YIKES! My SawStop Fence Slipped! Solution?

[Don Frambach]

Today when I was using my router mounted on the right side of my table saw, I pressed a little hard against the SawStop Beisemeyer clone fence and it slipped. I have not had problems with the fence slipping while using the table saw itself. However, I discovered that the fence would slip anywhere on the front rail if I appled fairly substantial side pressure to it. Therefore, the fence could slip while sawing too.

The locking mechanism employs a cam to press a piece of metal against the front rail (which I have dutifully waxed!). I first thought that the slipping might be solved by adding material to increase the force applied by the cam to the front rail (but this extra pressure might bend the rail.) It then occured to me that attaching a thin piece of rubber might substantially increase the frictional force between the metal and the front rail and thus solve my slipping problem. Anyone have thoughts about this?

Here's a photo of what I have in mind.

SawStop Fence Cam.jpg

[John Lucas]

Don,
It is none of my business but I think a company that sells TS safety at a premium should be aware and then fix the B. fence problem. You shouldnt have to add any thing to make their stuff work. Also, do that and you will be negating their product liability.

[Mike Wenzloff]

...
The locking mechanism employs a cam to press a piece of metal against the front rail (which I have dutifully waxed!)
...

Did you put wax where the locking mechanism is suppose to clamp against the rail?

If so, strip it off of there. If not, certainly get a hold of the manufacturer. In any case, make sure it is adjusted properly and is free from wax.

Take care, Mike

[Mark Carlson]

I agree with the others with respect to calling SawStop and asking. If their B-meyer fence is similar to others the clamping pressure can be adjusted by adjusting the allen screws that you adjust when setting the fence parallel to the blade. (I think 3 adjusts in a sentence is the max). Let us know what SawStop recommends.

~mark

[Roy Wall]

Don,

Agree to call SS in the morning..........

I've found that you need at least an 1/8" of free "slack" or "wiggle" to allow the fence to slide and, more importantly, to be able to adjust the cam mechanism to apply more pressure to secure the fence.

When I first installed the tube, I wanted it as close as possible to the front rail so the T-section of the fence wouldn't have much slack(you know - slide real nice without any slop!).....this was wrong! You need the slack so the cam can really put the pressure on the guide tube. So I loosened the bolts and moved the tube farther away from the rail to achieve this. Then adjusted the cam for more pressure. This is in the Fence/rail instructions but I ignored it the first time...

Now the fence locks tight with a nice little "snap" that I have to apply when locking the fence down.

Keep us informed.....thanks for the heads up!

[Norman Hitt]

Get the Wax OFF of All surfaces of both the fence AND the Rail where the two make contact for locking, ie; front and back side of the rail, and the inside of the vertical piece of the angle iron that clamps against the rail, or it will always be prone to slipping. You can wax the TOP of the rail without affecting the locking ability.

[Mike Cutler]

Don.

I don't know how similar the Sawstop fence is to a Jet Xacta fence, but my fence did the same thing.
It turned out that a small piece of plastic material had come off of the metal plate behind that cam. It was opaque in color and I didn't see it on the floor, in fact I didn't see it until I moved the saw to clean.
I ended up sticking a piece of 320 grit sandpaper to the plastic part and adhering it back onto the plate. That fence absolutely does not move now.
Bottom line, I think that you may have a small piece of plastic material on the floor by your saw. I also think you should remove the wax from the rail, as others have suggested.
I also tried rubber between the fence and the plate, and it didn't work either, even with the fence not waxed.