A Little Bit About Powermatic
Located in McMinnville, Tennessee, Powermatic Corporation officially started in 1928, building large wood planers. Nearly 90 years later and after several different owners, Powermatic Corporation is still producing woodworking machinery in its 400,000 square foot facility in LaVergne, Tennessee.
Though founder Leonard F Smith started the company by building and selling planers, Powermatic now produces many quality woodworking machines from planers, to CNC routers, band saws, table saws, and more.
What is a Table Saw?
A table saw is a circular saw that is mounted on an arbor under a table, through which the blade protrudes. The main function of a table saw is to hold the saw blade at the desired or necessary angle while the woodworker pushes material through the blade.
The blade can be moved up and down to expose more or less of the blade, altering the depth of the cut. It can also cut different angles into the material by changing the angle of the blade.
Parts of a Table Saw
- Base – The base houses and protects the working parts of the saw and supports the entire machine.
- Table – The table supports the material being cut and plays an important role in the performance of the saw and quality of the cut. In order to support the wood being cut and ensure a good clean cut, the table must be flat and durable. Typically a good quality table will be made of cast iron.
- Fence and Rails – The fence guides the wood as it is being cut and is fully adjustable to accommodate any width of cut within the saw’s range. The rails support the fence and keep it perfectly parallel to the blade. The fence also “rides” on the rails when making adjustments.
- Motor – The motor is one of the four parts that make up the mechanical components of the machine. The size and quality of the motor varies greatly from machine to machine and can have a big impact on the capacity of the saw.
- Arbor Assembly – This is what helps to raise and lower the blade. The arbor shaft holds the blade. As part of the assembly, the sector gear operates in conjunction with a worm gear to raise and lower the blade.
- Trunnions – These hold the motor and assembly in place and keep the blade aligned with the fence. They also absorb the vibrations from the motor and blade and transfer it into the base.
Our Powermatic 72
Our Powermatic 72 table saw was built in 1977 and weighs nearly 900 pounds.
As for table saws, it is about as smooth as they get. We currently have this saw set up to a dado set. It is only used to cut a small notch in the drawer boxes we build that are set up with undermount drawer glides. Sometimes we also use it with a power feeder to run the dados.
Contact us to learn more about the machines that power our woodworking shop and don’t forget to follow @DPJuza on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, Google+, and LinkedIn!