Ridgid 3650 TS Belt Dragging

Al Launier

Member
Messages
1,683
Location
Bedford, NH
I've been modifying my TS on/off over the past month, or so, to enclose the bottom portion with 1/2" plywood so I can attach the Dust Right hose to the left side. The front & sides enclosed easily & are held in place with magnets. Today I finally got around to working out an enclosure scheme for the rear of the saw to accommodate the motor support, pulley belt, etc. In moving the blade from perpendicular to 45° to test out what was needed, I noticed that the lower portion of the pulley belt actually drags on the sheet metal saw housing from around the 10° to the 30° position. This made me curious to see if any other Ridgid 3650 TS owners have. or are, experiencing the same thing. I haven't tried to adjust the (2) pin slide yet, or anything else for that matter, as I have to call it quits for today.

Anyone else experience this?
 
I hadn't noticed that problem with mine. When you get a chance, a few pictures might help us debug it for you.
 
Well, it's one of two things:
  1. When I first assembled the TS I probably forgot to tighten down the (2) 5/8" shafts that supports the motor & slides to adjust the tension on the pulley belt, or
  2. The bolts that secure the (2) shafts could have vibrated loose during use, but doubtful.
I'm betting on #1. Makes me wonder in senility is headed my way? :huh:
So, I simply pulled the motor further backward & tighten the shaft bolts.

While I'm addressing the TS, today I enclosed the rear using leather & snaps to hold it in place. It's not quite finished yet. Tomorrow I'm planning on attaching a "loose" leather flap to cover most of the larger hole on the left side. It'll allow itself to be easily moved out of the way as its contacted...I hope.

I've also included a couple of extra shots to show the duct arrangement for the dust collector.
 

Attachments

  • Dust Collection Hose Arrangement-1 Resized 75%.jpg
    Dust Collection Hose Arrangement-1 Resized 75%.jpg
    49.7 KB · Views: 20
  • Dust Collection Hose Arrangement-2 Resized 75%.jpg
    Dust Collection Hose Arrangement-2 Resized 75%.jpg
    52.7 KB · Views: 20
  • Left Side Enclosure & Dust Collector Flanged Port-Resized 75%.jpg
    Left Side Enclosure & Dust Collector Flanged Port-Resized 75%.jpg
    40.7 KB · Views: 18
  • Rear Enclosure Leather-1 Resized 75%.jpg
    Rear Enclosure Leather-1 Resized 75%.jpg
    59.7 KB · Views: 21
  • Rear Enclosure Leather-2 Resized 75%.jpg
    Rear Enclosure Leather-2 Resized 75%.jpg
    59.5 KB · Views: 19
  • Rear Enclosure Template-1 Resized 75%.jpg
    Rear Enclosure Template-1 Resized 75%.jpg
    43.8 KB · Views: 21
  • Rear Enclosure Template-2 Resized 75%.jpg
    Rear Enclosure Template-2 Resized 75%.jpg
    61.3 KB · Views: 20
Last edited:
Well, glad you got the belts figured out. I'm sure you didn't forget, the little gremlins got in there and loosened them. Happens to me all the time, those darn little guys.

When I enclosed my old contractor saw, I made the plywood I used on the back so I could slid it off fairly easily, and didn't leave the big hole to accommodate angle cutting. I figured 90'+ of the time I cut at 90', the other percent I just slipped the cover off and didn't have good dust collection.
 
That came out really slick, Al. :thumb: On mine, I used magnetic car sign material to close off the bulk of the back. I didn't leave room to tilt the blade, because I almost never tilt it anyway. For the rare occasions when I need a bevel cut, I can just remove the magnetic stuff to get the needed clearance. I also like the way you approached the dust collection. I ended up removing most of the shroud around the blade on mine, closing off the bottom with plywood, and putting a 4" dust port on the bottom. Not great, but better than nothing. I suspect yours will work much better than mine. :yes:
 
Here is what I did to the back of mine. I also included a few shots of the dust collection hook up for mine. Never had a problem with the belt rubbing on the saw.
07-19-2011 002.JPG07-19-2011 001.JPG2-1-11 004.jpg2-1-11 003.jpg7-4-09 005.jpg7-4-09 006.jpg
 
That's a nice job Alan, particularly at the rear - very neat, very professional!:thumb:

I located my Dust Right port on the LH side because of the length of 4" Dust Right hose. If I had placed it at the rear I felt it would have kinked the hose a bit.

The front & (2) side panels are each held in place with corner magnets. The panels are easily pushed in if needed for access to the interior, and there is a screw installed & centered in each panel that is partially extended on the outside to serve as a "handle" to return & align the panel when returning them to their install position.

I was going to use magnets again for securing the rear panel, but I had a supply of canvas snaps and felt they would stretch & hold the leather better. The large hole has to be addressed as it looks horrible. I cannot use a single piece panel as the configuration of my saw is different than Alan's. The boss that holds the blade splitter actually contacts the table when at 45° which prevents a single piece design. So, I'll have to come up with a moveable "flap" of some sort. As it is now, there should be plenty of air flow with the large openings. ;) :rofl:

As for the duct work inside, time will tell if the 4" portion extends too far into the "box". If it does, I'll cut a couple inches off the end. I'm reluctant to do that at this time as that might merge the two pipe sections together into one large opening & reduce the effectiveness of the suction for both the blade & the box. The flow would be there, but it might not be enough to draw the sawdust well??? :huh:
 
Last edited:
Top