Sabre52
Cave Dweller
Me and my gal, Rosie
Member since August 2005
Posts: 20,487
|
Post by Sabre52 on Apr 5, 2011 18:17:55 GMT -5
Howdy folks, Well since my old Beacon Star ten inch saw melted down. I got me a new Covington ten inch rig. Got a good price thanks to our member Johns Gems. Came complete with blade, power feed vice etc and was well packed with fast delivery. Since this is my first new saw in like 30 years, I'll be posting reviews on performance etc so those of you considering a new saw will have knowledge of what to expect from this machine. Just a couple of things right off the bat that I don't particularly like about the unit. #1 the sumps drain right out on the saw table. No way provided to attach a hose and no way to get any kind of cup or can under the drain. Will have to drain the gunk onto my table and make a drain in the table that drops to a bucket. John was helpful in making suggestions on how to replumb the rig but you know, if the folks building these saws used these saws, they would plumb it right in the first place. I firmly believe rock saw designers have mostly never sawed a dang rock or are just plain stupid, take your pick. Oil sump is tiny too which will mean much more frequent cleaning. The second item I noticed is the vice size which is friggin minute compared to my old rig. The beacon Star has a 3 1/2 high but almost 6" wide vice so you could actually cut like a 3 1/2 by five rock. This Covington has a 3 1/2" by 3 1/2 inch vice so the rocks you can mount and saw are much smaller. Rest of the set up looks pretty well built and I'll make additional posts on how everything functions including the Gold Chinese blade that John was a little skeptical about. It is a very thin blade that looks more suited for strictly trimming, so I expect it will wear out fast.....Mel Anyway here's a pic of the whole set up on my rolling table: Here are the next to useless drain plugs I mentioned: Note position, way inboard of the table edge and right on the deck so you can't get beneath them. In contrast, the old Beacon Star had a pipe extending way out from the front so you could drain over the table edge into a bucket. The tiny vice. Metal bottom and wood top too which is unlike any saw I've used before. All the others had wood top and bottom. Seems to grip well but I'll probably line it with some wood on the bottom too for a more secure hold.
|
|
|
Post by jakesrocks on Apr 5, 2011 18:39:10 GMT -5
They really haven't changed that much over the years. If it serves you as well as my late 60's / early 70's Covington saw has and still is, it's money well spent. For your drain problems, go to the hardware store and buy yourself a couple of 1/4" pipe nipples in a length that serves you best. The older saw only had one drain. With the pipe nipple and a 1/4" ball valve, draining has been quick and easy for me. Best to remove the blade to clean the remaining rock snot out of the sump. Not much room in there if you have big hands. Oh, and dump that blade and get a good one. Covington used to put good blades on their saws, but the new blades are garbage. Don
|
|
|
Post by tkrueger3 on Apr 5, 2011 19:02:30 GMT -5
Mel, if you want to get rid of the blade, I would trade you a new one that I have - they are Chinese, but they are stout. I bought a lot of 5 of them and I'm still on the 1st one. They are "Norton" brand, 250mm, 5/8" shaft, continuous rim, and are 2.18mm thick at the edge. The diamond part covers about 12-13mm of the edge. I would like to have a thin blade that I could change to for cutting some different materials.
Just a thought ....
Tom
|
|
|
Post by roy on Apr 5, 2011 19:46:40 GMT -5
glad to here you got a new saw mel ! now you need to make it dirty they look better that way!and the rocks you cut are always a treat to see
|
|
Sabre52
Cave Dweller
Me and my gal, Rosie
Member since August 2005
Posts: 20,487
|
Post by Sabre52 on Apr 5, 2011 19:52:59 GMT -5
Thanks for the info Don. That's pretty much what John said too but I'm not a big fan of doing plumbing. Will probably just drain it onto the table and down a drain that way.
Tom: Thanks for the offer but if the new blade is junk I wouldn't want to stick you with it and I'm interested in seeing how the provided blade works just as a learning experience. I have the good blade from the old saw still and a MK 303 in reserve so if the new blade sucks it won't be a big deal....Mel
|
|
|
Post by parfive on Apr 5, 2011 21:13:33 GMT -5
If it ain’t hooked up to a sink or a shitter, Mel, it ain’t plumbin’.
All you got there’s a little tinkerin’. ;D
|
|
|
Post by catmandewe on Apr 5, 2011 22:27:49 GMT -5
I am interested in what you think of this saw.
Tony
|
|
Sabre52
Cave Dweller
Me and my gal, Rosie
Member since August 2005
Posts: 20,487
|
Post by Sabre52 on Apr 5, 2011 22:46:10 GMT -5
Rich: Perhaps true, but then, ain't the friggin tinkering the domain of the dude who designs the saw? If I go out and buy me a new gun, I don't expect to have to drill the barrel myself so the friggin bullet has a hole to fly out of. Or if I buy a lamp and light bulb, I don't expect to have to wire a the lamp I screw I the bulb into. I'm a rockhound, not a plumber, I'm a shooter, not a gunsmith and I want light to read by, I'm not an electrician ! If you design a saw to sell and it has to be periodically drained, put in a friggin functional drain. If I wanted oil to go all over Hell, I'd just turn the saw upside down and dump it in the direction of a bucket. Oops. I guess I just described all the Lortone saws where they expect you to hire a strong man to lift the 75 pound saw out of their stupid coolant pan *L* Them's another bunch of design geniuses..Mel
PS: Sent Covington a question regarding this issue and as of now, still no return comments.
|
|
bushmanbilly
Cave Dweller
Member since October 2008
Posts: 4,719
|
Post by bushmanbilly on Apr 5, 2011 22:53:28 GMT -5
Mel unbolt the saw from the base,slide it head and re drill new holes. Cheaper than buying nipples and valves. I was going to buy one of these for a second saw. I'm glad that an old friend of mine bought one first.. What I did not like about the saw was that it was imposable to build a cover that would seal. Real pain removing the table. Small sump, bad motor placement. And most important for me was the play between the vice and guide rod. They could have put bushings in to tighten it up a bit. The arbor has 1 water pump bearing in it. Should have two bearings for better support. The fact is my Franton has a bigger arbor than there 16 inch saw. I know I would not trade my 2 10 inch Frantons for them. I agree that the people that biuld them don't use them. One more thing. Mel your shop is just tooooooooooo clean.
|
|
|
Post by parfive on Apr 5, 2011 23:46:57 GMT -5
Mel - Looking at your second pic (the head-on shot) I saw the two drain plugs, and wondered what the brass gizmo on the left side was. According to Covington: Koolerant Kontrol Valve "C" adjusts flow from reservoir "A" into blade compartment "B" to maintain proper level. Excess Koolerant from cutting area is returned to the reservoir.That explains the two drain plugs. So I’m guessing it’s a manual valve and you have to pay attention to how much oil the blade is picking up. Curious to hear how that works out.
|
|
|
Post by parfive on Apr 5, 2011 23:52:17 GMT -5
ps - When you buy a gun, does it come with all the crap you need to clean it?
|
|
|
Post by frane on Apr 6, 2011 9:44:31 GMT -5
That is the same saw I have. I do have the Plexiglas cover and that helps cut down on misting or splash but it is still hard to see through and I am always wiping it off. I agree with the vice width. I wish it was wider but it seems to be a good feed system. I was advised from someone here (maybe Kap) to go out and get the galvanized or stainless steel 1/4' nipples x 6" length. We just screwed them in with a little of the white plumbers tape on the ends and there are no leaks (Oh, we have screw on caps on the ends). Works really well for draining into a paper bag over a bucket. As for the oil control knob, I am still learning about that. I tend to let too much oil in I guess and have to wipe the table off all the time. I have probably only made about 50 cuts with this blade and it has glazed over three times that I have had to use the stone that came with it to redress it. I just ordered some blades from Catmandewe because I am afraid that my blade is going bad. (Rocks keep trying to ride up the blade). I still consider myself new at saws that use oil anyway so I am getting used to it. One thing I will complain about is how hard it is to get some of the screws back in place after you take the table top off and want to put it back on. Some of the angles are really hard to get to! I spend more time dropping washers and nuts and trying to work them back into place than actually using the saw on the days I have to do any work on it. I will cut a piece of obsidian this week and see if that helps this blade any before attempting to cut anything else this week. Over all, I like it but I don't have anything but a swap top trim saw and a tile saw to compare it to. Fran
|
|
stefan
Cave Dweller
Member since January 2005
Posts: 14,113
|
Post by stefan on Apr 6, 2011 10:43:08 GMT -5
Mel is right- If he only paid $50 for the saw then yea you could learn to work around the "design oversights" But I know he paid a tad more the $50. THe saw should be as near perfect (function wise)as is possible in a mass produced peice of equipment. Covington should have added the drain extentions right off the bat. Heck what would they added to the price of the saw- another $20?? Probably like another $5. I'm interested to hear how everything else works as I've been toying with the idea of getting a "real" saw.
|
|
Sabre52
Cave Dweller
Me and my gal, Rosie
Member since August 2005
Posts: 20,487
|
Post by Sabre52 on Apr 6, 2011 18:55:14 GMT -5
Dang fran, that rock riding up the blade concerns me. The saw is supposed to have a bracket beneath the table to prevent that. I notice that problem with the table top too. Again, the old Beacon Star had a flip up table and big really easy to clean sump. I am also wondering how long it takes the valve between the two tanks to gunk up. I suspect this rig will have to be cleaned way more often. I guess, I'll have to drive into town and get some pipe and caps for the drains.
Billy, you would still need the extension pipe and cap as otherwise the gunk would just drain down the front of the saw as the holes are flush.
|
|
|
Post by texaswoodie on Apr 6, 2011 19:19:25 GMT -5
Well, I told ya to get a 14. ;D
Curt
|
|
|
Post by lonetreestudios on Apr 6, 2011 19:39:11 GMT -5
OK, I am just a dumb structural engineer, but I gotta ask... Frane, you mention the rock riding up the blade as the vise/carriage feeds into it? Dumb question, but the blade is turning INTO the rock, correct? If so, and it is still riding up against the rotation of the blade, would seem there is a serious problem there. Granted, the only Covi I have is their 16" cabinet model, so maybe I don't get it.. Mel, sorry for hijacking your thread...good luck getting all the kinks worked out to your liking...
Rodney
|
|
LarryS
freely admits to licking rocks
SoCal desert rats
Member since August 2010
Posts: 781
|
Post by LarryS on Apr 6, 2011 20:29:25 GMT -5
I just purchased this saw too and cut a dozen jasp-agate slabs last Saturday, all around max size. The Gold blade left no saw marks and looks like all they need is polish. I did have one rock climb up the blade because I forgot to tighten down the "vise control knob." There is your problem Frane. The one time I walked away from the saw, the rock started to ride up the blade. My biggest problem was useing "Lube Cool" as my water additive and darn stuff foamed up like crazy. I ended up constantly adjusting the reservoir control knob every couple minutes. No way will I ever use oil and this is the main reason I chose this size of saw. Other than that, saw worked great. Very quiet. I do not like how the table is attached. You're correct about spending a lot of time playing around with washers & nuts. I'll have to make some modifications there. Just ordered a 303 blade from JS Gems because I have a few hundred pounds of very hard rocks to slab & trim.
LarryS
|
|
Digforcrystals
spending too much on rocks
Member since July 2008
Posts: 351
|
Post by Digforcrystals on Apr 6, 2011 20:49:53 GMT -5
Well, I told ya to get a 14. ;D Curt The lortone 12 i have is really nice. I got mine for $1,100.00 delivered and that is with a mk-301 blade. the vise on mine can cut a rock 7" long x 5" high . It just seems like the covington 10 shown here would have very limited use for most people.
|
|
|
Post by frane on Apr 6, 2011 21:18:42 GMT -5
I think my problem is the original blade is just about shot and as far as I am concerned, it should last for more than aprox. 50 cuts. I just cut two more slabs and the second one started to ride up. It doesn't go up too far. Maybe 1/4" but it is enough to make the cut uneven. I will have to wait till this weekend to have enough time to try and change the blade. Here is a picture of the pipes we put on it. I think visuals always help. Fran
|
|
|
Post by Roller on Apr 7, 2011 0:41:00 GMT -5
Iam sorry to hear all this ! i had enough problems w my brand new raytech but they fixed them ... i was gunna buy a lortone like dig did but i didnt cus of hearsay ... i did tons of research and didnt buy the covington cus of vice size ... i really wanted the bd 14 but didnt have the room for it ... or can carry it down a flight of stairs every day like my raytech .. i would complain complain complain until its right ...u know how much time it takes to save up an EXTRA g ?get at them !
|
|