Picked up a tip about squaring up a table saw with a simple ruler trick

I read this post on a woodworking forum last night where a guy talked about using a combination square and a ruler to check the blade alignment on his old Delta saw. He said he was off by 1/16th of an inch for over a year without knowing it. That tiny gap was causing all his joints to come out just slightly off on longer cuts. I went out to my shop today and checked mine, and sure enough I had the same issue. Has anyone else dealt with this and found a good method to fix it without buying a fancy dial indicator?

3 comments

3 Comments

henryr451d ago

That 1/16th is probably just your tape measure being off, not the saw.

andrew_baker91d ago

Nah, I disagree. A good miter saw should hold a 1/16th all day long. Check your square first before blaming the tape.

tessalane1d ago

Yeah I've been down this exact road before. First thing I'd do is cut a test piece, flip it over, and see if the gap doubles. That tells you if the saw is square or not way faster than trusting a tape. Also make sure your stock isn't cupped or twisted, I've spent way too long chasing a 1/16th only to find the board was warped. And honestly, even a cheap tape measure is usually more accurate than a miter saw's detents if you haven't tuned them. Check the blade for wobble too, a bent blade will throw you off every time.