[OP]
Contributor
I restored a 1950's Unisaw including the original fence. I think the fence is referred to as micro-set or accu-set. I had a Biese on my previous new Uni and don't know if I will get used to this micro-set. Locally there is a new-in-box 30" Unifence with rails for sale that I may look at tonight. I can not find this Unifence available online. Any help from anyone experienced with one or more of these fences appreciated. Plus any ideas on the value of this fence?
Thanks,
Mike
Contributor
The Unifence is not longer made. I hated the one I used but I think I am in the minority. I am more of a Biesemeyer type of guy.
Contributor
I had a Unifence when I had a Unisaw. I loved it, especially with the aftermarket fence profile with t-slots. Never had a Bisemeyer though, so not sure what I was missing....
Member
I have the 52" Unifence on my Unisaw and the after market Uni-T-Fence with the T Slots and I use both the original and the Uni-T-Fence at home. They both slide on and lock in position quickly so it's easy to switch from the original fence to the Uni-T-Fence and back very quickly. The shop that I sometimes work in has a Delta RT40 table saw with a Biesmeyer fence, so I get to use both types of fences. I very much prefer my Unifence over the Biesmeyer. It offers much more flexibility to set it up for different types of cuts and the ability to change the fence to the Uni-T-Fence allows me to attach feather boards and fixtures to it. Actually I also have a short piece of this Uni-T-Fence as well to use as a stop when doing many short cut offs. There are ways to do most of this with a Biesmeyer fence, but they require building jigs and fixtures to do what I can easily do with my Unifence and my Uni-T-Fence options. The Biesmeyer fence is an accurate and easy to position fence, but it doesn't offer the easy flexibility that I have with my Unifence. It's a shame that Delta no longer offers the Unifence. I think you will be very pleased with your purchase if you can get that Unifence. Go to Peachtree www.ptreeusa.com for the Uni-T-Fence aftermarket items.
I also have a Wixey DRO on my Unifence. Mounting it was a little tricky, until I realized that I could cut short sections of 1/2" square tubing and cantilever these off the bottom of the Unifence track, spaced about 1' apart. Then mount the Wixey DRO extrusions to the bottom of these pieces of square tubing. I then cut short pieces off the ends of the magnetic target bar that Wixey supplied and attached these to each side of the Unifence casting by drilling and threading so that these pieces would mate with the magnets on the DRO body. I can now put the fence onto the slide on either side of the DRO unit, re-zero the unit and work with it there. It's quite easy to now set my Unifence anywhere and make repeatable cuts within a few thousandths of an inch. I can even move the fence and set it back to the same position and get repeat results.
Charley
Last edited by Charles Lent; 03-24-2014 at 12:38 PM.
Contributor
Hi Mike, the Unifence is the same as the 3 function Euro fence.
It is the fence to get.
You can use it in the long position for sheet goods, or the short position for solid stock, far safer than a Biesemeyer fence............Rod.
Member
I love my Unifence with the Uni-T tee-slot accessory fence.
If one were available here locally at a reasonable price I would probably be interested in it...not that I have a need for another one...already have two...
Bill
Too much to do...Not enough time...life is too short!
Contributor
Same as everyone else. I wouldn't be without my uni so much so I just bought a spare. The only problem I see is that it's thirty and not 52. The uni-t add on makes it even better.
Member
I have the biesemeyer on my unisaw, and am just now becoming familiar with the euro fence on the Hammer. Think maybe to get the safety aspects of the euro on the bies, you might get a pair of the clamps Rockler sells to clamp a board to your fence, and just clamp a shorter board onto your fence, for ripping of solid stock. The euro fence shortens up to halfway on the blade to allow the solid wood some slack to keep from binding with the blade and kicking back.
Member
Unifence can be ordered the parts are available on line. The Aluminum fence has to be ordered and takes many weeks to get.Originally Posted by Cary Falk
If you want a Bies, just build one. Has to be the simplest fence to build there is. I did this on two Crapsmans in a shop I worked in about 20 years ago.
Last edited by Don Huffer; 03-24-2014 at 5:19 PM.
Member
If you want a Biesmeyer, make one. Has to be the easiest fence to build. I put two on some Crapsman's I worked with in a shop 20 years ago.
Member
Here is a link to the material used on the Euro Fence. This one would be easy to build too. $31bucks. Can't beat it with a stick.
http://www.ebay.com/itm/8020-Inc-1-5...item4d1762b5d0
Member
+1 on the Unifence with the aftermarket Uni-T-Fence. Best of both world's IMO. I tried a Biesmeyer for about a year and went back to the Unifence. I went with the 36" Uni-T-Fence over the 43" model. My Unifence is 43" which is nice for cutting sheet goods but too long for dimensional lumber.
Member
I am trying to get my head around this one. Why would it be too long? You can shift it forward and back at will... I have the longer Uni-T-fence on my unifence, but also have both longer and 36 inch standard fence rails...and never felt the need for a shorter rail... Perhaps because I am not smart enough to realize I should have one! Not joking....
I do have a short 16" uni-T-Fence rail for use as a cross cut stop...
Bill
Too much to do...Not enough time...life is too short!
Contributor
I love the Unifence head and dual position extrusion, they allow the user to set up for the safest way to make a variety of cuts. But IMO the rail and locking system are a weak point. Keep in mind I'm coming from a production shop background, where a fence may be repositioned hundreds of times in the course of a day, day after day for years on end. The problems I always saw were that the rail would develop divots from the clamp and that the clamp itself would seem to become finicky. Measurements that were most frequently used would start to wear into the rail, making it hard to set the fence at slightly under or over that measurement. The biesy style fence on the other hand is bomb proof but not nearly as clever. I'm also not sure of how much trust I would put in feather boards when a fence had no rear hold down. I've been working on a fence that melds the two, as well as add a rear lockdown for when feather boards or jigs need to be held down towards the table, but it's been slow coming.
Member
Bill - you're assessment is correct and I could have said it better. The reason I went with the 36" Uni-T-Fence is because its easier to balance and walk around, especially when I pull the fence back to use it as a crosscut stop. That and I already had a 43" long Unifence.
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