# Table saw: is it common for miter slot not to be exactly parallel to the blade?



## pman626 (Jun 28, 2016)

I slid the miter gauge along the slot, and determined that the rear of the slot is 1-2mm off parallel from the blade.

Is this common among table saws?

below is an exaggerated birds-eye drawing.


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## ZZZZZ (Oct 1, 2014)

May be common on el cheapo saws, but certainly not on a well-made unit.

If it's a new saw, I'd return it.

But are you 100% certain that the blade itself is straight and square to the table?
.
.


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## Nealtw (Jun 22, 2017)

The saw head may be adjustable or the table was mounted wrong or may be adjustable


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## Bud9051 (Nov 11, 2015)

Basically it should be perfect. Any angle will have the heel of the blade lifting the edges of the wood making for a poor cut.

As suggested, look for an adjustment or an assembly problem.

Bud


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## kwikfishron (Mar 11, 2010)

What saw do you have (make/model)? The better ones have adjustments for that.


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## ChuckF. (Aug 25, 2013)

It's pretty common. I have a dial gauge that I can attach to the T-square, and run it by the blade with the tip on the side of the blade. Typically under the table, there will be big bolts that attach the bearing pillow blocks for the blade shaft to the table, and there's enough play in those to get it aligned.

First though I would check the blade for wobble. Third, I would use the same setup to check the rip fence for parallel to the miter slot.

Roger Cliffe has a great book called Table Saw Techniques where he goes into alignment. Get it prefectly aligned with a good blade and your crosscuts will be glass-smooth. Align everything else to the miter slot because that can't change.


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## 47_47 (Sep 11, 2007)

ChuckF. said:


> It's pretty common. I have a dial gauge that I can attach to the T-square, and run it by the blade with the tip on the side of the blade. Typically under the table, there will be big bolts that attach the bearing pillow blocks for the blade shaft to the table, and there's enough play in those to get it aligned.
> 
> First though I would check the blade for wobble. Third, I would use the same setup to check the rip fence for parallel to the miter slot.
> 
> Roger Cliffe has a great book called Table Saw Techniques where he goes into alignment. Get it prefectly aligned with a good blade and your crosscuts will be glass-smooth. Align everything else to the miter slot because that can't change.


Good post above. In addition, measure to the same point on the same tooth before adjusting.


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## SeniorSitizen (Sep 10, 2012)

Exactly parallel is DG ( damm good ) and most aren't exactly but yours could use some adjustment and the saw manual usually has these instructions.

For this adjustment and several other low cost uses for DIY'ers, a combination square is a must then with a set of feeler gauges that measure at minimum down to 0.0015" the saw can be made DC close to exactly. Are the feeler gauges a must have?, certainly not, a roll your own cigarette paper will get you DC close as it did when I was young, poor and didn't know better.

The same tools are handy for paralleling the rip fence to the slot.


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## pman626 (Jun 28, 2016)

i ditched the cheap Porter Cable black friday table saw and bought a new Kobalt 1015, made by Delta, for ~$145 after coupons.

what a deal. and it comes with wheels.
The kobalt actually lets you align the blade to the miter slot if it's slightly out of wack.
The kobalt also has sliding fence rails like the dewalts, so I never have to unclamp the fence. Just set it once.

The porter cable is garbage, and I could not see how to align the blade. 
The fence is also garbage, with 2 flaws. No rear clamp, and the fence is actually warped and bulges a little in the rear, so it will push your wood away out the back.

The biggest insult was that Porter Cable has several customer service phone numbers, depending on who manufactured the product, and for this particular table saw, customer service goes straight to voice mail, and they never call you back.

So this portercable is going back to the store, and I hope PC can go F themselves.


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