Fence upgrade time.

[Jake Grover]

I have a Delta 34-410. I think I've had it with my fence. I have adjusted it square many times but it always locks with the back rail about 1/16" out to the right no matter how many times I align it.

My guess is this is happening due to:

An out of production decaying rubber bushing in the Fence Head.
The bolts for fence alignment working their way out when pressure is applied
One of the fence rails bent
The hook on the back of the fence being worn

I'm sure that there are a million other possibilities.

I've been start shopping around for a new fence. (Can't afford it yet, but I'd like to buy in the next 3 months)
I'd like to pay less than $200, but I could stretch that to $300 for a really excellent fence. My local woodworking supplier had a lightly used Incra for $300. I wanted to buy it and he talked me out of it, which was easy because I couldn't afford it, but I regret it, because I probably won't see that fence for $300 any time soon, and I don't think I would mind trading the time it takes to lock it down for the extra precision. Oh well.

So at this point I'm considering:

1) delta‑36‑t30t3 - $200
2) Jet JWSS-30F - $135 (new in box on ebay)
3) Vega U26 - $289
4) Shop Fox Aluma Classic $210

If I could get away with the Jet, then I could order it soon, sell my Delta fence for parts, and stop cutting trapezoids. But if the fence would need to be upgraded some day soon, then it probably wouldn't be worth it.

Any advice? I have been scouring craigslist but haven't been seeing any good fences pop up close to me (upstate NY).

[Dave Cav]

I think I'd go with the Delta you linked to. It's a T-Square design, reasonably priced and gets pretty good reviews on Amazon.

I put a Shop Fox Classic on my Powermatic 65 when I restored it a few years ago, and it's been just fine. I did take the UHMW faces off and replace them with hardwood, but otherwise it's pretty much a direct clone of the Biesemeyer. Even the cursor is interchangeable, which is good because I really don't like the magnifier on the Shop Fox cursor.

Unfortunately, Biesemeyer fences are no longer made in the USA and their quality has suffered. An old, used Bies would be my first choice, if I could find one.

[Jake Grover]

I put a Shop Fox Classic on my Powermatic 65 when I restored it a few years ago, and it's been just fine.

There is a thread on lumberjocks saying that a lot of the fence faces on the Delta aren't flat (I bet they're flatter than my stock fence... ~~~~).
Why would you recommend the Delta if you like the Shop Fox Classic. The Shop Fox is what my local guy suggested.

Thanks!

[Ted Reischl]

I am a Unifence fan. Mine is now about 25 years old and has never given me a bit of trouble.

Maybe if you can find one you should consider it? Just saw a delta contractor saw with one on it for about $375. Not bad, spare motor, parts, fence. . . it is in Connecticut.

[Jake Grover]

Thanks Ted,

If I have to move something that big, I have to borrow a van from work. I can't drive more than 100 miles. I also have no where to store a second table saw. Enlisting help to move it, would also cost me, and time is at a real premium for me.

I know... Good... Fast... Cheap... Pick two. Good and cheap are the ones I'm going to have to go with.

I will keep browsing craigslist and checking eBay. I do want to know what to be on the lookout for and I have no experience with nice fences. I should have gotten that Incra when I had the chance.

I do have a 48" piece of 2x3 aluminum extrusion that's very straight. I was thinking about cutting it down to make a router table fence. If I knew the first thing about metal working, I could probably go the VSCT route. But their fence head is already more than $200 and I would have to fabricate rails. I've fiddled with this saw enough. Really want it to just work .

[Ben Rivel]

What about the VSCT fence (LINK)? Thats the only other one I have considered swapping my SawStop PCS fence out for.

[Jamie Buxton]

One of the great things about a hardwood face on a fence is that you can flatten it. You often can remove it and run it through a jointer. Or you can handplane it in place. If you do handplane it in place, you can remove any kinks in the steel structure of the fence. So don't let a non-straight face deter you from an otherwise-attractive fence. You can fix it.

If you encounter a fence with a plastic face, or a formica face, replace it with hardwood. Me, I've never understood why a fence manufacturer would tell himself "I'm going to replace hardwood, which my customers know and love, with plastic, which has no redeeming features at all."

[Jake Grover]

What about the VSCT fence (LINK)? Thats the only other one I have considered swapping my SawStop PCS fence out for.

I like the looks of the VSCT a lot. I already have aluminum extrusion for it too... but the fence head is $250 for contractor saws... So right there I have already gone over budget.

If I could get the fence head and rails under $200, I would definitely buy that. Although that aluminum extrusion is a pretty sweet flat surface for clamping!

If you encounter a fence with a plastic face, or a formica face, replace it with hardwood. Me, I've never understood why a fence manufacturer would tell himself "I'm going to replace hardwood, which my customers know and love, with plastic, which has no redeeming features at all."

I'm a beginner. I have no experience with flattening stock and I don't have a jointer. There is one where I work that I could probably use. I don't even own a plane.

It's on my list, but I haven't gotten one yet.

[andy bessette]

Unifence or Beismeyer.

[Mike Hollingsworth]

If I could get away with the Jet, then I could order it soon, sell my Delta fence for parts, and stop cutting trapezoids (upstate NY).

A fence out of alignment will still make perfectly parallel cuts. Quality of that cut is another matter.

[Bruce Wrenn]

Within your budget, you could make a Biese clone. You will have a buddy / friend who has metal cutting band saw and welder, along with drill press and angle grinder. An abrasive cutoff machine can be used in place of band saw. Search forums for threads, and you tube on Biese clone builds.

[Jake Grover]

A fence out of alignment will still make perfectly parallel cuts. Quality of that cut is another matter.

So if your fence is 1" from the blade at the front and 1-1/8" at the back and varies +/- 20/1000" from front to back you will get a uniform width piece of wood?

Maybe I'm doing something wrong. I've noticed that if my fence isn't parallel to the blade then the wood won't stay against the fence once it has moved past the front of the blade. If the back isn't against the fence then the kerf seems to follow the initial angle of entry to the wood. It tries to keep the 1" distance but without the fence to support the back of the wood the line isn't perfectly straight. This seems to result in variations in the widths that I'm cutting.

[Jake Grover]

Within your budget, you could make a Biese clone. You will have a buddy / friend who has metal cutting band saw and welder, along with drill press and angle grinder. An abrasive cutoff machine can be used in place of band saw. Search forums for threads, and you tube on Biese clone builds.

So I bought this saw for $125. I bought 2 sets of PALS. I bought the woodpecker alignment jig and dial indicator, I bought a 40t diablo. I bought a cheap Melamine blade (which causes as much chip out as the diablo does... oops). I bought a dust collection hood and some hose, fittings and pipe clamps for it. I bought a featherboard and made a second one one from some oak. I've spent about $200 upgrading the thing. And I still want to put a magnetic switch on it and a router table extension or outfeed.

It took me like 5 hours to borrow a truck and enlist my dads help in disassembling it then moving it..

I've spent around 30 hours aligning the trunnions and trunnion tie rods (and realigning... shoot me)

I've spent way too much time trying to make a crosscut sled with warped plywood...

And I've probably spent 2-3 hours tapping the fence to square and measuring

at this point I just want something that does the job, that I don't have to think about too much. I should also probably make something out of wood eventually .

Making a biesemeyer clone would be a fun project and a great way for me to learn metalworking. But I think it would take me somewhere in the neighborhood of 20 hours to find someone who could help me; learn how to explain what I need to them; and then actually get them to do the work or teach me how to do it. Minimum wage here is like $10... so if I spend 20 hours and need to buy $200 worth of materials then I should probably just buy a $400 fence.

[andy bessette]

Watch for a deal on a used Beismeyer or Unifence.

[Rick Potter]

Hypothetically, lets say a guy I know had two brand new in the box 30" Beismeyer fences complete with side tables, sitting in his shop, for over 10 years.

Just curious, what are they worth?