Incra right angle fixture

[Kelly Colin Mark]

Is it just me, or does this fixture seem like the ugly stepchild compared to the precision of the rest of the LS positioner system ?

I've dinked around with the nylon screws but my fixture has a horrible tendency to want to tip, or wobble. Either the screws are too tight or they're too loose, and either way, their grip on the fence is really tenuous.

I've gotten to the point where I've started looking at the t-track on the fence and wondering whether something better could be done.

[Don L Johnson]

Give technical a call at Incra; they have really good support.

[ian maybury]

I'd say it's not the most highly engineered part of the system Mark, and that I've thought similar thoughts. It's worked fine for me so far with care, but needs consideration in how it's held down and moved, and care that the nylon screws you mention (which determine the fit on the rail it slides on and hence its accuracy) are adjusted just so. They have a tendency to loosen at times, so barring a fix they can't it seems just be set and forgotten - so a fix would be nice. It needs a bit of care during assembly too to make sure that everything is square.

I guess against that and compared to trying to keep a DIY right angle 'fixture' ( :) a wood block) held tight against the router table fence it's a pretty precise item...

ian

[Kelly Colin Mark]

I guess against that and compared to trying to keep a DIY right angle 'fixture' ( :) a wood block) held tight against the router table fence it's a pretty precise item...

ian

True that, but compared to, say Jessem's Mit-R-slide and Veritas' right-angle sled, the Incra sled just seems out-of-place awful, whereas the two former are butter-smooth. Compared to the rest of the engineering in the Incra system, the deficiency here seems glaring. It's certainly not an insurmountable issue.

Don, you're right that Incra's tech support is top-notch. Unfortunately, I bought mine used so I don't think I qualify for any warranty, but more than that - I don't think there's anything particularly wrong with my unit, as in out-of-spec. I can see clearly that the nylon screws have a very small space to register against the interior of the fence, and there's not so much as a lip on that side to retain them - so they are prone to just popping out with a little wayward pressure.

[Craig Behnke]

Is it just me, or does this fixture seem like the ugly stepchild compared to the precision of the rest of the LS positioner system ?

I've dinked around with the nylon screws but my fixture has a horrible tendency to want to tip, or wobble. Either the screws are too tight or they're too loose, and either way, their grip on the fence is really tenuous.

I've gotten to the point where I've started looking at the t-track on the fence and wondering whether something better could be done.

I felt the same way, either I was doing it pretty wrong or it was far less robust than the rest of the system. i have to make several matching boxes with dovetails in the next few months. my prior dovetail attempts were plagued with by poor operator skill (it's true, someone has to say it) and the right angle component didn't do me any favors.

in my never-ending quest to donate my hard-earned dollars to support the lavish lifestyles of slick and expensive equipment manufacturers (and to compensate for my skill deficit), I just bought a jessem mitre slider. I'll install it soon and give that a go. if that doesn't help me, then I'll have to stick to simpler designs for now, but i'll find solace in the thought that I did my part to fill the coffers of the "buy Mr. Incra and Mr. Jessem a yacht" fund.

[keith micinski]

Is it just me, or does this fixture seem like the ugly stepchild compared to the precision of the rest of the LS positioner system ?

I've dinked around with the nylon screws but my fixture has a horrible tendency to want to tip, or wobble. Either the screws are too tight or they're too loose, and either way, their grip on the fence is really tenuous.

I've gotten to the point where I've started looking at the t-track on the fence and wondering whether something better could be done.

I couldn't have said it better myself. I have always thought that right before they boxed the incra fence up someone said " Hey, let's make a right angle fixture" except for the fact that I think you could have easily out designed that thing in under a minute. The conclusion I have come to is it is intentionally terrible. I haven't figured out the reason why but that is definitely the answer.

[keith micinski]

And by the way you all just screwed me because I didn't know that the Jessem mitre slider existed till just now and really want one. The only saving grace is that I don't plan on getting rid of my Incra fence so maybe that will keep me from getting a whole new fence system just to have the mitre slider.

[ian maybury]

I'd not seen the Miter Slide before - it's a very nicely made looking piece of kit. http://www.jessem.com/MITE-R-SLIDE.html Has anybody got experience of it?

To be fair to Mr. Incra it's not remotely fair to compare a $300 and quite highly engineered accessory like it with a simple $44 fixture: http://www.incrementaltools.com/ProductDetails.asp?ProductCode=RAFJUMBO

Wonder if you need the extra functionality of the miter slide if it'd be possible to mount one off the Incra fence to get the best of both worlds?

ian

[Craig Behnke]

Wonder if you need the extra functionality of the miter slide if it'd be possible to mount one off the Incra fence to get the best of both worlds?

ian

I just mounted my jessem slide to my incra fence yesterday. simple. required just once spacer to adjust it and make it work. i'll take a pic and post it later

I mounted it to the regular fence. I'm going to make an adapter so that I can mount it to the regular fence AND still be able to use the incra wonder fence. THAT will be the best of all three worlds.

[Craig Behnke]

Wonder if you need the extra functionality of the miter slide if it'd be possible to mount one off the Incra fence to get the best of both worlds?

ian

here are the pics of the jeseem + incra install i did yesterday.260521260522260523260524

[keith micinski]

Craig, didn't you read my post. You're killing me.

[Kelly Colin Mark]

here are the pics of the jeseem + incra install i did yesterday.260521260522260523260524
BEAUTIFUL. I have the Mite-R-Slide at my cottage and may just pull it off for use at home...can't wait to see you get the Wonder Fence working with it.

[ian maybury]

Thanks Craig. That's one for the wish list. Feel free to post the mounting you go for on the Wonder fence too if you'd like as and when. Not sure how often the need might arise in practice, but it may be a bit awkward to combine it with their Hi-rise fence and brackets...

ian

[Michael Heffernan]

Here is a link to a guy who installed the Mast-r-Slide on the Incra LS system with the WonderFence. I like the set-up. Yours is definitely cleaner. But I do like his use of the slide with the WonderFence for larger diameter bits.

Maybe in the future I'll pony up the 300 bucks for the Mast-r-Slide and do the retrofit. For now, with care and proper clamping and hand placement, the Incra right angle fixture works well for me.




here are the pics of the jeseem + incra install i did yesterday.260521260522260523260524

[Kelly Colin Mark]

I'll say this, after pulling off the Mit-R-Slide off my cottage router table: I forgot how smooth it actually is. Michael, I registered on Router Forums just to see those pictures, but to be honest: i have no idea what he did there !

[ian maybury]

Just wondering - genuinely.

What sorts of jobs make use of the angle capability the Mitr slide delivers over and above a right angle fixture? Thinking about it i've not run into one yet but maybe that's just me.

A quick skim of Bill Hylton's book suggests that while he details a nice right angle fence arrangement that registers off the edges of the table that he suggests no arrangement for angle cutting.

ian

[Michael Heffernan]

Ian, for me it wouldn't be the angle capability of the Mite-r-Slide, but the vertical stability of the slide. With the Incra fixture, if you have a tall board clamped to it, it tends to tip forward. When making a series of cuts, say with DTs or box joint cuts, it's a bit cumbersome to hold onto. With the Mit-r-slide, the rail bar locks the slide from any movement but forward and back.
However, I can't justify 300 dollars at this time for the limited use of my right angle fixture on my table.



Just wondering - genuinely.

What sorts of jobs make use of the angle capability the Mitr slide delivers over and above a right angle fixture? Thinking about it i've not run into one yet but maybe that's just me.

A quick skim of Bill Hylton's book suggests that while he details a nice right angle fence arrangement that registers off the edges of the table that he suggests no arrangement for angle cutting.

ian

[Craig Behnke]

Ian,

it's not the angle capability, it's the ability to clamp and slide pieces with far more stability. If jessem would have made a fixed 90 degree slider, I would have bought that. Part of it is also that i'm relatively new to woodworking so I try to compensate for my lack of experience and skill by purchasing equipment that I believe (wrongly or rightly) will allow me to make fewer mistakes and slips and so forth and help me produce decent work sooner or more efficiently.

I researched how much it would cost to buy the components necessary to build my own slider (from a place like Fastenal, they carry all the component parts needed to do a slider build), but it comes out to at least as much money as the jessem product and it would take a lot of time to fit the parts and make it work as intended. Time is something I don't have much of, so I went with an already made product.

[ian maybury]

Ta guys, that's so far how it's looked to me too. I just thought that maybe the angle setting caapbility opened up something new.

Agree that the issue with the Incra fixture is that it had to be held down very carefully at all times. Also that the nylon screws that make the fit on the rail it slides on on the top of the fence need very careful adjust - and don't hold this adjustment because the nylon nuts don't really lock up.

I've done OK by being careful, and by lightly nipping up the screws before every cut.

Not tried this, and not 100% sure if it would work - but i wonder if replacing the nylon screws with some nylon tipped set screws like these http://www.mcmaster.com/#nylon-tip-set-screws/=mg6pww (it'd be possible to drill out and re-tap the holes in the ficture to use a bigger set screw) that could be properly secured with locknuts wouldn't make possible proper adjustment of the fit? The other issue is the way it can lift off the rail to tip forward or whatever. It'd take a bit more work, but there's a T slot in the face of the Wonderfence just in front of a vertical flat on the aluminium extrusion making one side of the fixture. Wonder if it mightn't be possible to fit a guide strip routed from phenolic that would engage in this slot and stop it lifting?

It'd mean that the fixture would have to be slid off the end of the fence to get it off....

ian

[Bill Wyko]

I've got a jessem miter slide on my incra fence, just required 2 small blocks as spacers. Works fantastic. I've done thousands of DT's with this set up.

[Kelly Colin Mark]

How about some pictures, Bill ? I'm gearing up to do what you and Craig have done, but the more ideas the better. Does yours work with the Wonder Fence ?

I also found a thread out there where the guy mounted the Jessem fence and slider to the Incra jig.

Ian, Craig and Michael both nailed the reasons for our dissatisfaction with the Incra fixture. I find that clamping anything to the fixture makes the setup top-heavy, and that leaves the whole setup prime for tipping or wobbling around. The problem is worsened when you're trying to gang-cut a bunch of boards, as Incra videos suggest you do. Now, the guy in the videos has no problems with the fixture, but some of us clearly do. I find even just squaring up several boards to the fixture and clamping them to be an exercise in frustration.

I wonder whether shaving some of the plywood runners would encourage the fixture to sit lower - on mine, anyways, it looks like the nylon screws ride maybe a millimeter higher than they need to. I also considered weighting the fixture down to stabilize it.

But really, I think I want the Mite-R-Slide working with the Wonder Fence. Craig, you have me inspired.

EDIT: Doesn't Jessem make one of the Incra lifts ? Here's hoping that maybe they can get together and work something out !

[Allen Matsumoto]

I just mounted my jessem slide to my incra fence yesterday. simple. required just once spacer to adjust it and make it work. i'll take a pic and post it later.

Very jealous that you were able to get the original Jessem, that could be fit to an Incra fence. The Mast-R-Slide II is incompatible, apparently only working with their fence 🤬.

I’m really mad at Incra. I looked at their system for years and finally took the plunge based on the unanimous raves about precision and quality. But the OP is being generous in their criticism of the right angle fixture, it’s a toy that feels like Harbor Fright-level engineering. And it’s a critical component for their whole joinery operation, which is why I bought the fence in the first place.

Someone points out that the Jessem is (was) $300 and the Incra is just a $44 (now $55) but that misses the point, I think. Incra should have engineered and offered something comparable to the Jessem by now, at whatever cost. It’s worked for Jessem.

Now I’m stuck figuring out if the Jessem fence will work with the LS positioner, which is awesome, just so I have the privilege of also buying the $366 Mast-R-Slide II. Oh, and selling my basically unused Incra wonder fence and toy right angle fixture, any offers?