Excalibur sliding table help needed

I recently purchased a saw unit that included a 10 inch Delta saw, the large Excalibur sliding table, a roller outfeed table and an over arm blade guard for $400. It is on a welded steel frame 10 feet long and 8 feet wide (yes, my tablesaw is 80 square feet). I am trying to figure out if I can keep it this large because I have a small shop. The questions I have are these. The sliding table fence gets in the way of using the Unifence. Do you have to remove the sliding fence to rip? How easy is it to align the sliding table? I am not sure I want to keep this thing because I have been using a standard fence for the last 20 years and this is becoming a real hassle. Do you grow to love it or will it just get in the way. Thanks max

Reply to
max
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Holy cow! Did you ever get a great deal. The sliding table alone is worth that used. I'm assuming you haven't taken delivery of this unit yet as your answers should be easy to answer yourself. I have the same sliding table. The fence goes on and off the unit in about 3 seconds. It's meant to be off the table unless your crosscutting. As well, the table is very simple to level and adjust. Allen bolts on the legs allow you to level the unit to your saw. I love mine and wouldn't want to be without it. If you have the space I suggest you'll grow to love it. However, if you never do sheet goods you may find you don't use it much. If your space isn't large like you've said here, take your time and plan carefully where you position it. All this space has other uses as well, like lay out and glue up tables etc. Check out their website for more info:

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Reply to
toolguy

I have had the saw in the shop for a couple of months now. I have a Unisaw sitting in the corner because I can't decide which saw to use. This thing is huge. It is on a welded steel base with airplane wheels but it is 10 feet by

8 feet. My shop is 16 x 25. I thought about putting the table on the unisaw but a friend advised to use it as it is until I decide. I did cut some ply and it worked very well. I just have to decide if I want to give up that much of my shop. max

Reply to
max

Yes, but it's a snap. The sliding table fence is held on with the vertical rod in a bracket on the saw side of the table and a T-nut in a slot on the other side. The bracket has a lever-handled screw that is loosened a quarter turn, then you loosen the knob on the other side, slide the T-nut out, then lift the rod out of its bracket.

(In fact, to get extra crosscut capacity, you put the fence on the far side of the table, which means you have to swap the positions of the mounting hardware on the fence.)

There's a lever below the table surface on the left side that should lock the table in place so it doesn't slide if you're ripping large parts.

I found the process tedious, but once it's set, things work fine.

Working from memory, first the height is set with the legs and the bracket on the table top. Set the heights on these so that the sliding table top is parallel to the saw table, but just a little above it. (This keeps the fence from scraping against the saw table.) You're working here on being level in two directions (sideways and lengthways) as well as getting the height right, so I found I went around each adjustment a few times to get things where I liked them. I used the sliding table fence as a straight edge to see things were level. Make sure to move the table back and forth to check for level in different positions.

Once the table is level and at the right height, you set the outside rail so the sliding table moves parallel to a miter gauge slot on the table (which, in turn, should be parallel to the blade). The zig-zag cross bars have oval bolt holes which lets you adjust the outer rail. I found a dial indicator clamped to the fence on the sliding table made it easy to run the table back and forth and read how far out of parallel I was.

Then you need to set the angle scale and the fence stops on sliding table for square. You can roughly set with a carpenter's square between a miter gauge slot and the fence on the sliding table. If you want to do better, there is a method I found in an old post on this group. Take a large, squarish panel of some cheap material, put one edge against the sliding table fence, and do a trim cut on an edge. Rotate the panel so the just trimmed edge is against the fence, then trim the next edge. Repeat until all four edges have been trimmed, then put the fourth trimmed edge against the fence and cut a thin strip off the panel. If the fence is perfectly square, this strip will be of uniform width. If the width changes along its length, the fence is not at 90 degrees, and you can try an adjustment and repeat. By cutting four corners in sequence, this method amplifies the error and makes it easy to see.

I used a micrometer to measure the difference in strip width, and the dial indicator to adjust how far I rotated the fence. Write down the results of each test because how much you adjust (for me, anyway) turned out to be not obvious. It took me about eight times through for the fence at the front of the table, and another five to square the fence at the back of the table. It now probably cuts corners square to the thickness of a hair over 4' after this.

The outside aluminum extrusion has an angle scale held in place with a clamp bolt on the side of the extrusion. Loosen this bolt, slide the scale so the zero degree mark lines up with the squared fence, then tighten. For the fence at the back of the table, you scribe a line on this extrusion when the fence is square. Both front and back have rotating stops with bolts and wingnuts you can adjust to contact the fence when it's right at 90 degrees.

Easy, eh?

There's a scale and flipstop on the fence, but I haven't yet figured out how to easily calibrate the scale position after moving the fence around. I might drill a new hole somewhere and put a removable locating pin in.

I've been cutting a fair amount of plywood for cabinets. I can't imagine ever wanting to give up the sliding table. It also makes crosscutting boards (that are not over 8 or 10 feet) a snap. The flipstop makes repetitive length cuts easy.

On the other hand, if I was making birdhouses from little scraps of lumber, it'd just be in the way.

Tim

Reply to
tim124c41

Hi Max,

If the Unisaw is better than the Delta saw that you just bought (you don't mention the model) I'd swap them out and mount the sliding table on the Unisaw but maybe downsize the outfeed table due to the limited space you have. It is a space pig but it sure is a great addition to the saw.

Reply to
toolguy

Tim, this is very informative and thoughtful response. :>)

Reply to
toolguy

Should qualify for the FAQS... Tom

Reply to
Thomas Bunetta

Thanks guys!

Tim

Reply to
tim124c41

Well if it's too big for your shop and you only paid $400 I'm willing to take it off your hands for $450. That's a $50 profit for you.

Reply to
dteckie

Yeah but shipping will kill you.

max

Reply to
max

remove NO SPAMMERS for email

Reply to
Lee

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