Unifence on a SawStop ICS?

[Jim C Martin]

Hello All:
I'm in the process of setting up my new SS ICS and intend to mount my Unifence. The holes in the table don't match up with those in the fence so I need to decide what to modify. The obvious approach would be to drill new holes in the cast iron top. But, the edge is just a little shorter (top to bottom) on the SS than that on my old Unisaw so the hole will have to be really close to the edge. Alternatively, I could drill and tap some holes into the Unifence rail and come in from the back side of the SS table top front edge. I'd just use a screw size smaller than the the threaded holes in the SS top.
I only found one thread mentioning a Unifence actually mounted on a SawStop (http://www.sawmillcreek.org/showthread.php?54840-Unifence-Feeding-Frenzy-What-s-Your-First-Impression-After-Setting-Up) and that poster mentioned that his was a temporary set up.
Anyone have thoughts on this?
Thanks,
Jim

[Mike Heidrick]

My thoughts are add the SS Bies clone. Bolt and go.

[johnny means]

I'm in the process of modifying a biessy to be a sliding fence right now. I cut the fence body down to about 16" and drilled some holes to mount the sliding face. IMO, the Uni locking mechanism is overly complicated and prone to wear while the Biessy style is pretty much bullet proof. On the other hand, I think the Uni's euro style fence is far superior to the fixed face of the Biessys. This way I get what is IMO the best of both. Once I get thu one dialed in I'll be doing the same to my SS's fence.

[Jim C Martin]

Good idea. Will you mill or flycut the face to assure its flat and vertical? If it works out, you might have a really popular fence on your hands.

I spent some time looking at the unifence rail this morning and it seems clear that drilling and tapping the rail for 1/4-20 screws is an easy approach to start with. The 1/4" screws will slide through the existing holes in the table edge and I can get the rail low enough to clear the miter slots.

[Jim C Martin]

Here it is. Three 1/4-20 holes drilled and tapped into the Unifence rail to match the holes in the SawStop table. Short pieces of threaded rod used as studs to make mounting easy. Nuts and lock washers installed from the back. The holes are drilled as high as possible on the rail while allowing the screw to stay within the slot inside the rail that normally holds the nut. The very top of the rail protrudes slightly into the miter slot but does not interfere with the miter. Whole process took about 30 min but that's after thinking about it for a few days.
Cheers,241493
Jim

[johnny means]

Nice. I've been thinking about doing this for years, but uni fence deals don't pop up that often.

[Kyle Iwamoto]

Be careful when your fence is close to the blade, you'll trigger the brake if you hit the fence.

Are the new saw inserts red? Mine is black. The red looks cool and serves as more of a warning. I like it. AND your fence! Doesn't say Sawstop on it though..... :)

[Mike Heidrick]

My ICS is from 2006 and the inserts are red.

[Jim C Martin]

Thanks Kyle. Yes, I know the fence is a risk but its been on my old unisaw for many years and has no saw marks yet.
Just got my old NuCraft cast iron router table installed as the extension table so the whole new school / old school theme is all coming together.