I've got an old Sears TS that I put a Craftsman extruded aluminum
Align-a-Rip 24/24 fence on for $160. It locks at both ends and has a
T-track on both sides on which you can mount an aux fence, featherboards,
etc. I've got mine aligned so that the total front-to-back error is less
than 5 thousandths. It works well for me, is very secure and cost about
half the price of the brands to which you referred. I've done quite a bit
of ripping and the cuts are dead even, front to back. It does, however,
take a little more care in setup than a front-locking T-square type fence
such as the Biesemeyer.
I'd say my old TS -- which was definitely a rusted sow's ear when I got
it -- is now very nearly made of silk.
"SteveC1280" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
> Any opinions on a Vega fence vs Accusquare for an old sears TS? Can a
> sacrificial board be mounted to the Vega?
> TIA
>
> >>
> Remove the 'remove' in my address to e:mail me.
Chuck,
I looked at the Craftsman Aligh-a-Rip fence. It looks good except that is
mounts 24 inches (if I remember correctly) to the left as well as right of the
blade. I only have a about 8 or 10 inches of table to the left of the blade.
My shop is REAL small and I'm afraid that I'd impale myself on the protruding
extensions as I walk through the maze of tools.
>>
Remove the 'remove' in my address to e:mail me.
"SteveC1280" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
> Chuck,
> I looked at the Craftsman Aligh-a-Rip fence. It looks good except that is
> mounts 24 inches (if I remember correctly) to the left as well as right of
the
> blade. I only have a about 8 or 10 inches of table to the left of the
blade.
> My shop is REAL small and I'm afraid that I'd impale myself on the
protruding
> extensions as I walk through the maze of tools.
That's the 24/24. I believe they also make a 12/24 that mounts only 12
inches to the left of the blade.
--
-Mike-
[email protected]
Steve, Sears used to have a 24/12 Align-a-Rip fence. Don't know if it's
still available.
Truth be told, I had to shorten both my fence rails. My TS has a rod that
carries the splitter and blade guard that protrudes thru the back right
where the rail would be. So I took them to a metal cutting shop and had the
left sides removed. Now I only have 24 inch right rip capability but that
hasn't impacted any of my projects thus far. If I need left rip, I can
always clamp a straghtedge to the table. Seemed a shame to spend $160 for a
24/24 fence and then another $15 to shorten the rails...but it was still a
less costly solution than another brand of fence.
What I did was cut off the rear rail almost directly behind the splitter
(allowing about 1/2 inch for the guard and splitter carrier rod) and the
front rail at the left edge of the main table so it will still pick up the
leftmost mounting bolt. Turns out that shortened both rails by almost
exactly the same amount.
"SteveC1280" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
> Chuck,
> I looked at the Craftsman Aligh-a-Rip fence. It looks good except that is
> mounts 24 inches (if I remember correctly) to the left as well as right of
the
> blade. I only have a about 8 or 10 inches of table to the left of the
blade.
> My shop is REAL small and I'm afraid that I'd impale myself on the
protruding
> extensions as I walk through the maze of tools.
> >>
> Remove the 'remove' in my address to e:mail me.
I put the Vega 50" on my Jet Contractor's saw and it's great. Dead
accurate, square and very
solid. So much so, that now I'm gonna sell the Jet and get a cabinet saw
to match the fence!
I purchased from Amazon which at the time, had the best price, a $25 off,
and free shipping.
It was quite easy to install and adjust. I think you'll be quite happy
with it.
Cheers,
cc
"Bob" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:hg5vd.560791$D%.451904@attbi_s51...
> Get a Vega and yes a sac fence can be added. I got the 50" on my Sears
> saw.
> One of these days soon I am going to sell my Vega which has the 70"
> extension with 2 legs included, finger saver, and hold down attachment.
> Vegas are extremely accurate and also have a micro adjuster on it. The
> Vega
> is VERY accurate. I just bought a Grizzly G0444Z so I am going to sell my
> Sears TS with cast iron wings after I reinstall the old fence. I am going
> to sell the Vega and the TS separately.
>
>
> "SteveC1280" <[email protected]> wrote in message
> news:[email protected]...
>> Any opinions on a Vega fence vs Accusquare for an old sears TS? Can a
>> sacrificial board be mounted to the Vega?
>> TIA
>>
>> >>
>> Remove the 'remove' in my address to e:mail me.
>
>
On Mon, 13 Dec 2004 02:35:37 GMT, Dan <[email protected]> wrote:
>On Sun 12 Dec 2004 05:05:32p, [email protected] (SteveC1280) wrote
>in news:[email protected]:
>
>> Any opinions on a Vega fence vs Accusquare for an old sears TS? Can a
>> sacrificial board be mounted to the Vega?
I got a Mule's Accusquare fence for my old Crapsman. I really like it. Very
reliable, rugged, easy to installed and I believe it's cheaper than Vega. Seller
very responsive to enquire and questions.
Call him or sent him an email nothing to lose
On Sun 12 Dec 2004 05:05:32p, [email protected] (SteveC1280) wrote
in news:[email protected]:
> Any opinions on a Vega fence vs Accusquare for an old sears TS? Can a
> sacrificial board be mounted to the Vega?
Don't know about the accusquare, but I put a Vega 50 on my used Craftsman
saw pretty easy. It demonstrated really well how much everything else on
that saw was out of whack. Bought a Griz, put the fence on that, and
everything's fine. I've used a sacrificial fence and a homemade extension.
I've had it a couple years, had to adjust it for square once since I've had
it on the Griz. Can't adjust the scale to zero but I got it at exactly one
half-inch from zero when it's at the blade so I just figure 1/2 inch long
when I move the fence.
For a long time I double-checked with a rule to make sure. Then I figured
out that every time I got the measurement wrong, it was with the rule, not
the fence. So now I trust the fence scale. Little dickens is right on,
every time. It's great.
I had an old Crapsman to which I added a Vega. I liked it allot, and yes I
had a sacrificial wood fence.
-Steve
"SteveC1280" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
> Any opinions on a Vega fence vs Accusquare for an old sears TS? Can a
> sacrificial board be mounted to the Vega?
> TIA
>
> >>
> Remove the 'remove' in my address to e:mail me.
"Dan" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
>
> For a long time I double-checked with a rule to make sure. Then I figured
> out that every time I got the measurement wrong, it was with the rule, not
> the fence. So now I trust the fence scale. Little dickens is right on,
> every time. It's great.
Funny how we're like that, isn't it? My fence set up perfectly at 0 with
the fence just touching the blade and every test cut I made was dead on. I
made a ton of test cuts at all sorts of lengths... BUT, for the longest time
I still measured everything with a tape measure. Don't do that anymore, but
it was something that took a while to get over.
--
-Mike-
[email protected]
Get a Vega and yes a sac fence can be added. I got the 50" on my Sears saw.
One of these days soon I am going to sell my Vega which has the 70"
extension with 2 legs included, finger saver, and hold down attachment.
Vegas are extremely accurate and also have a micro adjuster on it. The Vega
is VERY accurate. I just bought a Grizzly G0444Z so I am going to sell my
Sears TS with cast iron wings after I reinstall the old fence. I am going
to sell the Vega and the TS separately.
"SteveC1280" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
> Any opinions on a Vega fence vs Accusquare for an old sears TS? Can a
> sacrificial board be mounted to the Vega?
> TIA
>
> >>
> Remove the 'remove' in my address to e:mail me.
"Chuck Hoffman" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
> I've got an old Sears TS that I put a Craftsman extruded aluminum
> Align-a-Rip 24/24 fence on for $160. It locks at both ends and has a
> T-track on both sides on which you can mount an aux fence, featherboards,
> etc. I've got mine aligned so that the total front-to-back error is less
> than 5 thousandths. It works well for me, is very secure and cost about
> half the price of the brands to which you referred. I've done quite a bit
> of ripping and the cuts are dead even, front to back. It does, however,
> take a little more care in setup than a front-locking T-square type fence
> such as the Biesemeyer.
I'll echo the above with the exception that I can't say it takes more care
than a Biesemeyer. Never had a Biesemeyer, so I don't know how they set up.
My Align-A-Rip seems very fast and very accurate to me so it makes me happy.
I the Bies is easier to setup then it must come with a 28 year old brunette
that does the setup for you. That would be a good thing. I'd consider a
Bies for that...
>
> I'd say my old TS -- which was definitely a rusted sow's ear when I got
> it -- is now very nearly made of silk.
>
Likewise, the Align-A-Rip has made my saw something that it never was all of
its life before the new fence. The saw is a good basic tool and a good
fence does make it a very good tool.
--
-Mike-
[email protected]