scrollsaw issue questin

[scottisscrollin]

I have a 20yr old Dremel 16"2-speed saw. I guess my question is this thing vibrates soo bad on high speed I bounces the workpiece and not to mention everything off the shelf  is this typical of an average scrollsaw? is there anything i can look for like bearings  or something that makes it this bad or shoulkd i just get a new modern one. I have a small budget so what is a nice one for under 200.00

any help would be much appreciated
thank you
Scott

[wedo]

Scott, you are finding that the Dremel does vibrate alot! There are a couple of other entry level saws that would be better, go to Lowes, Home Depot, or Menards and check them out. Have them actually turn them on with a blade (may have to bring your own) and watch for vibration. Also you can check LSN, Craigslist, eBay etc for good used. You can also check out scroll saw reviews in several forums.

[scottisscrollin]

thank you so much !

[jscott2]

If you are mechanically handy you have nothing to loose by opening it up to see if anything is broken or bent.  You might be able to separate the motor from the rest of the mechanism to see if it runs that way.  It may come down to needing to replace some bearings. If you can get the bearings out, a bearing shop may have replacements.

After 20 years, old grease may be gummed up and would need to be replaced. 

Good luck,
Jim

[dirtrider73068]

Where do you have it mounted? These saws need a good hard solid stand or benchtop to help reduce vibration and shaking when the saw is running. I had my first saw a crapsman on my bench and it would shake and vibrate, I then built a stand out of 2x4's and a 3/4 inch thick plywood top and bolted the saw down, the vibration and shaking was greatly reduced, even for a cheap low end scrollsaw.

[spirithorse]

Hi, Scott,
Before you tear into your saw, I agree with dirtrider's suggestion to try to bolt or clamp the saw down to a sturdy bench and see
if the vibration doesn't reduce greatly. I put a carpet fragment under my scrollsaw and clamped it onto the bench and it helped
a lot. I still don't ever cut at full speed but, don't find that necessary anyway.
God Bless! Spirithorse

[scottisscrollin]

thanks  for all the reply's and great suggestions
 
most of the vibration that bugs me is in the saw it's self the workpiece vibrated ridiculously  the shaking of the walls I cured by placing little rubber pieces under the legs the saw stand is on a wooden floor, not a lot I can do there
I did, however, take a good portion out of the saw by shortening the blade in the holder and loosening the tension spring, it seemed to have a stiff point where the counterbalance weight behind the bar on the rod connected to the motor and not tightening the tension and inserting the blade deeper seemed to help some, but i think i will take the one advise and look at some new ones and ask for demo
this dremel is 20years old it was my fathers and he had gotten sick from cancer and didnt use it much before he died and it sat around in the garage for 15 years before i decided to use it .all those years sitting  unused prolly didnt help .

[Norm Fengstad]

I bought a Dremel variable speed may years ago. had some frustrating issues . the tech support at Dremel were very good

[dirtrider73068]

Get some weights to put on the stand to make it heavier, sand bags or even some old lift weights from a weight machine. Doing this making the stand heavier keeps the saw movement from picking up the saw and bouncing so to say it where the vibrations and shaking are coming from. Being on a wooden floor like a shed more or less amplifies this movement, so making the stand heavier also helps.

[scottisscrollin]

thanks for all the great suggestions i have replaced all bearings and lubed everything up nicely and my neighbor who is a master craftsman  helped me with it and he said i did everything right and it still is terrible he said sometimes you just get a glitch in a machine you cant fix so i decided to keep this machine because of sentimental value and purchase a new one  just like the one he has. Its a PORTER-CABLE 1.6-Amp Variable Speed Scroll Saw from lowes he says it's not the best but it's a good saw for the money and he loves it .