Here’s a brain teaser for y’all.
I have a Skill 77 that’s about…oh, 10 years old or so. I used it daily building homes when I worked as a carpenter. Well, about 6 months ago, half way through building my own house, the saw took a dump. It moans and groans and turns over very slowly. I have since bought a new 77 and just planned on chucking the old saw but with the pool of experts here, I thought I’d give the saw one more chance. I have checked the brushes and they appear alright. I have a new set of brushes handy but didn’t think the condition of the existing brushes warranted replacement. This saw has been through Hellen Back, soaked in rain storms out working, dropped off roofs, etc. It has always pulled through just fine but she’s really sick now.
Any ideas to salvage her?
Replies
I don't have a clue why the old one does not work but try not leaving the new one out in the rain, or dropping it off of roofs!
I still have the original Milwaukee sidewinder that I bought used back in 1974, runs like a charm, it is going to make it to the end with me! Course its a Milwaukee, built to last forever.
Doug
I too have a milwakee worm drive and sawsall...indestructable!!!
The working in the rain and dropping things off roofs (accidentially) are juse everyday events when working as a carpenter. Can't tell the boss that "I need to stop working now because I don't want my saw to get wet" I take care of my tools but I'm a firm beleiver that if a tool can't take some punishment, I don't want to own it"
1974.......Now that is a testimony for a great tool.
MES
My Sawzall is over 30 years old...
Life is not a journey to the grave with the intention of arriving safely in a pretty and well preserved body, but rather to skid in broadside, thoroughly used up, totally worn out, and loudly proclaiming.... WOW!!! What a Ride!
Edited 9/1/2004 12:37 pm ET by IMERC
Check the oil level lately?
Is the blade hard to turn?
Lots of sparks when it runs?
Do the lights dim a lot when it runs?
Does is smell stinky?
Does the plug get hot?
Could be a lot of things.
I haven't checked the oil lately but the blade isn't any harder to turn than normal.
It doesn't make any kind of mechanical grinding noise such as gears, etc. It's a labored hum...kind of like the sound you would get if the blade binds and you don't let off the trigger. The blade turns but it probably at something like 60 RPM.
Sounds like a shorted winding. Usually a motor will smell like its burning or put off a chemical smell if the windings are overheating. Turning very slow under no load is also a symptom, as well as high current draw.
Mine was doing just that after its first season in the wet. It was 10-15 yo at the time. Have the armature? turned.
Armature or whatever that band of bars is called that the brushes rub against.
SamT
SamT,
That's the commutator, the armature is in the middle. Local shop has a commutator stone that they stick in the vent slot as the saw is running. Pretty impressive 30 second fix.
I vote for a shorted winding on Lurch's saw.
KK
I vote for worn brushes shorting the comutators...
Life is not a journey to the grave with the intention of arriving safely in a pretty and well preserved body, but rather to skid in broadside, thoroughly used up, totally worn out, and loudly proclaiming.... WOW!!! What a Ride!
You guys are carpenters not electric types. You are not allowed to know anything about anything other than wood and nails. Electric tools are not wood and nails. (smiles)
CurlyHand Hewn Restorations Inc.
Restoring the past for the future.
Sorry, I'm the electric type. I'n not a wood butcher.
Commutator. Thanks.
Would you believe that in the Navy I taught motors and generators? In '69-'70.
Too many good drugs since then, I guess(|:>)
SamT
With the saw unplugged, try turning the blade by hand. If it moves relatively easily in both directions and makes no grinding or chattering noises, then it's probably an electrical problem, like shorted windings. Otherwise, I'd suspect the worm gear, worm, or bearings. In that case, take the worm assembly apart, clean things out, and look them over.
-- J.S.
Look into the brushes..
Life is not a journey to the grave with the intention of arriving safely in a pretty and well preserved body, but rather to skid in broadside, thoroughly used up, totally worn out, and loudly proclaiming....
WOW!!! What a Ride!
From your description it's one of two things: Either a bearing is binding or the motor has an internal short.
You can disassemble the gearbox and make sure that the thrust bearing on the worm hasn't disintegrated, causing the worm to bind. This could happen even if the unit seems to turn OK by hand.
If it's the motor, it's iffy if it's worth repairing. Armature = $57, field = $34 (plus probably another $30-40 in bearings and seals), and it's hard to be sure which part is bad (though a guy at a motor shop might be able to test them for you).
Here's a diagram and parts list:
http://www.toolpartsdirect.com/cgi-bin/noframes.cgi/skil/77_TYPE_17
Thanks for that link!
I might take it in to the shop for diagnosis and just buy the parts and repair it myself if it's only a $50 part. I purchased a new 77 already so the old one isn't needed but if the choice is to either spend $50 or toss it in the garbage, I'd rather spend the $50.
Once I get finished with my house, I'll have some time to tinker with stuff like that
Nice house....
But...
I guess you didn't know about the grain orientation Tyvek has...
Life is not a journey to the grave with the intention of arriving safely in a pretty and well preserved body, but rather to skid in broadside, thoroughly used up, totally worn out, and loudly proclaiming.... WOW!!! What a Ride!
You mean he didn't get all the Tyvek logos upside down like you're supposed to???
That was taken last fall, the house is almost done now. Built with a crew of one...myself. I didn't have the luxury of any equipment to do any of the lifting...a strong back and plenty of beer for pain. Attached is the down hill side.
Nice work Lurch...
Have any up dated pics?
Life is not a journey to the grave with the intention of arriving safely in a pretty and well preserved body, but rather to skid in broadside, thoroughly used up, totally worn out, and loudly proclaiming.... WOW!!! What a Ride!
Here's some taken last night
Very nicely done...
Life is not a journey to the grave with the intention of arriving safely in a pretty and well preserved body, but rather to skid in broadside, thoroughly used up, totally worn out, and loudly proclaiming.... WOW!!! What a Ride!
Yes, very nice indeed. Being myself in a place where it hasn't snowed since 1948, I wonder how that affected your design. The roof looks like about 12 in 12, is that steep enough that the stuff slides off as it arrives?
-- J.S.
No, it won't slide off...last year we had a couple feet piled up on it. It just hangs there till it gradually melts in the spring. The comp. shingles grab on to the stuff pretty well
Ah, so an avalanche onto the back deck isn't really a worry.
-- J.S.
nice place...izzat yer bike out front? looks kinda small for a "Lurch"...lol
hey? what time is dark about now? no totaltity yet?
Spheramid Enterprises Architectural Woodworks
Repairs, Remodeling, Restorations.
Nice house Lurch! Any chance of gettin' a close-up of the front door?
Rez...thanks for taking the time to re-size the pix!
Dez
Sure.
I get to see all this cool stuff. Just trying to throw something in the kitty to help pay the piper and keep it playing smooth.
If yer gonna dance ya gotta pay the band.be dead on or that quarter inch is going to haunt you
I'll try to remember to take some of the front door. A friend of mine that has a hobby cabinet shop built the door for me. It's about 3" thick, heavily insulated and the outside is made with individually tapered exotic woods and there is a hand carving at the center of the door on both the inside and outside. He built it for us just for the cost of materials and it was about $1000. He said he'd have to charge $5000 to $6000 for the door in order for it to be profitable for him. He doesn't think anyone would spend that kind of money for a door so he's just not making them anymore.
Lurch,
Looking forward to a close-up! Maybe your friend will have some newly found interest in his doors after posting a pic...lots of folks (have) and pay big bucks for one-off good looking entry doors.
Dez
Getting dark about 9:30 pm...loosing about 7 minutes of light every day. We'll get down to about 3.5 hours of light per day.
Nice house!
That'll be fun to side those 4rth story gables!
How will you scaffold her?___________________________________________
Common sense is a gift from God that cannot be taught.
There is now a full deck across the back side which I used two extension ladders and ladder jacks with a versa-lam plank to side the high stuff. I have one more side of the house to install siding on and I'll be done. Moose and Caribou season is gonna put a little crimp in my work schedule but that's the way it goes. I'll snap a few more pictures in the next couple days and post them if anyone's interested. Anyone interested in hunting and flying pictures?
yes, post the pics!!!
I was in Anchorage the night before the opening day of Moose season..man, whatever that big lake was near my hotel, certainly had a LOT of float planes taking off, beginning at 0300..kinda hard to sleep..spent 3 weeks all over the area of Mat. valley...loved it all..so, show pics!!!
Spheramid Enterprises Architectural Woodworks
Repairs, Remodeling, Restorations.
You asked for it. For those of you who belong to "friends of animals" or PETA, you might not want to open the attachments.
The two Caribou pics are my wife and I...we hunt together
The young man soiling his pants next to the bear is a friend. Yes, it's a wild bear. We were salmon fishing.
The plane pics are of my Maule.
The sheep pics are me. How I managed to get that beer gut up to the sheep, I'll never know.
Nice pictures Lurch.
Man I sure do envy you. Have you lived there your whole life?
Nice house to, looks like a nice secluded area.
Doug
I've been here for about 14 years. The house is up in the hills with a view of the city lights and a portion of the Alaska Range. 7 acres so the neighbors aren't close enough to see. I can Pee off the deck without a worry!!!
I can Pee off the deck without a worry!!!
Now your talkin!!!
Doug
For those of you who belong to "friends of animals" or PETA, you might not want to open the attachments
I bet you eat some of that stuff that you kill. I'm a vetetarian and don't eat meat cause I don't hunt or fish. But it's pretty easy for me to respect someone who does.
Rob Kress
I'm a vetetarian and don't eat meat cause I don't hunt or fish.
So you eat veterinarians? Veterans?
Sorry...couldn't resist :-)PJ
Whatever you can do or dream you can,
Begin it
Boldness has genius, power and magic in it. Goethe
It's refreshing to hear a vegitarian be so accepting of those of us who aren't. I too can accept people's choice of what they eat.
Yes, we eat every bit of what we kill. We haven't had to buy meat for the last 14 years. We hunt for food every year. Moose and Caribou is way more healthy than beef, pork or poultry. There is no fat...we actually have to add 5 to 10% suet (fat) to the meat when we grind our meat so that it will stick together when we make burgers. We also make our own sausage.
be dead on or that quarter inch is going to haunt you
Awesome ram!
The awful thing is that beauty is mysterious as well as terrible. God and the devil are fighting there, and the battlefield is the heart of man.- Fyodor Dostoyevski
Thanks, it's over a full curl...42" sticks in my head but can't remember for sure...took it a couple years ago. It's 11 1/2 years old determined by fish and game. It about killed me getting it back out of the woods. 5 miles with a 120 lb pack.
That lake is Lake Hood...the largest sea plane base in Alaska. It's a cool place if you like sea planes and don't need a lot of sleep.
yup, that's it. Man I was glad to be up in the hills away from there!
I gotta get back up there sometime, it was way cool. The Alaska State fair was going on , actually it was this time of yr. 1992..really got a kick outta the 3' dia. heads of cabbage...
Never got a glimpse of Denali in three weeks...so, I gotta go back.
Spheramid Enterprises Architectural Woodworks
Repairs, Remodeling, Restorations.
Hey Imerc has family there, used to anyhow. When you go, stop by here(Texas) I'll be waiting for you at the boarder!
I always say I'm going to go there and spend some time.
Yep, things grow big up here with nearly 24 hours of daylight during the summer. See attached photo for an example.
Show...
Life is not a journey to the grave with the intention of arriving safely in a pretty and well preserved body, but rather to skid in broadside, thoroughly used up, totally worn out, and loudly proclaiming.... WOW!!! What a Ride!