Getting the Most from your Walk-Behind Saw

After many hard days of work, your equipment will be feeling the pain just like you will. Your saw works particularly hard with concrete diamond blades, cutting and slicing through concrete and asphalt for many grueling hours on end. Unfortunately, we can’t lighten your workload, but we can provide some helpful tips to give your equipment to keep it running smoothly.

 

Best Practices - Construction - Flat Saw

Proper Preparation, Operation & Maintenance of Walk-Behind Saws

 

Note: Before mounting any blade on the saw, the blade should be inspected for any damage that might have occurred during shipment, handling or previous use.

  1. The blade shaft collar must be of proper diameter for the size blade being used. The drive pin must be located in the tight collar or the loose pin, and arbor should be cleaned and examined for damage before mounting the blade.
  2. The blade must be properly fitted over arbor and drive pin. Drive pin must project through hole in blade and into collar. Do not force the blade onto arbor.
  3. Disconnect spark plugs and use the blade shaft lock pin when tightening the blade shaft nut. Tighten the blade shaft nut securely against the outside blade shaft collar. The blade shaft has left hand threads on the right side of the saw and right hand threads on the left side of the saw.
  4. The blade guard must always be in place when the saw is running. Always use a proper size blade guard for the size blade being used.
  5. The operator should wear safety glasses and appropriate safety equipment at all times.
  6. Never leave saw unattended while engine is running.
  7. Always secure saw from rolling when not in use.
  8. Do not stop the engine on a self-propelled saw while on a grade.
  9. When stopping any saw on a grade, the wheels must be chocked.
  10. When starting the saw, the operator should stand away from and to the side of the blade.
  11. If for any reason the blade stalls out in the cut, raise the blade out of the cut and check the outside blade shaft collar and nut for tightness before restarting the engine. Inspect the blade for damage. Use care when resuming a cut. Make certain that the blade is in alignment with the previous cut.
  12. During cutting, do not exert excessive side pressure on the handles as a method of steering. Do not force the blade into material by lowering the blade too quickly or by increasing the speed of the saw.
  13. Adequate coolant must be used when sawing with wet cutting abrasive or diamond blades. Gravity feed does not supply a sufficient water flow. The water pumps on concrete saws are “booster” pumps only and are not adequate as primary pressure source. An adequate coolant supply is required for wet cutting blades to maintain blade life and cutting efficiency.
  14. The blade shaft must be operated within the specified maximum operating speed.
  15. Operate engine at proper RPM. Never alter RPM or self-govern setting.
  16. In case of an EMERGENCY “SHUT OFF ENGINE.”