Newbie here

974 Views 18 Replies 5 Participants Last post by dmrsr1956, 9 mo ago

dmrsr1956

Discussion Starter · 10 mo ago

Hi folks, I'm a transplant from South Florida, to Iowa a year ago, finally getting my little shop set up. I got a 1959 DeWALT 925 radial arm saw that I refurbed, Runs great cuts straight, very happy with it. I've also got a Craftsman 10In Table Saw, I put new bearings in it last year, runs okay, not great but it does the job. I've got a bunch of saws, drills, sanders, a good start anyway. So the reason I am here, I bought a vintage Craftsman Router Crafter from an auction for $10.00, for the amount of wood turning I do, this should be perfect. Problem, no crank handle. I checked Ebay, and did a google search and apparently there are none to be had. I'm wondering if anyone on here may have one they wouldn't mind letting go of or if anyone knows of anyone who has one. Wishful thinking I know but you don't know unless you ask.

David

Reactions: 1

1 - 19 of 19 Posts

old55

· #2 · 10 mo ago

Welcome to the forum David.

dmrsr1956

Discussion Starter · #3 · 10 mo ago (Edited by Moderator)

old55 said:
Welcome to the forum David.

Thanks Ross

Reactions: 1

John Smith_

· #4 · 10 mo ago

dmrsr1956 said:
Hi folks, I'm a transplant from South Florida, to Iowa.
David

Welcome to the forum, David - hope you enjoy your stay here.
Hopefully, I can use the tag line of Transplant from Central Florida soon. I'm one of the last Florida Natives (since 1948) and we're looking for a new homestead somewhere up the East Coast. Stupid growth is just out of stupid control.

dmrsr1956

Discussion Starter · #5 · 10 mo ago

Hey John, It really has gotten out of control down there. When I first moved to Iowa, it was extreme culture shock. Everyone is so nice here and they actually drive the speed limit...LOL That's what annoyed me the most but here I am a year later driving the speed limit. The town I live in has a population of around 800, There were close to that many people just in my neighborhood in Coral Springs. I wouldn't trade this life for anything. Anyway, I'm happy to be a part of this forum. Thanks for the welcome.

Reactions: 2

jw2170

· #6 · 10 mo ago

G'day David. welcome to the forum.

Everytime I see Iowa, I think of that book by Bill Bryson. "The Lost Continent".

That was my impression of middle America, until our road trip in 2012....

dmrsr1956

Discussion Starter · #7 · 10 mo ago

Two things about Iowa, corn and soy beans... They are everywhere here. As far as the eye can see and beyond, but it is very laid back. I'm very happy here. Nice to meet you.

Reactions: 1

DesertRatTom

· #8 · 10 mo ago

Welcome to the fun. In my younger days, I spent a little time in Iowa, and you're right about people being nice. Someone called it the corn desert. Interesting that you refurbished those tools. Cuts the cost way down.

dmrsr1956

Discussion Starter · #9 · 10 mo ago

2

Thanks Tom, it's nice to be here. Your right about the costs...New machines are so expensive. I'm just a hobbyist, so laying out a boat load of cash is not going to give me much of a return. The other thing is the quality of older equipment is far superior to today's. I've attached a couple of pics of my RAS. When I got it, there was house paint dripped all over it, not the prettiest thing but it ran and was mechanically sound other than the bearings and the start capacitor. So I changed those out, sand blasted all the old paint off and painted it gray, I really don't much care for the speckled green it was done in from the factory, built a new table out of Baltic Birch plywood and also considerably bigger than the original table, it's 4' wide and 18" deep. I have a total of about $100.00 including the saw invested in it. I found a DeWALT Radial Arm Saw forum that has bee very helpful in getting this saw back to like new condition. I'm looking forward to meeting the members here and helping and getting help with issues that come up along the way.

David

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dmrsr1956

Discussion Starter · #10 · 10 mo ago

For those who are not familiar with Radial Arm Saws, they are very versatile. If you look at my photos, there is a cutter head laying behind the fence, that is pretty much an oversized router. Not quite as easy to manipulate as a router but will do basic shaping.

jw2170

· #11 · 10 mo ago

When you see the blade turned sideways like that, you realise how versatile the RAS can be,

The Mens Shed I attend has just had one donated, so will have to use that also........

dmrsr1956

Discussion Starter · #12 · 10 mo ago

Have fun with it.

dmrsr1956

Discussion Starter · #13 · 10 mo ago

jw2170 said:
When you see the blade turned sideways like that, you realise how versatile the RAS can be,

The Mens Shed I attend has just had one donated, so will have to use that also........

What brand of saw is it?

jw2170

· #14 · 10 mo ago

Not sure, I thought I took a picture of it to check for a manual, but cannot see it....

I will take another picture on Saturday,,,,

dmrsr1956

Discussion Starter · #15 · 10 mo ago

jw2170 said:
Not sure, I thought I took a picture of it to check for a manual, but cannot see it....

I will take another picture on Saturday,,,,

I have a booklet about how to setup the 3ajor brands. I'll send it to you tomorrow. It's pretty detailed.

Reactions: 1

dmrsr1956

Discussion Starter · #16 · 10 mo ago

jw2170 said:
Not sure, I thought I took a picture of it to check for a manual, but cannot see it....

I will take another picture on Saturday,,,,

James, here is the link for that book I talked about. You should be able to copy and paste it into your browser.

http://www.drosera.f2s.com/RAS/RadialArmSaw.pdf

Reactions: 1

jw2170

· #17 · 10 mo ago

Thanks, I will check it out on Saturday....

It was not one of those 3 brands,,,,

DesertRatTom

· #18 · 9 mo ago

My late oldest brother had one he bought many years ago when he worked for Sears. I have no idea what happened to his tools. I bought all my tools while in my peak earning years. I have no regrets about having really great gear to work with. BTW, I live in Apple Valley, CA, on the edge of the Mojave desert, we moved here because every time we visited, we found friendly people who talked with us. We've made better friends here that all the years we spent in urban areas.

Reactions: 1

dmrsr1956

Discussion Starter · #19 · 9 mo ago

Are you affected by the drought there? I agree about the people in urban areas.

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