Very Super Cool Table Saw Fence...

[Ted Miller]

I did purchase one of these fences and it turned out to be one of the worst tools I have bought in a long time. The deflection on this set up was terrible. The four locking nuts all in a row holding onto a 42"-48" long piece of aluminum was not a very good design in my eyes. But I thought I would give it a try though. I did go directly to 80/20 and bought 4 other extrusions to use with this new head. But the deflection increased with the longer fences. I had a Uni back in the day, that fence was a good design and very stiff even though it used a aluminum fence, but the head worked as a backstop to support the fence. The T style fences are very tough, rigid and no deflection, even though faces need to be worked on here and there to get them flat with either stock or UHMW material.

Jeff did follow up with me after I made the purchase, I did have a issue with the locking handle not gripping to my fence tube, being euro and not quite 2x4 as most bies designs. We figured out how to make the locking knob work, but the deflection was still a major problem for me, not only for squaring up work but for safety. Jeff talked to Allen and of course it was me and not the fence design at all. I guess working on TS since '79 I have no idea how to use one correctly.

I did let two other buddies who own cabinet shops try this new fence, they both gave it back to me after one day and said no thanks, they both had deflection issues as well. It's collecting dust somewhere, Like I told Jeff, just another bad tool purchase business right off...

[Don Huffer]

Nice , ( the Kerf Maker is just a scaled down version of the Tenon Maker )
I'd make one but really I have my hands full right now , too many balls in the air already L O L
for me these simple Bridge City jigs just make it easy on my brain when setting up a cut & I make less mistakes when I have well thought out jigs .
the tenoning jig that Allen made has appealed to me from the 1st time i seen his video . A I gotta have that moment
I was finally able to get the double THK bearing rail & that has pushed me to finally get the VSCTools TeeSquare .
I'm not concerned with the perceived extrusion flatness issue as I've have more than a few extrusions in the shop & they are flat .
I haven't found one yet that I have that has any lenght waviness , twists ,bends or bows (I've got at least 20 of various sizes, 6 of the 8 footers )
the extrusions I have already are flat & straight when checked on my expensive PeachTree 50" straight edge
The slot up/down waviness is easy to over come with a sacrificial fence if it's ever a issue that needs addressing
the 80/20 slots are made that way to add tension . knowing that going in then it's not an issue
the fact that you can add anything you can dream of to the fence out weights a flatness issue in my use

The only complaint I've heard on the VSCTools Tee square rig is the round hold down ball on the lever ,
some have said it slightly uncomfortable with alotta use & I plan on replacing that with a oblong oval one as soon I can .

Did you check EBay for those THK bearings?

[Don Huffer]

Don,

You can see the Peachtree extrusion on their website. The main reason I got it was because it has t-slots you can use for jigs.

I still use the regular Unifence a lot more, though.

Rick Potter

Rick
I've been woodworking since 1964 and never heard of Peachtree except as a doors and windows. Will Google bring them up?

[Don Huffer]

Hi, to me that's a major issue.

At first I thought it was going to be a Euro or Unifence design where you could have it short/long and low/high, however if you have to re-align it every time that wouldn't be possible........Rod.

Right. But if you can't find a Uni and can't afford a Biesemyer. Best off building one. After looking at both fences I would much rather build one. All the parts are off the shelf. I've built two Biesemyer fences and would never shell out the cash for another one.

[Michael Mahan]

Did you check EBay for those THK bearings?

the prices are high on Fleabay , these ( The Rails ) are salvage off printing presses & are like new in condition . they get them on a limited basis . The two bearings attached are brand new unused so the price is reasonable to me .

[Michael Mahan]

Right. But if you can't find a Uni and can't afford a Biesemyer. Best off building one. After looking at both fences I would much rather build one. All the parts are off the shelf. I've built two Biesemyer fences and would never shell out the cash for another one.

If I had welding EQ I'd be making my own as well .
I plan on using the Tee as an accessory for when my needs require flexibility , I won't be selling my SawStop fence in any case .

[Don Huffer]

the prices are high on Fleabay , these ( The Rails ) are salvage off printing presses & are like new in condition . they get them on a limited basis . The two bearings attached are brand new unused so the price is reasonable to me .

I've never found anything lower in price than EBay. To this day Amazon has never beat EBay for anything I'm buying.

Good for you. Do you do a lot of tenon work on the table saw? Does the bearing and track stay on the fence all the time?

I just use a tall square board and push them on my fence.

[Don Huffer]

the prices are high on Fleabay , these ( The Rails ) are salvage off printing presses & are like new in condition . they get them on a limited basis . The two bearings attached are brand new unused so the price is reasonable to me .

item2ed0c120a4

This looks like it would work. And I could slide my car on it too.

[Michael Mahan]

This looks like it would work. And I could slide my car on it too.

22" too short for my application & the grease fittings are at the side in the way . the one I have now is 38" & bearings have grease fittings at the ends
I am looking for a pair of 50" rails for sliding table I envision for the TS

I've never found anything lower in price than EBay. To this day Amazon has never beat EBay for anything I'm buying.

Good for you. Do you do a lot of tenon work on the table saw? Does the bearing and track stay on the fence all the time?

I just use a tall square board and push them on my fence.

? Amazon ? Never said anything about Amazon
yeah the rail will be on the extrusion all the time , it's jig fence for quick set-up swapped as needed

[Don Huffer]

22" too short for my application & the grease fittings are at the side in the way . the one I have now is 38" & bearings have grease fittings at the ends
I am looking for a pair of 50" rails for sliding table I envision for the TS

? Amazon ? Never said anything about Amazon
yeah the rail will be on the extrusion all the time , it's jig fence for quick set-up swapped as needed

Well as far as sliding tables go. Even the multi thousand dollar models have trouble with staying true. It's just too easy to get good cross cuts with a sled to bother with building a slider.

Why do your rails on the fence have to be so long? Also I doubt if you will need to grease the bearings after you do it once. With the use your going to give them it would take a long time before they will need grease.

[Michael Mahan]

Well as far as sliding tables go. Even the multi thousand dollar models have trouble with staying true. It's just too easy to get good cross cuts with a sled to bother with building a slider.

Why do your rails on the fence have to be so long? Also I doubt if you will need to grease the bearings after you do it once. With the use your going to give them it would take a long time before they will need grease.

convenience & I don't want to be limited , too long is better than too short . the ultimate goal is total flexibility .
Grease is not an issue but a grease fitting hanging 1/2" off the side of the bearing is . the bearings I have now have the fitting above the rail facing out @ the ends
I'll build the slider because I can & I've seen some slides that work as good or better as a miter on large panels , I work with larger trapezoidal shaped panels at times & I need accurate repeatability

[Curt Harms]

Hi, to me that's a major issue.

At first I thought it was going to be a Euro or Unifence design where you could have it short/long and low/high, however if you have to re-align it every time that wouldn't be possible........Rod.

I've been thinking about this topic (always a risky thing). The alignment issue might be pretty easy to solve. Assuming the standard table saw alignment procedure - align the blade to one of the miter slots - how would this work? Get a piece of HDPE plastic or other stable material, work it so it fits SNUG in that miter slot and sticks up 1/2" /13mm or so. Insert the strip, slide the fence against the strip and tighten.

1. Would that be accurate enough?
2. Too much of a PITA to be practical?

Yes, you'd have to do this every time you went high/low or short/long.

[Mark Carlson]

Curt,

Thats how I initially setup my fence and is how they recommend you do it in the setup videos. I use a 3/4 in aluminum bar that fitssnugly in the miter slot. Its quick an easy and it accurate. I did it just the once and ran I dial indicator down the slot and it looked great. Should be repeatable but I dont know because I dont switch out my fence. I do attach fence faces of varying heights.

~mark

I've been thinking about this topic (always a risky thing). The alignment issue might be pretty easy to solve. Assuming the standard table saw alignment procedure - align the blade to one of the miter slots - how would this work? Get a piece of HDPE plastic or other stable material, work it so it fits SNUG in that miter slot and sticks up 1/2" /13mm or so. Insert the strip, slide the fence against the strip and tighten.

1. Would that be accurate enough?
2. Too much of a PITA to be practical?

Yes, you'd have to do this every time you went high/low or short/long.

[Michael Mahan]

Curt,

Thats how I initially setup my fence and is how they recommend you do it in the setup videos. I use a 3/4 in aluminum bar that fitssnugly in the miter slot. Its quick an easy and it accurate. I did it just the once and ran I dial indicator down the slot and it looked great. Should be repeatable but I dont know because I dont switch out my fence. I do attach fence faces of varying heights.

~mark

I like the AL bar idea just happen to have one BTW
that sounds like it's very easy & quick to set , I'll report back when I'm setup my extrusion is on order & shipped from 80/20
with the tenon jig ,the rail & bearing is shipped as well so be a week or so & I should be up & running .
I'll make my own laminate high fence that's easy peasy

[Don Huffer]

I like the AL bar idea just happen to have one BTW
that sounds like it's very easy & quick to set , I'll report back when I'm setup my extrusion is on order & shipped from 80/20
with the tenon jig ,the rail & bearing is shipped as well so be a week or so & I should be up & running .
I'll make my own laminate high fence that's easy peasy

Please share pictures when you have it together.