Need advice selecting fence for Unisaw

[andy bessette]

I have Biesmeyer and Unifence and consider them both excellent choices. Perhaps I slightly favor the Unifence.

[Chris Hachet]

Kind of a fan of Incra myself, although I run a Unfience currently on my Unsiaw.

[Rod Sheridan]

The Unifence provides far better options such as short/long and high/low.

These options increase the accuracy and safety of the fence compared to the Bies style fence.

I would never go back to the single function Bies fence now that I've used a Euro type fence for 7 years.......Regards, Rod.

[Dave Erickson]

Kind of a fan of Incra myself, although I run a Unfience currently on my Unsiaw.

I used to have a Unifence on my Unisaw, but like others mention, it flexes since the end is not supported, and when cutting full sheets of plywood or wood with some mass (4x8's for door stock, or 2x12's), it flexes out of square. It also had no provisions for hold downs or board buddies.

My current fence is an Incra, and I have no negatives to report. I can lock both ends of the fence, the fence has slots for hold downs or finger boards, and it is very repeatable, holds its accuracy well.

[Clark Magnuson]

I got the $300 Delta fence 3 years ago.
I had been living with the original delta since 1982.
If I had any idea what an improvement it makes, I would have done it long ago.
Very happy now, using it tonight.

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B000H0R1S2...528360_TE_dp_1

[Larry Edgerton]

I used to have a Unifence on my Unisaw, but like others mention, it flexes since the end is not supported, and when cutting full sheets of plywood or wood with some mass (4x8's for door stock, or 2x12's), it flexes out of square. It also had no provisions for hold downs or board buddies.

My current fence is an Incra, and I have no negatives to report. I can lock both ends of the fence, the fence has slots for hold downs or finger boards, and it is very repeatable, holds its accuracy well.

If the tail of your fence is bending you are fighting an alignment problem, most likely the blade to the saw. One should not have to push that hard. At least that has cured that problem for me.

[Jim Becker]

I agree that any fence that is "bending" is either misaligned or being faced with pressure beyond what is probably necessary. Tee-square type fences are not typically supported/locking at the back side, either, just like the UniFence.

[John TenEyck]

I have a Vega Pro on my 1954 Unisaw. Very rigid, stays in alignment, easy on/off, and the micro-adjust feature is really sweet.

John

[Patrick Kane]

Personally, i severely dislike the bies' face. The fence locks strong, but the faces can be horribly out of flat. When i bought my used unisaw(1999 or 2000 model) it had a usa made bies. My indicator show it had a 15 thou variance across the face. It was at that moment that i really really wish i kept the unifence off my delta contractor saw. The unifence is superb. I ran it with jessem mast r slide, so i loved moving the fence back as a stop much like a true euro slider setup. I can see why people say it isnt as sturdy as the bies--it isnt--but it isnt flimsy either. the fence on my KF700 is a perfect improvement on the unifence. It is 3x as heavy and as sturdy as you would ever need.

My praise for the unifence design aside, i replaced my bies fence head with a VSCT fence. It uses the same rail as the bies and was an easy swap for me. The fence head is expensive, but it is a good design. It has similar functionality to the unifence to position high/low and fore/aft, but it blends in easy jig functionality from the bies too. I wish he would develop a way to make adjustments tool-less and quick like the unifence/euro fence, but overall im happy with it.

[Mike Kees]

I have both a Unifence and a Bies. I prefer the Uni. The bies is a strong solid fence and it rides on my jobsite contractors saw because it takes more abuse. I have looked at the website for VSCT and if I was buying now would buy this one,seems like the best of both worlds. Mike.

[Larry Copas]

Personally, i severely dislike the bies' face. The fence locks strong, but the faces can be horribly out of flat. When i bought my used unisaw(1999 or 2000 model) it had a usa made bies. My indicator show it had a 15 thou variance across the face. It was at that moment that i really really wish i kept the unifence off my delta contractor saw.

Any fence can have an out of tolerance face due either to wear or a manufacturing defect. My Unifence shows a curved face which is not a problem unless re-sawing.

DSCF8583.JPG

I use the Peach Tree Uni-T-Fence replacement sometimes when I need a perfect face.

I've used all of them, I like the Unifence far better than anything else out there.

Having said that, I think if one looks at my work over the years, one would never know if I used a Unifence or the original Delta Jetlock fence.

[Dave Erickson]

If the tail of your fence is bending you are fighting an alignment problem, most likely the blade to the saw. One should not have to push that hard. At least that has cured that problem for me.

Wood often has a mind of its own. Sometimes you need a fence you can push against. You can't do that with a Unifence. Even the Jetlock fence has a rear clamp and the ability to mount finger boards. I used a Unifence about a decade before I bought the Incra fence. Everything I hated about the Unifence was solved, along with some new capabilities I didn't know I was missing, especially the ability to dial in precise rips with a minimum of effort.

[Patrick Kane]

Hmm, yeah that is messed up, Larry. I dont remember my unifence extrusion having any defects. Have you checked over the length? In your case, the defect at the top wouldnt interupt 99% of standard ripping, becase the top of the fence leans away from the blade. Your work piece registration would be fine off the bottom 2" of fence.

My rub with the bies fence is every one i measure is wonky. My frend has a sawstop, and his was crap. I bought 3 unisaws and they all were crap. Between the plywood/laminate faces and the connecting bolts, they are all out of flat in a noticeable way. It is like making your jointer fence out of plywood. I expect precision out of my machines, and i want milled metal as my reference surfaces.

[Larry Edgerton]

Wood often has a mind of its own. Sometimes you need a fence you can push against. You can't do that with a Unifence. Even the Jetlock fence has a rear clamp and the ability to mount finger boards. I used a Unifence about a decade before I bought the Incra fence. Everything I hated about the Unifence was solved, along with some new capabilities I didn't know I was missing, especially the ability to dial in precise rips with a minimum of effort.

If you are cutting solid wood with a Unifence you slide the fence back to just beyond the blade so that the stresses in the wood do not push it one way or the other. On my Biesmeyers I have a slip on piece that does the same thing that I made. Why push the piece into submission?

Biesys will bend just like Unifences. When I am using a power feed I put a clamp on the back side because my power feed is pushing on that end. I have never had a chance to play with an Incra, so you may be right.

[Andy D Jones]

I've enjoyed my Unifence for almost 30 years. The only shortcoming is swapping sides of the blade takes a little more time. It's advantages far outweigh that. If you can find one, snap it up quickly.

-- Andy - Arlington TX