Biesemeyer Fence Maintenance

[Jerry Solomon]

I have a Delta model 36-444 contractor saw with a Biesemeyer 79-016 T-Square fence (52"). It was purchased new in 1999. I have used it very little overall and, in the past 5+ years, almost none. I now note that the fence is a little difficult to move and seems to drag on both the saw and auxiliary tables whereas when it was new it was much easier to move. I have to admit, I have done nothing in the way of maintenance or suitable lubrication at any time. I also notice that the fence seems to be contacting the table(s); however, I haven't tried to check this with a feeler gauge to see if here is any clearance at all. I haven't checked the glide pads but have ordered a strip of 1/8" thick UHMW to replace them if I find a problem. Is there some type of suitable lubricant or wax that should be applied to the guide tube, saw table, and/or other moving parts periodically that will improve the movement across the tables? In looking over the original installation instructions, I don't see any way to "adjust" the clearance of the fence off of the table after it is installed. Apparently the small clearance of the fence over the table is solely dependent on positioning the front angle at the desired distance below the table top. I live in south Louisiana so there is some minor rusting that may also be a factor.

[George Bokros]

Have you waxed the saw table and the beam the fence slides on lately/ I would review the installation in instructions.

[Lee Schierer]

There are glides on the underside of the fence and T-square that do wear with age. A bit of paste wax and elbow grease on the table top and square tube will help. You may need to replace the glides.

[andy bessette]

On my saw tables and jointer platen I have used a product called TopCote, now available as GlideCote, to reduce friction. I never use wax as I don't want to contaminate surfaces prior to gluing and applying a finish.

[Andrew Seemann]

You might need to hit the metal glide parts on the fence rail (in addition to the tabletop) with some Scotchbrite to take off any surface rust as well. Even if you can't see it, you can get some slight surface rust that will make the fence seem like it is dragging. Then wipe the surfaces with a cloth and some mineral spirits to get the rust dust off. Afterwards, lightly rub those those surfaces with candle wax, canning paraffin, or whatever your lubricant of choice is, and the fence should slide nice, assuming that none of the wear plates have completely worn down.

[roger wiegand]

What do you all like to use for replacement wear plates? Mine are pretty much gone-- they look like Formica.

[Lee Schierer]

What do you all like to use for replacement wear plates? Mine are pretty much gone-- they look like Formica.

The pads on mine all appear to be nylon except the clamp piece that locks the fence is Formica.
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If, mine were in need of replacement, I would either use HDPE or UHMW.

[Bruce Wrenn]

What do you all like to use for replacement wear plates? Mine are pretty much gone-- they look like Formica.

The older ones were high pressure laminate (Formica.) The latter ones are a HDPE product . They use a number size drill for the holes. In the shop, I have some pads and the correct bit, as I have built several Bies clones over the years.

[Jerry Solomon]

Thanks for all of your advice on my fence issue. So far I've did a little light scotchbrite work on the fence tube and on the saw table. I had some 10 mil UHMW tape that I have been experimenting with. There was very little clearance between the fence and the table so I added layers of the tape one at a time to the glide pads on the underside of the fence and that helped some. I'll use either wax or some type of recommended spray coating to improve the slickness of the surfaces.

[Doug Garson]

Some of the glides on mine were worn or missing when I got the fence so I modified mine by adding a support with a UHMW pad to the back of the fence so it runs on the rear angle iron not the table top. That's how the Delta T2 clone of the Bessy is made. The pads on the front tee section were also missing and the previous owner had replaced them with screws so the heads of the screws ran on the rail, I didn't like the idea of steel screws running on the painted rail so I replaced them with nylon bolts, makes it easy to adjust the fence height and squareness to the table again same as the Delta T2. Sometimes the clone is an improvement over the original.

[andy bessette]

...a support with a UHMW pad to the back of the fence so it runs on the rear angle iron not the table top...

That's how mine is setup; rides on the outfeed rail.