I have seen so many comments here on rip fences. Most were to buy a better one than what comes with the table saw.Why? I have a Jet contractors saw. I can cut veneer strips to 3/64 inch. I think it is all in the set up of the saw when new. What am I missing? WW
I have the same saw and never had any problem with the original fence in the past 15 years.
Because some OE fences are not so good, or are horrible. For example, the fence that cmae with my Crafstman 1983 vintage 10" contractors saw was horrible. My Vega aftermarket made a world of difference.
-Zz
I'm not an expert, but I have a Biesemeyer (sp?) fence on my Delta hybrid saw. It is nice to set the width of cut with the gage and not to have to measure from blade tooth to fence every time. You probably never had a really bad rip fence, where you had to measure front and back and tap-tap-tap for every setup.
Pete Stanaitis
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Don't think that every fence is as good as the one on your saw. Many are rather crappy, difficult to set accurately, flex, won't hold a setting. My first saw was a cheap one and the fence was horrid. Of course, the fence on your saw is probably more costly than the entire setup I had.
My Delta Contractor saw came with a decent rip fence. Much better than the Craftsman fence/saw I tried briefly. But the Delta standard contractor fence only went to 25 inches. Replacement Biesmeyer home model went to 52 inches. Its a very nice fence. The original Delta fence would have worked fine and dandy I suspect. But the Biesmeyer is nicer.
I don't think anyone would suggest you automatically replace your fence. If you are satisfied, keep it. But there are some "stock" fences that kinda suck. Sears put quite a few of them on Craftsman saws. On the other hand, Grizzly installs Shop Fox Classic and the Aluminum Classic on several of their cabinet and contractor's saws -- good fences for anybody's money.
RonB
Good is relative. Sometimes you don't realize the limitations of a tool until you own a better one. However, I imagine a Jet stock fence would be a lot better than the average back-of-the-truck 10" contractor table saw fence.
one than what comes with the table saw.Why?
Gee, if the OP is honest here, he has already seen the comments and the answer sought lies therein. Why repeat the thread again with a new player when there are archives galore?
one than what comes with the table saw.Why?
Because this is a newsgroup, and it is here for the purpose of discussion, new, repeated or off the wall, simply telling someone to look stuff up is anti-newsgroup.
Well, I know it's a subjective opinion, but the fence on my 1948 Delta contractors saw seems to work fine. The markings on the rail don't work, but that's my fault for adding blade stabilizers :-).
Apparently they changed the Delta fences between the mid 1950s and early 1990s. The basic fence on the early 1990s Contractor saw was OK. It worked. Clamped front and rear tubes. Stayed fairly parallel. The Biesmeyer is better but the Delta fence was OK.
I'd guess the rotten Delta fences were the primary reason Biesmeyer developed his fence and why Delta bought it off him. The old fences sucked, plain and simple. Yes, they stayed fairly parallel once you got them there, but were a bitch and a half to put on and remove. The new Delta (Biesmeyer) style fences go on and off easily, stay perfectly parallel just from the front clamp, and measuring marks are perfect with little need for hand measuring. The two main advantages however are easy removal and w/o the rear tube clamp it's a snap to add a rear table.
Also the simplicity of the new fences vs the complexity of the old style is a beautiful example of the KISS principle at work.
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