Which Miter Guage?

[Tony Shea]

I am in need of a quality aftermarket miter guage that isn't going to break my bank. I think I have it narrowed down to two models but other suggestions are welcome. I have it between the Incra Miter 1000SE or the Kreg Precision Miter Guage system. I like the price of the Kreg a little better but am concerned with the miter bar adjustments. Don't know exactly what is being used to tighten the fit between the slot and bar. I think I like the Incra a bit better but have never seen either one of these in person and have no basis for comparison. For that matter I haven't seen any aftermarket miter guage system in person therefore have zero experience with them. Very green when it comes to these very handy accessories.

Just sick of my Ridgid R4511 stock miter guage and seem to always be adjusting for a perfect cut due to the poor miter bar adjustablity to the slot. Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated.

[Jerome Hanby]

I've got the 1000SE and it works perfectly. Other than the stock gauges that came with my Craftsman and Shopsmith, I haven't used another brand.

[Myk Rian]

You might want to consider the Osborne EB-3. About $109 at some places.
http://www.osbornemfg.com/close-up.htm

[Rod Sheridan]

I have the Jessem and am very pleased with it............Rod.

[Robert Chapman]

+1 on the JessEm

[Gary Venable]

I also have the 1000SE and it works great.

-Gary

[Jay Allen]

I have a Kreg and it has been great for me. The miter bar adjusts with nylon screws that are threaded side to side with-in the bar itself. It is very smooth w/o being "tight". It is solid as all of the other Kreg stuff I have.

[Howard Jahnke]

+1 on the Jessem. I have been using for years now. I still marvel at the craftsmanship.

[Tony Shea]

Was checking out the Osborne and that thing looks interesting. Around the same price as the others, if not a bit cheaper. Has anyone had hands-on experience with this guage?

[dan sherman]

Has anyone ever done the 5 cut method on the Osborne, to see how accurate it actually is?

[paul cottingham]

Was checking out the Osborne and that thing looks interesting. Around the same price as the others, if not a bit cheaper. Has anyone had hands-on experience with this guage?

I have one and love it.

[Jason Pinsonneault]

+1 on the Jessem , may seem pricey but yull be glad u spent that little bit in the first place instead of regretting it

[Von Bickley]

I recently got the Incra 1000HD (Dec. 09), and it looks like it is going to be a nice miter gauge. The Incra 1000HD has 180 indents for stops.
I watched the prices on the Osborne EB3, the Incra 1000SE, and the Incra 1000HD for several weeks. Got the 1000HD for $120.00 from Amazon with free shipping.

[Prashun Patel]

+1 for the INCRA Miter SE.

These things are really like different flavors of ice cream, though. Everyone has their fave. You gotta try them for yrself.

[Derek Gilmer]

I've got the Incra 1000HD (on sale at $129) and it is great. I'd say shop around and find it on sale. My major concern was that with 180 indents they might get worn down over time and loose accuracy. But after using it, this thing is made well I can see it lasting a long time.

[scott spencer]

The Incra V27 has got to be the best bang for the buck, but overall I like the Osborne EB-3 better...very nice fence.

[Cody Colston]

I've also got the Osborne EB-3. It works great but I haven't ever used anything else except the stock miter gauges. I've never done a 5-cut method with it either...never saw the need.

I think Shawn is right, in that they are all good and it's more a matter of finding the one that suits you best.

[Raymond Fries]

I love this one but have not used the others which I am sure are good tools as well.

All I can say is what ever your choice, it will be way better than the stock one that came with your saw.

Happy shopping.

[Tony Shea]

I think I like the Incra fence a bit better than the Osborne. It doesn't seem as though you could add an auxillary fence to the Osborne as easily as the Incra. The Incra looks to have a T-Track type mounting system on the face of the fence. This would be very helpfull for preventing chip-out on the back side of the cut.

The only real difference between the 1000SE and 1000HD is the miter head itself right? The HD has more detents/stops for more angles? I just can't see ever needing all those different angle possibilities. Does anyone really deal with that many angles in crosscuts?

The Jessem looks great but I just can't afford to throw another $100 down for a miter guage. Times are tuff and work is slim at the moment.

[Ron Bontz]

You should have posted a poll. :) This is one of those "I like" questions. I like the Jessem.

[Duane Murray]

I found the Incra HD1000 for $99.00 at Rockler, on black friday. I have to say it is an amazing piece of equipment. For the first time in a long time, It even made my 30+ year old Craftsman TS act as if it were a precision machine. :) Count me in as a believer!

[Bill White]

1000 SE here. I'd buy it again.
Bill

[Cary Falk]

I have the 1000SE with Miter Express and like it alot. I am pretty sure the HD is about the same with more indents. Download the mitergage broshure(link top left) and on page 7 there is a comparison chart. If you are on a budget the V27 can't be beat
https://www.incrementaltools.com/Articles.asp?ID=157

[keith micinski]

I have an osbourne and I am happy with it and it cuts great but The adjustment on the bar is not the best. You just tighten two screws down and it flexes the bar outwards to snug up in the slot. Mine has run out of flex and I think it needs to be a little more snug I have never used the incra but I am looking at getting one because of all the extras that you can add to it.

[Scott Vigder]

+1 on the Osborne EB-3. I've had mine for about a year and a half and it is one of the "go to" tools in my shop when accuracy is paramount.

It's easy to adjust, rock-solid in the miter groove, and has a nice extending arm for larger-piece repeat cuts.

I think, for the money, it can't be beat.

[Kevin Womer]

I have the Incra 1000SE and have no cpmplaints. I think any model you decide on will be a tremendous improvement. There are some good prices out there right now on several models.

[Lee Schierer]

I have the Kreg miter gauge and really like it. It was easy to set up and has been highly accurate. I like how you can move the cross bar to the left or right side easily so the miter gauge works on the right side of the blade as well as the left.

[Paul Ryan]

I have a incra 1000hd only because it was cheaper $99, than the SE at the time. I really like it, it is better than any other miter guage I have ever used. But I have never used a kreg, osborne or jessem. With any of those I dont think you can go wrong.

[Keith Christopher]

+1 on the Osborne EB-3

Love it....

[David Peterson MN]

Vote here for the 1000HD...$99 at rockler. I use it everyday and sometimes wonder how I got along without it.

[Brian Penning]

Another vote for the Osborne.
Only complaint is there not being a pointer or something on the flip stop for the tape measure.

I'm....uh....also...um...glad it's made of metal so that my Sawstop can't....er...damage/hurt it when the blade makes contact with it....was nary a scratch on it after....sheesh!

[Ken Shoemaker]

I rarely used the miter gauge that came with my Delta saw. JUNK! I got an Incra V27 for Christmas and threw away my shop made sledafter a couple days of using thhe gauge.

Great buy for the money.

Ken

[Chris Parks]

I really like that Osborne, I wonder if I can get a metric tape for it?

[Jeremy Killingbeck]

+1 for the Incra 1000HD. I would have probably bought the SE, but I got the HD for $99 at Rockler. I plan to get the Incra Miter Express Miter Sled to go with my 1000HD.

[Bill Huber]

I have the EB-3 and a V-27....

I use the EB-3 the most and will only use the V27 for small stuff. I also use the V-27 on the Band saw, router table and the my sander.

I had a 1000 for about a week and sold it, just was not a very good feeling gauge, To me it was very bulky and not very fast to set up and change. Every time you made a 45 you have to reset it again.

I have done the 5 cuts and set the EB-3 to spot on. The only thing that I have done to the EB-3 is move the stop to the other side of the block it mounts on. This keeps the flex down when using it.

Some other threads you may want to look at.

http://www.sawmillcreek.org/showthread.php?t=128950&highlight=EB-3

http://www.sawmillcreek.org/showthread.php?t=127234&highlight=EB-3

http://www.sawmillcreek.org/showthread.php?t=125020&highlight=EB-3

http://www.sawmillcreek.org/showthread.php?t=117924&highlight=EB-3

[Bill Geyer]

I've had an Osborne EB 3 for probably 8 years, and it's the only one I use now.
It's accurate and easy to adjust if it ever goes out (like if some idiot drops it) and the price today is a relative bargain.

[kenneth kayser]

I have an osbourne and I am happy with it and it cuts great but The adjustment on the bar is not the best. You just tighten two screws down and it flexes the bar outwards to snug up in the slot. Mine has run out of flex and I think it needs to be a little more snug I have never used the incra but I am looking at getting one because of all the extras that you can add to it.

The Incra may not work either. Amount of adjustment is limited. You should be able to fix yours. Call Osborne. You might try grinding the tip off of the screws. This would allow you to screw them in further. But call Osborne first.

[Mark Woodmark]

I also have Incra miter gauges. I have the Miter 1000SE and the Miter Express with the Miter 3000SE. Neither will last for 80 years, but they are good enough for non-commercial shop. Both are very accurate and the Incra people are great to work with. Dont know anything about the Kreg, but am curious if any one has used it and how it worked

[Josh Brouse]

+1 for the Osborne

Accurate, Fast common angle changes, Quick change from left to right of the blade, has a T-Track on the top for extra's you may want to add. Telescoping for longer pieces.

Oh and the biggest reason ..... Norm uses it !!!!!! (just happened to notice during a rerun)

[David Thompson 27577]

............

Just sick of my Ridgid R4511 stock miter guage and seem to always be adjusting for a perfect cut due to the poor miter bar adjustablity to the slot. Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated.

If your miter guage is sloppy in the slots, you can peen it with a center punch to create craters on the sides of the bar. The craters, complete with raised edges, make the bar just a bit wider.

If you're looking for a new miter guage anyway...... I recently went through this myself. I'll soon be building all new door and drawer fronts for my kitchen, using mitered frames for the raised panel doors. So for me, absolute accuracy and absolute repeatability were absolutely necessary.

Any of the Incra guages will give you the repeatability fresh out of the box. None of them are likely to be dead-on accurate right out of the box -- and there is no method to micro-adjust the angle setting. Instead, you need to loosen the head from the bar, set it to your best guess (using a good square of course), and tighten it back up. Not optimum, but quite effective once you get it right.

The same is true for the Kreg.

I thought I'd be impressed with the Jessem, since it has a method for adjusting to a half-degree. But the only one that the local Woodcraft had was "loose". After inserting the angle-setting pins, you need to (as usual) tighten the knob -- but there was at least 1degree of slop prior to that tightening -- so it was impossible to know for sure that the angle I had set was actually the angle that "took". And for almost $300, that's unacceptable to me.

Me? I tuned up my sliding miter saw, and am getting perfect 45's there. I added a t-slot fence to my table saw miter guage, which already had a method of micro-adjusting the 90 and 45 settings.