Replacement parts for an old Craftsman saw?

July 12, 2007 2:54 PM

Where can I get replacement parts for an old Craftsman radial arm saw?

I just recently bought an old Sears Craftsman Accra-Arm 10" radial arm saw at an estate sale.

It.

Is.

Beautiful.

But I didn't realize until I got it home and took the saw off the arm that at least two parts have become brittle and broken up and need replacement, specifically the left-hand and right-hand ball retainers. Sears' parts ordering site gave me false hopes, as it not only had the saw and a list of parts, but even exploded diagrams of the saw so I could visually identify what I needed. Sweet!

Except not so sweet. When I added the ball retainers to my shopping cart, it informed me that they no longer carry these parts. So I may very well be stuck with a saw that I can't use now, which makes me sad. I had real need of one of these, and doof that I am, I even reorganized my garage completely to give the saw a place of prominence. Imagine my current state of disappointment.

I know sometimes there are shops that specialize in carrying old out-of-date parts, or at least forums where you can contact people and see if they've got old junkers that they'd be willing to sell you for parts. Do any of you know of any good resources for locating old Craftsman tool parts?

The model number is 113.29003, by the way.

posted by middleclasstool to home & garden (6 comments total)

There's some good information here and here that might help you.
posted by mr_crash_davis at 3:04 PM on July 12, 2007

You might check out the yahoo group and associated web page for Old Woodworking Machines. They've helped me ressurect a number of machines. There may be folks there that can help you fix broken parts, find replacements, or even machine replacements.

Personally I have a dewalt RAS for the 60s and I love it!
posted by RustyBrooks at 3:08 PM on July 12, 2007

What do the ball retainers look like? Is it possible to modify something else to do the job?
posted by 6550 at 3:41 PM on July 12, 2007

I had found OWWM, and through them the actual manufacturer (Emerson Electric), but evidently EE doesn't make saws anymore. I haven't tried contacting them directly, however. I hadn't seen the Bob Vila forums, either.

6550, the ball retainers are parts number 8 and 19 on the schematic on page 5 of the manual (pdf link), and I don't yet know if I'd need to replace the ball races or not (I haven't removed the ball retainers and inspected the races yet). I think you'd need a metal shop to fabricate a replacement, and I have neither the tools nor the know-how to do that.
posted by middleclasstool at 4:03 PM on July 12, 2007

middleclasstool,

Dude you are in luck. I just payed 50bucks for that exact
same saw today at a garage sale. Took it apart to free up the corrosion and give her a good oiling and BINGO! Found out that the motor case has a broken swivel point, column tube assembly is froze up, and arm latch in tube is in 3 pieces. The good news is I have the parts you need!!! contact me at [e-mail].

Regards
Mark
posted by houndog56 at 1:17 AM on September 4, 2007

Or if anyone has the parts I need feel free to contact me at my e-mail address. Thanks
posted by houndog56 at 1:21 AM on September 4, 2007 [1 favorite has favorites]