Hi all,
Just thought i would give everyone using the M503 digital readouts a heads up on a potential issue. This may simply be a case of "you get what you pay for" & i'm ok with that sometimes.?
I originally used one of these DRO's on the crosscut fence of my old machine. Well i took that one off my old machine when i sold it, and have been using it on my new machine for the past year or so. It's been dead on accurate the whole time, so much so, i decided to see if i could make something work for the rip side of my CF741. That too worked, however i was never happy with the way the mag tape just hung in no-man's land at the gap between the saw/shaper table, and the jointer outfeed table. I figured that would some day become an issue, but trying to find time to fix the issue wasn't easy. Finally i put some thought to it, and added some aluminum angle to the saw side as support, and put on a new mag tape to get the join slightly further towards the jointer side, since the old tape didn't line up exactly.
This is where cracks started to appear in the system. I can only assume this is an issue with the magnetic tape, since that is the only thing i have changed, but now i don't seem to be getting an accurate reading. I can "zero" the fence to my known position, but then either side of that point, it seems to creep out roughly 1mm either side. One thing i have added this time around was the thin metal adhesive backed strip that is supplied with the magnetic tape. I assume this is simply to protect the magnetic tape? Could this be the casue of this innacuracy? I guess that is where i should start, by removing it, and seeing if the accuracy improves. If not, then it will be the tape itself & i will try replacing that.
I will let you know how i get on, but wanted to give others a heads up, since this has basically rendered mine useless until i sort it out.
Regards,
Bryce
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https://www.brycecomerwoodworks.com/
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCHdrRaAZd_pOa7wwbdNPUEw
Bryce Comer
