Homegrown Biesemeyer Fence Faces?

[Steve H Graham]

I'm getting a couple of replacement parts for my 48" Biesemeyer fence. While I was looking up these parts, I noticed the replacement fence face kits. The left face on my fence is a little dinged up; the previous owner must have nudged it into a moving blade. It does not seem to affect the accuracy, but it's a little ugly.

Question: do I really have to fork out $66 for new factory fence faces, or can I just joint and mill replacements on my own? They don't look complicated. Seems like you could crank them out pretty easily from scrap hardwood or MDF.

[Steve H Graham]

Also, why does my fence have two pads under it, beyond the table's edge? They don't rest on anything, so presumably, they do nothing.

One other thing: I emailed Mikestools about the pads I need to replace; I have scratches across the end of the table farthest from the operator. I thought I understood the email response, but looking at it now, I can't make heads or tails of it. My fence has four pads under the far end, and it has four pads back by the clamp. Can anyone tell me which part number refers to which? Here's the email text:


The B1350019 goes on the fence and the cross arms. Count the number you have. The B1350051 goes on the bottom part part of your fence, where you control the adjustment or fence alignment.

[Steve H Graham]

Solved the part-number question. It's all posted at Toolpartsdirect.com.

[Michael Weber]

So, do you still have a question?

[george wilson]

Can you just turn the fence pads over,and countersink the screw holes ?,Or maybe swap sides with the pads/ I assume that the screw holes would be in the same places on each side. Then,the bad faces would face inside. Woodcraft supply sells 1/2" thick UHMW plastic pieces you can saw down and put on fences. I don't have your brand of fence,but thought these ideas might help.

[Bruce Wrenn]

I have built several Bies clones over the last fifteen years. On all, I used 1/2" plywood, some faced on both sides with "Formica" and some not faced. The one on my every day saw doesn't have a "Formica" face on it, and it's been in use for over seven years.

[Larry Edgerton]

The pads run on the table when you are adjusting the saw as rubbing blocks. They hold the fence off of the table when sliding the saw back and forth while adjusting. You may have a fence designed for a larger saw so they are in the air. When you redo the fence make sure they are back on the table.

If you need a piece of that high molecular plastic I can send you some, let me know.

[Steve H Graham]

Wow, that's very kind of you, Larry. But I'm not too cheap to buy plywood; I'm just too cheap to buy Official Biesemeyer Plywood that costs fifteen times as much and does exactly the same thing.

[Lee Schierer]

I made a fence cover for my Beismeyer. It also allows me to use my magnetic feather boards for ripping and since it is taller, it allows me to make raised panels with relative ease on the TS.http://www.home.earthlink.net/~us71na/lsfence1.jpg

[Steve H Graham]

That's really nice. I guess I should stop being a chicken and do something similar. Maybe I could make something that doesn't extend all the way across the table, so wood couldn't get pinched against the back of the blade.

I'm new at this, so maybe this is a dumb thing to say, but I'm not sure why long fences go way past the far end of the table instead of way past the close end. Seems like what happens on the near side of the blade is what matters.

[richard poitras]

Lee I was looking at your fence cover that you put on your fence and I said to my self how did he get a picture of my fence cover that I made for mine? It’s really weird it looks identical to the one I made along with the pocket hole construction. Not sure how you sacuered it to your saw fence but I used two Magswitchs on top.

George if your thinking about making one similar I would recommend this design, also what I did was have another wood face that I used with the Magswitchs and attached it to the rip fence for using a dado blade. They both work well.

Richard