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OPERATOR’S MANUAL
7-1/4 in. (184 mm) Circular Saw
®
R3200
Double Insulated
This new circular saw has been engineered and manufactured to our high standard for dependability, ease of operation and
operator safety. When properly cared for, the saw will give you years of rugged, trouble-free performance.
WARNING
To reduce the risk of injury, the user must read and understand the operator’s manual before using this product.
Thank you for buying a RIDGID product.
SAVE THIS MANUAL FOR FUTURE REFERENCE
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TABLE OF CONTENTS ■ Introduction ...................................................................................................................................................................... 2 ■ General Safety Rules ................................................................................................................................................... 3-4 ■ Specific Safety Rules ...................................................................................................
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GENERAL SAFETY RULES and gloves away from moving parts. Loose clothes, WARNING: jewelry, or long hair can be caught in moving parts or Read and understand all instructions. Failure to drawn into air vents. follow all instructions listed below, may result in elec- ■ Avoid accidental starting. Be sure switch is off tric shock, fire and/or serious personal injury. before plugging in. Carrying tools with your finger on the switch or plugging in tools that have the switch on, invites accidents. SAVE
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GENERAL SAFETY RULES ■ When servicing a tool, use only identical replace- Service ment parts. Follow instructions in the Maintenance ■ Tool service must be performed only by qualified section of this manual. Use of unauthorized parts or repair personnel. Service or maintenance performed failure to follow Maintenance Instructions may create a by unqualified personnel could result in a risk of injury. risk of electric shock or injury. SPECIFIC SAFETY RULES ■ DANGER! Keep hands away from cutting ar
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SPECIFIC SAFETY RULES ■ Do not use dull or damaged blade. Unsharpened or ommended for an extension cord 50 feet or less in improperly set blades produce narrow kerf causing length. A cord exceeding 100 feet is not recom- excessive friction, blade binding and KICKBACK. mended. If in doubt, use the next heavier gage. The smaller the gage number, the heavier the cord. An ■ Blade depth and bevel adjusting locking levers must undersized cord will cause a drop in line voltage resulting be tight and se
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SYMBOLS Important: Some of the following symbols may be used on your tool. Please study them and learn their meaning. Proper interpretation of these symbols will allow you to operate the ool better and safer. SYMBOL NAME DESIGNATION/EXPLANATION VVolts Voltage A Amperes Current Hz Hertz Frequency (cycles per second) WWatt Power min Minutes Time Alternating Current Type of current n No Load Speed Rotational speed, at no load 0 Class II Construction Double-insulated construction .../min Per Minute
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SPECIFICATIONS Blade Diameter .......................................................................................................................................... 7-1/4 in. (184 mm) Blade Arbor ..................................................................................................................................................... 5/8 in. (16 mm) Cutting Depth at 90° .................................................................................................................
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UNPACKING INSTRUCTIONS WARNING: When unpacking the circular saw: If any parts are missing do not operate the tool until ■ Carefully remove the tool and accessories from the box. the missing parts are replaced. Failure to do so could ■ Make sure that all items listed in the packing list are result in possible serious personal injury. included. ■ Inspect the tool carefully to make sure no breakage or damage occurred during shipping. WARNING: ■ Do not discard the packing material until you have Thi
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FEATURES SWITCH HANDLE FULL LENGTH KERF INDICATOR POWER CORD DUST CHUTE FRONT HANDLE RIP GUIDE SPINDLE LOCK LIGHTED PLUG Fig. 1 9
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ASSEMBLY SPINDLE OUTER WARNING: FLANGE WASHER The tool should never be connected to a power (“D” WASHER) supply when you are assembling parts, making ad- justments, cleaning, performing maintenance, or when the tool is not in use. Disconnecting the tool will prevent accidental starting that could cause serious injury. INNER WARNING: FLANGE 7-1/4 in. (184 mm) blade is the maximum blade BUSHING BLADE SPRING capacity of the saw. Also, never use a blade that is SCREW BLADE WASHER too thick to allow
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ASSEMBLY SPINDLE REMOVING BLADE LOCK See Figure 3. BUTTON Follow these directions to remove the blade. ■ Unplug the saw. CAUTION: To prevent damage to the spindle or spindle lock, always allow motor to come to a complete stop before engaging spindle lock. ■ Depress spindle lock button. WRENCH ■ Remove blade screw by turning it counterclockwise with the wrench. ■ Remove outer blade washer ("D" washer). BLADE SCREW ■ Lift lower blade guard. ■ Remove blade. Fig. 3 11
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OPERATION SAW BLADES The best of saw blades will not cut efficiently if they are not kept clean, sharp, and properly set. Using a dull blade will place a heavy load on the saw and increase the danger of kickback. Keep extra blades on hand, so that sharp blades are always available. Gum and wood pitch hardened on blades will slow the saw down. Remove saw blade from the saw and use gum and pitch remover, hot water, or kerosene to remove these accumulations. DO NOT USE GASOLINE. BLADE GUARD SYSTEM
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OPERATION KICKBACK See Figure 5, 6, 7, and 8. Kickback occurs when the blade stalls rapidly and the saw is driven back towards you. Blade stalling is caused by any action which pinches the blade in the wood. DANGER: Release switch immediately if blade binds or saw stalls. Kickback could cause you to lose control of Fig. 5 the saw. Loss of control can lead to serious injury. To guard against kickback, avoid dangerous practices such as the following. ■ Setting blade depth incorrectly. ■ Sawing int
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OPERATION WARNING: The tool should never be connected to a power supply when you are assembling parts, making ad- justments, cleaning, performing maintenance, or when the tool is not in use. Disconnecting the tool will prevent accidental starting that could cause serious injury. STARTING/STOPPING THE SAW See Figure 9. To start the saw: Depress the switch trigger. Always let the blade reach full speed, then guide the saw into the workpiece. Fig. 9 WARNING: The blade coming in contact with the wor
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OPERATION OPERATING THE SAW See Figures 11, 12, and 13. It is important to understand the correct method for operating the saw. Refer to the figures in this section to learn the correct and incorrect ways for handling the saw. WARNING: To make sawing easier and safer, always maintain proper control of the saw. Loss of control could cause an accident resulting in possible serious in- jury. Fig. 11 DANGER: When lifting the saw from the workpiece, the blade is exposed on the underside of the saw un
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OPERATION CROSS CUTTING/RIP CUTTING See Figure 14. When making a cross cut or rip cut, align the line of cut with the full length kerf indicator on the base as shown in the figure. Since blade thicknesses vary, always make a trial cut in scrap material along a guideline to determine how much, if any, you must offset the guideline to produce an accurate cut. NOTE: The distance from the line of cut to the guideline is the amount you should offset the guideline. TO RIP CUT See Figures 15 and 16. Us
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OPERATION BEVEL CUTTING See Figures 17 and 18. To make the best possible cut, follow these helpful hints. ■ Align the line of cut with the inner blade guide notch on the base when making 45° bevel cuts. ■ Make a trial cut in scrap material along a guideline to determine how much you should offset the guideline on the cutting material. ■ Adjust the angle of the cut to any desired setting between zero and 51.5°. Refer to “TO ADJUST BEVEL SETTING” next. Note: Pull the adjustment lever all the way u
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OPERATION POCKET CUTTING See Figure 19. WARNING: Always adjust bevel setting to zero before making a pocket cut. Attempting a pocket cut at any other setting can result in loss of control of the saw possi- bly causing serious injury. Follow these directions to pocket cut. ■ Adjust the bevel setting to zero. ■ Set the blade to the correct blade depth setting. ■ Swing the lower blade guard up using the lower blade guard handle. NOTE: Always raise the lower blade guard with the handle to avoid seri
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ADJUSTMENTS WARNING: The tool should never be connected to a power supply when you are assembling parts, making ad- justments, cleaning, performing maintenance, or when the tool is not in use. Disconnecting the tool will prevent accidental starting that could cause serious injury. POSITIVE 0° BEVEL STOP See Figure 21. The saw has a positive 0° bevel stop that has been factory adjusted to assure 0° angle of the saw blade when making 90° cuts. However, misalignment can occur during shipping. TO CH
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MAINTENANCE Electric tools used on fiberglass material, wallboard, spack- WARNING: ling compounds, or plaster are subject to accelerated wear When servicing use only identical RIDGID® replace- and possible premature failure because the fiberglass chips ment parts. Use of any other parts may create a and grindings are highly abrasive to bearings, brushes, com- hazard or cause product damage. mutators, etc. Consequently, we do not recommended us- ing this tool for extended work on these types of m
