch the cap is the bearing surface on the bottom of the head. Neither the shank nor the sides of the head should touch the cap when tight.

We already know that the cap dia is way to small for the arbor bore. Measure the cap dia to the saw dia. it should be a very close fit, That will tell you if it is the cap or the arbor that is made wrong.


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## WobblyHand (May 1, 2022)

The Sierra American 1" arbor uses a 5/16"-18 thread.  Just turn down the head of the screw.  Takes a minute of your time and it is done.  Also chamfer the back side of the screw head to remove any burrs from the turning.  Then you can get on with life.  

This assumes that the only thing wrong is the screw hole is off center.  

If you bought this arbor from McMaster, please send them a note that your arbor is made incorrectly.  They will offer to send you another one.  It will also probably off center.  Mine was.  You can also send a note to Sierra American.  If you don't tell them something is wrong -- they will never know.  Sierra American has a quality problem which they don't seem to be acknowledging.  Perhaps more reports will get them to realize there is a problem, at least with the lot that they shipped to McMaster. The issue is they are drilling the hole in the wrong place, which tells me their drilling fixture has an offset problem...  Or their counterbores are way too tight!


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## Just for fun (May 1, 2022)

Flyinfool said:


> You stated .011 clearance between the cap and the bore of the arbor. That is your problem. It is the registration of the cap to the arbor and the cap to the blade that will determine the ultimate possible run out. If that clearance is nice and tight like it is supposed to be then it is unlikely the bolt can pull the cap off center. The bolt should NOT be able to have an effect on the run out. But you also do not want it to be trying to pull it off center either or that will insure that it is always at max run out possible. If everything is correct the ONLY part of the bolt that should ever touch the cap is the bearing surface on the bottom of the head. Neither the shank nor the sides of the head should touch the cap when tight.
> 
> We already know that the cap dia is way to small for the arbor bore. Measure the cap dia to the saw dia. it should be a very close fit, That will tell you if it is the cap or the arbor that is made wrong.



It's a little sloppy also in my option.  I tightened the cap up on the arbor backwards with the arbor still chucked up in the ER40 collet so the cap would not move, with my hand the most I could get was .004.


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## woodchucker (May 1, 2022)

not sure why you would go down the same path as Wobblyhand and expect a different result.
you know what Einstein said...

I don't buy arbors, I always make my own. Way less money, wayyyy better results.


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## Just for fun (May 1, 2022)

WobblyHand said:


> The Sierra American 1" arbor uses a 5/16"-18 thread.  Just turn down the head of the screw.  Takes a minute of your time and it is done.  Also chamfer the back side of the screw head to remove any burrs from the turning.  Then you can get on with life.
> 
> This assumes that the only thing wrong is the screw hole is off center.
> 
> If you bought this arbor from McMaster, please send them a note that your arbor is made incorrectly.  They will offer to send you another one.  It will also probably off center.  Mine was.  You can also send a note to Sierra American.  If you don't tell them something is wrong -- they will never know.  Sierra American has a quality problem which they don't seem to be acknowledging.  Perhaps more reports will get them to realize there is a problem, at least with the lot that they shipped to McMaster. The issue is they are drilling the hole in the wrong place, which tells me their drilling fixture has an offset problem...  Or their counterbores are way too tight!



I did buy it from McMaster-Carr.  Turning down the bolt would allow me to center the saw but not really solve the problem.

If they don't refund my money, I will turn down the bold and go from there.  I wonder if I could weld some Silicon Bronze strips on the inside of the arbor and then bore it to the right size?

Ultimately, I will make my own as others have said.


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## Just for fun (May 1, 2022)

woodchucker said:


> not sure why you would go down the same path as Wobblyhand and expect a different result.
> you know what Einstein said...
> 
> I don't buy arbors, I always make my own. Way less money, wayyyy better results.



Well,  If I would have did more research before buying, I would have went a different route.

I guess I just didn't have my confidents build up to the point that I thought I could successfully build one to the tolerance I would like.  But after seeing the poor fit of the one I bought and what I expected.  I have nothing to lose and a lot to gain by making my own.


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## WobblyHand (May 1, 2022)

Just for fun said:


> It's a little sloppy also in my option.  I tightened the cap up on the arbor backwards with the arbor still chucked up in the ER40 collet so the cap would not move, with my hand the most I could get was .004.


It's true that the cap isn't a very tight sliding fit to the arbor.  Honestly, _I don't think it matters_.  Are your saw blade teeth concentric to within 0.001"?  I doubt it.  Guarantee you my 28T Grizzly saw blade for $8 isn't that good.  Nor my Malco blade that I got from McMaster.  The cap diameter is a very good fit to the blade.  And the TIR of the arbor face is quite low.  I think that is good enough.  

With my fix, the arbor is good enough for my work.  The saw blades cut and track true and that's all I need.

Going through heroic efforts to fix the arbor when a simple solution is good enough, doesn't sound like a wise use of time.  That's my opinion at this point, having gone through a very similar thought process as you.  

Why go for a fancy, harder fix, if a simple solution is satisfactory?  _Do the simplest operation to make it work. _ For me, that was turning the head of the screw.  I used a TCMT insert and it turned down a known good SHCS to diameter with no problem.  There were no critical operations.  That said, I'll make my next arbor.  I did try that early on and failed.  My bore had a taper so the cap failed to enter the bore completely.  I think I have improved since then, so I am willing to try it again.  However, I have a long list of projects that are ahead of the line, so it would be a while.

Please tell McMaster the arbor is made wrong.  Make them put heat on Sierra American.  If more people report it, maybe they will fix the problem.  I really don't want to see any company go down the drain, even Sierra American.


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## epanzella (May 1, 2022)

I had the same prob so I made my own. I never liked the idea of a cap screw so I retain my blade with a one piece shoulder bolt that locates the blade precisely and fits into a counterbore on the arbor body.


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## Just for fun (May 1, 2022)

What is the last photo with the four screws?


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## mksj (May 1, 2022)

If the cap is loose in the arbor it will always wobble. I would return it as defective, they will give you a refund. Some plans below for an arbor to fit a 3/4" collet that I designed a few years ago. You make the cap first to verify fitment to the blade hole, then bore the body to match the cap. I used O1 drill rod, but 1144 also works well. One of these days I may blue the arbor.


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## Jim F (May 1, 2022)

Just for fun said:


> What is the last photo with the four screws?


Looks like screws made from bolts.


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## WobblyHand (May 1, 2022)

A standard 5/16-18 screw head sourced from McMaster measures 0.466" diameter.  I just grabbed my 1" arbor.  I turned down the screw to 0.423" to make it fit.  My strongest recommendation: turn it down and get on with life.

In my thread on this topic, another member was borderline unkind to me, but he was right.  I quote him.


benmychree said:


> Apples and oranges. I don't think you have really determined the true cause of the problem, whether it is the arbor or the fastener; if I wanted to get on with my job instead of p-ssing and moaning about it, I'd find the cause, remedy it, and get on with it.


So I made a shoulder bolt which seated at the bottom of the arbor.  I found in my case, the screw was not drilled on the spindle axis.  It was straight drilled in, but not at R=0.  I could have simply enlarged the counterbore, or fixed the hole by boring and threading to a larger hole and modifying the cap and it's counterbore, or turn down a screw head.  _I chose the simplest solution first, as I did want to get on with it._



You can see the altered screw.  It is one the right for the first picture and on the left for the second picture.  That's my solution.  Frankly I think this is a pretty darned simple way to remedy the problem.  Of course, you can solve it anyway you like.  Me, I chose the easy way to get on with it.


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## WobblyHand (May 1, 2022)

mksj said:


> If the cap is loose in the arbor it will always wobble. I would return it as defective, they will give you a refund. Some plans below for an arbor to fit a 3/4" collet that I designed a few years ago. You make the cap first to verify fitment to the blade hole, then bore the body to match the cap. I used O1 drill rod, but 1144 also works well. One of these days I may blue the arbor.
> View attachment 405666
> 
> 
> ...


This is the design that I tried to make and failed.  Had a problem with the boring.  Wasn't experienced enough of a machinist at the time I attempted it.  I need to try to open up the bore a little, or shorten the cap.  I have a small amount of taper in the bore causing interference when the cap is inserted about 3/4".  So I can't seat the cap on a 1/16" thick saw.  At the time, I didn't know how to make a mandrel to hold the cap to fix it.  One day I'll fix this arbor.  It bothers me to have a failed project sitting in my supply cabinet.


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## mksj (May 1, 2022)

You should be able to straighten the bore, use a 5/8 or 3/4 boring bar with either HSS or a ground edge insert that is normally used for aluminum, they can take very fine cuts. We all learn by our failures, it is the only way to move forward. Most of it is procrastination and figuring how you are going to do a project (materials, sequence of steps), the actual machining once I get started, the rest is easy. If you need help on a part, send it to me I can do the turning for you for the cost of shipping.


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## WobblyHand (May 1, 2022)

Just for fun said:


> I did buy it from McMaster-Carr.  Turning down the bolt would allow me to center the saw but not really solve the problem.
> 
> If they don't refund my money, I will turn down the bold and go from there.  I wonder if I could weld some Silicon Bronze strips on the inside of the arbor and then bore it to the right size?
> 
> Ultimately, I will make my own as others have said.


McMaster will replace it without blinking an eye.  I would imagine they would allow you to return it for refund as well.  They are awesome.  In my case the second arbor was nearly as bad as the first.

Simplest solution is to turn down a screw head.  This is a low speed device.  The screw doesn't even need to have huge clamping force, just enough to push the blade to register against the flat faces.  Welding and reboring is quite possible, but a lot more work for the same result.  

I have two arbors for the price of one.  It cost me the effort of turning two screw heads to make both bad arbors good.


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## Manual Mac (May 1, 2022)

Sometimes the best fix is the easiest.


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## WobblyHand (May 1, 2022)

mksj said:


> You should be able to straighten the bore, use a 5/8 or 3/4 boring bar with either HSS or a ground edge insert that is normally used for aluminum, they can take very fine cuts. We all learn by our failures, it is the only way to move forward. Most of it is procrastination and figuring how you are going to do a project (materials, sequence of steps), the actual machining once I get started, the rest is easy. If you need help on a part, send it to me I can do the turning for you for the cost of shipping.


I think I can fix it.  It was a major blow to my esteem when I figured out what went wrong.  Kind of smarted.  Wasn't as aware of order of operations when I attempted it.  Managed to box myself into a corner!  Hopefully I'm a little smarter now.  I also have improved some of my tooling which should help.

Thanks for your generous offer, but the best thing for me to do is get back in the saddle and try again.  It will be just for learning, though, as I now have 2 1" arbors.  Completing the arbor would make it 3 1" arbors.  Hard for me to see a use for that many of them at once!


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## Just for fun (May 1, 2022)

WobblyHand said:


> This is the design that I tried to make and failed.  Had a problem with the boring.  Wasn't experienced enough of a machinist at the time I attempted it.  I need to try to open up the bore a little, or shorten the cap.  I have a small amount of taper in the bore causing interference when the cap is inserted about 3/4".  So I can't seat the cap on a 1/16" thick saw.  At the time, I didn't know how to make a mandrel to hold the cap to fix it.  One day I'll fix this arbor.  It bothers me to have a failed project sitting in my supply cabinet.



That might be where I end up.   But I'm going to give it a shot and see how I do.


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## Just for fun (May 1, 2022)

WobblyHand said:


> McMaster will replace it without blinking an eye.  I would imagine they would allow you to return it for refund as well.  They are awesome.  In my case the second arbor was nearly as bad as the first.
> 
> Simplest solution is to turn down a screw head.  This is a low speed device.  The screw doesn't even need to have huge clamping force, just enough to push the blade to register against the flat faces.  Welding and reboring is quite possible, but a lot more work for the same result.
> 
> I have two arbors for the price of one.  It cost me the effort of turning two screw heads to make both bad arbors good.



I'll talk to McMaster tomorrow,  but I'll do as you say and turn the head down.   I tried it with just a bolt and washer on the outside of the cap, which would result in the same thing as turning the head down.   Much better,  but not as good as I would like.   I don't have a project for it right now.  I have plans for one but haven't started it yet. 

Thanks for your input.


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## Just for fun (May 1, 2022)

mksj said:


> If the cap is loose in the arbor it will always wobble. I would return it as defective, they will give you a refund. Some plans below for an arbor to fit a 3/4" collet that I designed a few years ago. You make the cap first to verify fitment to the blade hole, then bore the body to match the cap. I used O1 drill rod, but 1144 also works well. One of these days I may blue the arbor.
> View attachment 405666
> 
> 
> ...



Thanks Mark, 

I appreciate your input, and thanks for the drawing.


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## epanzella (May 1, 2022)

Just for fun said:


> What is the last photo with the four screws?


Those were stainless hex head bolts that I turned round and used the slitting saw to turn them into slotted screws. I should have given an explanation.


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## Just for fun (May 2, 2022)

WobblyHand said:


> -Clip-
> 
> Please tell McMaster the arbor is made wrong.  Make them put heat on Sierra American.  If more people report it, maybe they will fix the problem.  I really don't want to see any company go down the drain, even Sierra American.



I sent Sierra American an email yesterday with all my measurement pretty much explaining that the tool was not usable.  They contacted me via a phone call this morning.  This was not the first time they have heard about the problem.  They do believe they have a bad batch and he said they would probably be issuing a recall on the item.  He also said that they were going to contact McMaster-Carr.

I have also contacted McMaster explaining the problem, they are going to issue me a refund and go check out what they have on the shelf.

Tim


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## WobblyHand (May 2, 2022)

Just for fun said:


> I sent Sierra American an email yesterday with all my measurement pretty much explaining that the tool was not usable.  They contacted me via a phone call this morning.  This was not the first time they have heard about the problem.  They do believe they have a bad batch and he said they would probably be issuing a recall on the item.  He also said that they were going to contact McMaster-Carr.
> 
> I have also contacted McMaster explaining the problem, they are going to issue me a refund and go check out what they have on the shelf.
> 
> Tim


Thank you for following through on this!   Sierra American kind of blew me off when I contacted them.  They acknowledged my email, but more or less said they didn't have a problem.  McMaster said they hadn't heard of a problem on this product before, but gave me another one free.  I did tell them the second one was no good, but not to bother sending me another one.

It is good that SA acknowledged the problem.  This will make them better.  Hope they can continue to improve.  For what it is worth, their 1/2" arbor is slightly off as well, but at least mine still works without alteration.  Their operation of drilling out the arbor for the screw seems to have a problem.  I don't know if the offset hole is part of their design and tolerances are not being met, or it's just a simple fixture problem.


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## Larry$ (May 2, 2022)

Just for fun said:


> I just didn't have my confidents build up to the point


Nothing like just doing it to build confidence! I have noticed that slitting saws rarely run absolutely true, even on videos by very good machinists. I've got several slitting saws from the Czech republic. They all have some wobble. I made my arbors the common way of the cap fitting the blade and fitting into a deeper recess in the arbor & held by a flathead socket screw. There are multiple places to get errors.


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## davidpbest (May 2, 2022)

Larry$ said:


> Nothing like just doing it to build confidence! I have noticed that slitting saws rarely run absolutely true, even on videos by very good machinists. I've got several slitting saws from the Czech republic. They all have some wobble. I made my arbors the common way of the cap fitting the blade and fitting into a deeper recess in the arbor & held by a flathead socket screw. There are multiple places to get errors.


Very true.  I have yet to experience, or even witness a slitting saw that did NOT exhibit some intermittent cutting action when engaged. In my own tests, I have confirmed that the source of the radial runout is often in the blade, not the arbor - the teeth after sharpening are slightly eccentric to the arbor hole, even with new blades.  Axial runout (wobble) is a killer and usually the fault of the arbor, but some radial runout (intermittent cutting) is to be expected due to slight variations in teeth concentricity.  The following video is Part 2 of Stefan Gotteswinter’s precision slitting saw arbor build, and even he admits this is the case.  Watch this video starting at 29:45.


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## Just for fun (May 17, 2022)

So, after my email to Sierra American I have had several phone conversations with them.  They do recognize they had a problem, and it sounds like they are going to recall the units that are not sold.  At least for me they replaced the cap with just a larger machined hole so the saw blade doesn't get pulled off center.

I think it was pretty impressive that they followed up and actually called me from the manufacturing facility to confirm what I thought was the problem.  They confirmed that the threaded hole in the arbor is off center.  You're not going to get that kind of response from most companies.

Tim


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## DavidR8 (May 17, 2022)

Just for fun said:


> So, after my email to Sierra American I have had several phone conversations with them.  They do recognize they had a problem, and it sounds like they are going to recall the units that are not sold.  At least for me they replaced the cap with just a larger machined hole so the saw blade doesn't get pulled off center.
> 
> I think it was pretty impressive that they followed up and actually called me from the manufacturing facility to confirm what I thought was the problem.  They confirmed that the threaded hole in the arbor is off center.  You're not going to get that kind of response from most companies.
> 
> Tim


That's an impressive response!


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## WobblyHand (May 17, 2022)

Just for fun said:


> So, after my email to Sierra American I have had several phone conversations with them.  They do recognize they had a problem, and it sounds like they are going to recall the units that are not sold.  At least for me they replaced the cap with just a larger machined hole so the saw blade doesn't get pulled off center.
> 
> I think it was pretty impressive that they followed up and actually called me from the manufacturing facility to confirm what I thought was the problem.  They confirmed that the threaded hole in the arbor is off center.  You're not going to get that kind of response from most companies.
> 
> Tim


Good that you got this response.  For what it is worth, I told them the threaded hole in the arbor was off center on April 11th.  On April 12th, they responded to me, but didn't acknowledge the issue.  Happy that finally they took a look at what they were doing.  Thank you Tim for being articulate enough to get a company to change.  It will be good for Sierra American.


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## woodchucker (May 17, 2022)

Just for fun said:


> So, after my email to Sierra American I have had several phone conversations with them.  They do recognize they had a problem, and it sounds like they are going to recall the units that are not sold.  At least for me they replaced the cap with just a larger machined hole so the saw blade doesn't get pulled off center.
> 
> I think it was pretty impressive that they followed up and actually called me from the manufacturing facility to confirm what I thought was the problem.  They confirmed that the threaded hole in the arbor is off center.  You're not going to get that kind of response from most companies.
> 
> Tim


that doesn't sound like a reasonable solution. That sounds like a poor bandaid.


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## wachuko (Jun 12, 2022)

Well.... I finally got around to looking at mine...  




Sure enough, same issue you encountered. 




And the amount of chips inside the threaded hole was incredible... this is just a sample, not all that came out.  I should have made a pile of everything and taken a photo...




Here you can see the bolt after I tighten it... scrapes the inner side of the cap. 




What is the easiest route?  just machine the bolt so there is no interference?  EDIT:  Oh I see... they will just provide a cap with a lager hole... cool.  Let me reach out to them.

I also checked the other, smaller ones, that I got.  Problem with those is bolts that are too long.  Easy fix that I can address myself...  This is a photo with the bolt tighten all the way in... you can see that the cap is still loose... and that gap is more than some of the saw blades I got... so the bolt needs to be shorter.


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## WobblyHand (Jun 12, 2022)

wachuko said:


> Well.... I finally got around to looking at mine...
> 
> View attachment 409868
> 
> ...


I'd just turn the cap screw head diameter down until it clears.  That's what I did and it works just fine.  As matter of fact that is what I did with both of my 1" SA arbors.  There's plenty of meat on the screw head, basically just turn off the knurling, it won't take much to fix the problem.  If you need it now, just turn the head.  It's a 30 second job on the lathe.  

Or ask SA to provide a new cap for the arbor.


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## wachuko (Jun 12, 2022)

WobblyHand said:


> I'd just turn the cap screw head diameter down until it clears.  That's what I did and it works just fine.  As matter of fact that is what I did with both of my 1" SA arbors.  There's plenty of meat on the screw head, basically just turn off the knurling, it won't take much to fix the problem.  If you need it now, just turn the head.  It's a 30 second job on the lathe.
> 
> Or ask SA to provide a new cap for the arbor.


Thank you for the confirmation.  I will drop them a note, just so they see that this is impacting their customers.  But I will just fix the one that I have.  As you mentioned seems like an easy fix.


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## woodchucker (Jun 12, 2022)

I would fix the cap, that way if I need to replace the bolt, I don't have to worry, or anyone else would need to figure it out again.


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## WobblyHand (Jun 12, 2022)

You can turn another cap screw in 30 seconds if you lose it...  But @woodchucker is right, if you fix the cap, then any bolt of the right length would work.  The setup is a lot faster to turn the cap screw.  If you mess up the cap, you are hosed.  If you mess up the screw, reach in the box for another one...

Edit: do what you think is more comfortable.  If you mess either one up, you aren't hosed.  You have machines, just make another piece.  For me I chose to turn the screw, simply because it was the easiest option to get back to work again.  I had a box of screws the right size, so it was an easy choice for me.


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## wachuko (Jun 12, 2022)

I got these just in case I ever needed them... do not have a real use for them at the moment... so I have time... I will machine the screw since I am in Ocala and do not have all the cutters here... That one I can do easily here... and just place it all back in the drawer for whenever I need it.

Thank you!


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## Just for fun (Jun 12, 2022)

I machined the screw on mine and then the manufacturer sent me a new cap.  So now I have both.


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