RAS safety / rebate

[allisnut]

I have an older Sears RAS that I have tuned up and gotten into good working condition. Other than the table top and home made stand, I believe it is original. I cleaned & oiled it, and tightened up some adjustments when I got it. I very seldom use it though, and have been contemplating selling it. I discovered tonigt that there is an open recall for this model, with no blade guard retrofit available, but they will give me a check for $100 if I ship the saw carriage to them.

Here is my dilema - I hate the thought of scrapping an nice old piece of equipment, but I also hate the thought of selling an "unsafe" saw & someone getting hurt. Not to mention that RAS prices have dropped considerably with the popularity of 12" sliding miter saws, and the $100 rebate is probably more than the saw is worth.

I'd love to hear other's thoughts on this.

Thanks,

Adam


View attachment 5775

 

[ehpoole]

The law may well be your deciding factor, it is against the law to knowingly sell recalled merchandise.

However, you may elect to continue using the item for your personal use ... that is at your discretion.

Like you though, I'm torn at the thought of scrapping an otherwise perfectly good tool.

 

[FredP]

I gave mine away. the recipient knew of the recall and that may have been his option.:dontknow: Hope he got some use out of it. if you take the rebate it may cost you most of the 100 bucks to send them the power head.

 

[BWSmith]

Our ancient 10" Craftsman still gets used a cpl times a year.Never being a fan of RAS's in general,it never was used anywhere near its potential.

We use it for a very occasional dentil mould cut.Having several other methods,but theres one pce that still gets done on RAS.Its main job however is,holding mitre bx station.

 

[JackLeg]

:dontknow:I just set mine up for strictly doing dado's. It's still a useful tool. I agree with Fred on the shipping costs.

 

[allisnut]

Thanks for the feedback guys. I'll investigate the recall & shipping costs Monday. I could just swing the saw arm 90 degrees and have the workspace.

 

[Mark Gottesman]

Tough Call!. I for one would rather see it kept intact and rehomed to someone who will use it. From the accessories, it seems to be one of a '50s "Power Bronze" series. Actually, a very decent saw well worth restoring. As far as the recall, I won't argue with any points about it, but the upgrade kits don't make the saw much safer. Seems more like a lawyer solution than as actual fix.

Radial arm saws properly tuned with a correct blade are very versatile machines. They do take a bit more to dial in. If you take the time to sort one out and build a solid flat table/workstation for it, you can bang out a lot of jobs with it.

Good luck in whatever you decide.

 

[Claus]

You know, I've been recently thinking about the same thing. The RAS was the first real woodworking tool that I bought and I expected it to do everything. Now I have a shop full of other stuff and I keep looking at all the space taken up by the RAS. I've thought about selling it but I am aware of potential liabilities selling a recalled item, even though Craig's List is full of RAS ads.

All in all I'll probably go for the $100 and get a SCMS with a little more stability and accuracy in the adjustments. Please let us know how they handle the shipping costs.

 

[Chemeleon]

Assuming shipping doesn't eat up all the rebate, I'd get take rebate and put it towards one of the old round arm dewalt radial arm saws. The smaller ones pop up for $100-200 from time to time, so you could probably upgrade to a much heavier duty saw for little cost.

 

[pirate71]

I have an older Sears RAS that I have tuned up and gotten into good working condition. Other than the table top and home made stand, I believe it is original. I cleaned & oiled it, and tightened up some adjustments when I got it. I very seldom use it though, and have been contemplating selling it. I discovered tonigt that there is an open recall for this model, with no blade guard retrofit available, but they will give me a check for $100 if I ship the saw carriage to them.

Here is my dilema - I hate the thought of scrapping an nice old piece of equipment, but I also hate the thought of selling an "unsafe" saw & someone getting hurt. Not to mention that RAS prices have dropped considerably with the popularity of 12" sliding miter saws, and the $100 rebate is probably more than the saw is worth.

I'd love to hear other's thoughts on this.

Thanks,

Adam

View attachment 5777
View attachment 5775

I had an old sears RAS that finally quit running. It did not have a retrofit. Called them up, they sent the the boxes to package the motor and paid the shipping costs to get it to them. Within a couple of weeks, I had my check for $100.

 

[DaveD]

If you have a need for the RAS and the space, I'd say keep it. Otherwise sell it on Craigslist for $100. I have a 35 year old craftsman 12" RAS and gave up my table saw when I needed the room. No regrets in the last 15 years.

Id be interested in knowing what 'law' makes it illegal ( not that that would stop me) for me to sell something that has a recall notice against it.

 

[RayH]

I had an old sears RAS that finally quit running. It did not have a retrofit. Called them up, they sent the the boxes to package the motor and paid the shipping costs to get it to them. Within a couple of weeks, I had my check for $100.

WOW!! Sears' lawyers must really be pushing them. I have not seen that kind of customer service from Sears since in the '60's. Good for them.:icon_thum

 

[junquecol]

WOW!! Sears' lawyers must really be pushing them. I have not seen that kind of customer service from Sears since in the '60's. Good for them.:icon_thum

Emerson, not Sears. Recall is by Emerson. A bottom guard is simple to make. It's a shame to see old iron go to recall when it's so easily fixed.

 

[Charlie]

Bruce is correct. The recall is by Emerson. Sears has nothing to do with it.
It really is too bad that so many people talk about how bad RASaws are. Quality as well as safety. I have had a Sears RAS since 1970, purchased it used (was built in 1968). I recently (after 42 years) started noticing some wear on the bearing ways in the cast iron arm. The newer versions, 1973-75 had replaceable rods that the bearings ride on. So, I set out to find one of that vintage. I now have one that I totally went through, new bearing rods, motor bearings, repainted, etc. I also have four others sitting under my shop (purchased cheap) in case I ever need a motor/other parts. My saw is set up for crosscut only. It is probably the most frequently used tool in the shop. I can crosscut 16". Let's see any of the SCMSaws do that. I will put the accuracy of the cut up against any CMS or TS crosscut sled. I have a 10" Dewalt SCMS and it may get turned on once every 6 months. One cut on it makes more of a mess than cutting all day on the RAS.
As far as safety, if people use their heads, they are no more dangerous than any other equipment in the shop.
The last piece of equipment that I would ever get rid of is my lousy, old Craftsman (Emerson) RAS.

 

[allisnut]

Believe me, I have a thing for old iron.





My grandfather bought this tractor in 1950 or so. I spent two and a half years restoring it.

My problem is that I am trying to be practical. I have a new to me bandsaw and 12" dewalt scms in my near future (hopefully), and I never use the RAS as it is.

Thanks,

Adam

 

[Phil S]

I had an old Sears RAS like you have and decided I might as well get the $100. I called the rebate # and they sent me a box to put the power head in and instructions to take it to UPS. When I took it to UPS after getting the receipt I needed, I watched the UPS employee throw the box in the dumpster. It took a few months but I did get the $100 check. Soon after I realized that I missed my old RAS, it could make cuts that were impossible on a slider. I came across another and a RAS is back in my shop.

 

[ehpoole]

Id be interested in knowing what 'law' makes it illegal ( not that that would stop me) for me to sell something that has a recall notice against it.

Per your request.

Consumer Product Safety Improvement Act of 2008 - On or about page 42.

or (more concisely)

15 U.S.C 2068(a) - opening paragraph

The most relevant text:

§ 2068. Prohibited acts
(a) Designation
It shall be unlawful for any person to—
(1) sell, offer for sale, manufacture for sale, distribute in commerce, or import into the United States any consumer product, or other product or substance that is regulated under this chapter or any other Act enforced by the Commission, that is not in conformity with an applicable consumer product safety rule under this chapter, or any similar rule, regulation, standard, or ban under any other Act enforced by the Commission;

And an excerpt regarding penalties:

§ 2069. Civil penalties
(a) Amount of penalty
(1) Any person who knowingly violates section 2068 of this title shall be subject to a civil penalty not to exceed $100,000 for each such violation. Subject to paragraph (2), a violation of section 2068(a)(1), (2), (4), (5), (6), (7), (8), (9), (10), or (11) of this title shall constitute a separate offense with respect to each consumer product involved, except that the maximum civil penalty shall not exceed $15,000,000 for any related series of violations. A violation of section 2068(a)(3) of this title shall constitute a separate violation with respect to each failure or refusal to allow or perform an act required thereby; and, if such violation is a continuing one, each day of such violation shall constitute a separate offense, except that the maximum civil penalty shall not exceed $15,000,000 for any related series of violations.
(2) The second sentence of paragraph (1) of this subsection shall not apply to violations of paragraph (1) or (2) of section 2068(a) of this title—
(A) if the person who violated such paragraphs is not the manufacturer or private labeler or a distributor of the products involved, and
(B) if such person did not have either (i) actual knowledge that his distribution or sale of the product violated such paragraphs or (ii) notice from the Commission that such distribution or sale would be a violation of such paragraphs.

The CPSC also publishes a poster for display at Yard Sales (also available in Spanish) calling attention to the law, and another for display at retail establishments (also available in Spanish).

If there are any further questions regarding the law, I would encourage all to read the information available at CPSC.gov and the U.S. Code, or, better still, simply consult an attorney experienced on such matters.

PS - Just a reminder, this information is provided only for informational purposes in response to a request for information on the law governing resale of recalled products. Please do not turn this into a political discourse on the merits of regulation (we are a woodworking site after all ).