Bandsaw Fence Recommendations

Hello All,

I just purchased a Steel City 14" bandsaw and am shopping for a fence. The KREG looks good but kind of costly. Does anybody have any experience and/or suggestions?

Thanks, Andy K. I'm never lost, someone is always telling me where to go...

Reply to
Andy K.
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Hello Andy, First, what are your cutting needs and how frequently would you need to change settings? (I'm assuming that you did not get any fence at all with your saw.) A very simple method- and cheap if you already have them- is to use two clamps to hold a straight piece of wood on the table. A thin or narrow piece will work for most ripping situations and if you need a taller support you can fabricate an "L" shaped frame and use its tall side as the fence. If quickness in set-ups is not necessary because you are doing a lot of repetitve cuts than you would not need to spend additional money on a fence and buy lumber instead. Marc

Reply to
marc rosen

It's very easy to make one. Due to drift, I found little use for a band saw fence. I use a pin more often.

Reply to
Phisherman

That's the one. Had a fence for my former saw and struggling with it was one of the reasons why I bought Duginskie. Tried the pin and never bothered with that dumbass fence again. The best fences now have a pad which gives you the same as a pin for resawing, which says a lot.

In the matter of clamping, I like those Vise-grip types for jigs on iron tables.

Reply to
George

If you insist on a fence for your bandsaw here's one I built from a few scraps and use occasionally.

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Reply to
bookman

In spite of the other posts that are negative towards the Kreg fence, I have one and use it all the time. As far as blade drift is concerned, it is something you can minimize or eliminate if you know how to adjust your saw. The after market Iturra tension spring and aligning the wheels on my 14" Jet with the 6" riser block made the drift issue become a minor issue.

I cut my tenons on the bandsaw using the fence instead of Duginskie's shims.

I have the resaw attachment for the fence and seldom use it. I can resaw veneer thicknesses as thin as 1/64" using the fence.

I use the BC Saw's 3tpi skip tooth blade like Michael Fortune recommends. I have the expensive low tension exotic allow blades that are popular that are absolute junk in my shop.

Reply to
Lowell Holmes

I have never been really impressed with the Kreg fence although it is superior to what comes with many saws so it would be an improvement. That said however, Laguna makes an even more expensive but still affordable fence that "may" work on other saws. It has a lot of built in features such as repeatable precise incremental distance adjustments, adjustments for drift, and or fence height. I am not saying that this would be the best choice for you but am mentioning it for consideration.

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Reply to
Leon

I think the Kreg is a great system. I have been using it on my 14" bandsaw for over 12 months now. Very adjustable for blade drift and can produce some excellent and consistent cut results. Review >

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Reply to
HappyGilmore

I have an Osborne fence. Real similar to the Kreg. Works well, but as others have said, a bandsaw drifts due to several reasons. If the saw is well tuned and a decent blade is used the drift is consistent and you adjust the fence drift angle to compensate. I find that I normally only have to adjust the drift if I change blades. I use the fence a lot and it is quicker than a piece of wood and two clamps that you have to adjust for the drift each time you use it.

Take your time cutting, forcing a cut can cause the blade to follow the grain, no matter how well setup everything is.

Reply to
BillB

I have a Kreg that was given to me. It's very nicely made.

I still prefer a shop-made pivot for resawing. The fence is OK for tenons, but I don't use the bandsaw to make tenons very often.

Reply to
B A R R Y

I would say the only down side I've found on the KREG fence system, and it may only be aesthetics, is the darn thing is short an inch or two and doesn't stretch all the way to the other side of my 14" Delta bandsaw table. Of course they do sell a longer fence separate for $40 that stretches all the way across, but you can't buy the fence system with the longer fence.. Haven't really found a negative, operationally, as a result of the short fence, but from an aesthetics point of view it looks like its the wrong sized fence for the saw or that KREG was just too cheap to give you the full length...

Reply to
Jim Hall

How smooth is that veneer? I need to plane my resaws and I can't plane something that thin....

Reply to
Jeff

Reply to
Pat Barber

Andy K. wrote in news: snipped-for-privacy@4ax.com:

Build your own. I bought two pieces of "T" track and two toggle clamps from Rockler. Using a piece of oak on each side, they bolted right up to the saw table. I use a 2"x2" piece of angle iron as the fence. Cost was less than $20. On the first attempt, I blocked off the miter track, but re-drilled the holes and now everything fits fine. See pictures on the binaries list.

Reply to
Smaug Ichorfang

I use it to tighten a loose mortise and tenon joint. If I want a finish veneer, I like 1/8" thicknesses. My point is that I have the fence and wouldn't want to do without it.

A friend used my saw recently and said it was the best adjusted saw he has used, and I credit Mark Dugenske and Michael Fortune.

Reply to
Lowell Holmes

I've got the Kreg and it has worked great for me. With that said, the OEM fence or a board with a couple of clamps has also worked well for me. I do like the micro-adjust feature of the Kreg.

D. G. Adams

Reply to
dgadams

That is the cleanest workshop I've ever seen!!!! I clean up at least three times a week and mine's a wreck compared to his...

Reply to
Jeff

I got a Delta 14" BS with a fence that incorporates a metal rod that can be fastened to the fence and placed alongside the blade.

I've yet to o anything much with the saw and won't be able to get back to it for months.

I was intrigued by the mention of a "pin" but have no point of reference and wonder if those who advocate for its use might point to a site or two that describes its use,

Also, any insights in "tuning" the Delta fence and compensating for any drift I might experience.

I have heard the addvice to replace the tension spring.

Reply to
Hoosierpopi

It's just a pointy or rounded faced fence, with the fulcrum lined up with the cutting edge. You zip a reference line down the board and cut to it by eye. It works much better than many would guess.

Here's a fancy example:

Kreg sells a curved addition to their fence:

For years, my resaw guide was a piece of 4x4, cleanly cut at 90 degrees, clamped to the table. Adjustments are doen with taps, like a wooden plane. The point was aligned so the end and one side of the 4x4 fanned out @ 45 degrees from the blade.

My saw is well tuned, so the work stays relatively parallel to the front of the table regardless of my choice of a point or my Kreg fence.

Reply to
B A R R Y

I have a Kreg, and it has adjustments in 2 dimensions. It allows you to quickly (seconds) install the guide and slice off a precision piece. It also allows you to set it to a low profile option.

I changed the mounting holes on it for my 14" Jet. Other than that, I am happy.

Reply to
Maxwell Lol

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