Miscellaneous notes on Black & Decker/deWalt power tools

Unfortunately Black & Decker/deWalt's web sites are incomplete and confusing. Keep digging - I found things the service centre could not find. I suggest that www.dewaltservice.net is best for parts information. One tip is to look at similar models when looking for optional accessories.


Beware that rip fences vary in width and thickness of the retaining bar.
- B&D 5" circ saw 7300-04 rip fence bar is <7/16 x<3/32", P/n 73-501-04 (that is quite slim & thin)
- B&D heavy duty 7" circular saw is different cross-section from that 5" and from JS500 jig saw.
- jigsaw B&D JS500B-CA's rip fence bar is 15/32x3/32 or 1/16, properly complete with pressure clamp & screw to hold it in position, p/n 132144-00 will fit but does not come with the clamp & screw (may come with a typical B&D thumbscrew. (B&D parts 85827400 guide, 8595700 clamp, and 58721000 screw are the intended parts, as supplied with the JS600 jigsaw. The screw is csk 3/16-TBDxTBD, the clamp a simple j-shape 1/2"x1 21/32x1/4 total including bent end, of 3/32" material, with tapped hole approximately in the middle. The rip fence's bar has a hole in the opposite end for a nail to act as pivot to saw a circle.)

The thumbscrew holding the rip fence in 1970s vintage Black & Decker saws is probably #10-32 thread (that's 3/16" fine). I recomend drilling a hole in the centre of the thumb tab to put a wire through so that it is harder to lose (but ensure the wire does not get into the blade area).


Recent B&D jigsaws have an optional dust collector tube, sometimes called a piccolo tube for its shape and decoration. It has an opening at the small end that is positionned forward of the blade and well to the side, and a hole at the rear end that a light typical vacuum hose would fit over (I recommend an unusually light flexible hose to avoid over-stressing the collector tube).  P/N 582614-00 fits the JS500 line. It is an awkward fit to the sole plate of the jigsaw, the trick is rotation to snap into place, and uses the rip fence slots on one side so the two cannot exist (duh? B&D designers).


The blade retaining nut on circular saws of the 1970s is usually 1/2" across the flats. The original bent-ends wrench may have had both 1/2" and 9/16" capability, P/N TBA is a useful 1/2" substitute. Of course a standard wrench should work, but sometimes it can be awkward to get around the sole plate, hence the bent shape of the original and TBA wrenches.)

The arbour is usually 5/8" on smaller/older saws, with a D-shape that engages a washer under the head of the retaining bolt. Larger/newer saws may have a larger arbour. Some saws have a diamond-shape arbour, some blades have a partially-perforated diamond-shape piece to 


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Copyright smilin' Keith Sketchley          2009.04.01 (1508PDT)
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