I Love My Wixey Table Saw DRO-when its accurate.

[fRED mCnEILL]

I have had a Wixey DRO on my table saw for a few years. About 2 years ago I replaced the readout as it would frequently become innacurate and had to be re-calculated. Well, now after a couple of years I have the same problem with the new readout. The work I do relies heavily on repeatablity. I am in the habit of comparing the DRO with the scale on the fence but that is a waste of time and effort. If the Incra positioner wasn't so bulky(I have a 52 inch fence) I would get it in a heartbeat. Last time Wixey blamed it on the battery, etc. etc. but I never could figure it out. Or perhaps just buying a new readout every 2-3 years is just the cost of doing business.

[johnny means]

What are you doing that the fence scale doesn't offer enough precision? I've always thought tablesaw DROs were a solution in search of a problem. At best they are only as accurate as the last calibration which was done by a human hand.I would think that anyone without severe vision impairment can reliably set a fence to with .01" with the standard scale.

[David Kumm]

In a heavy use application I'd go with Accurate Technologies Proscale. It will stand up to daily usage. Dave

[Erik Loza]

In a heavy use application I'd go with Accurate Technologies Proscale. It will stand up to daily usage. Dave

I agree: The AT units are sturdier or if you really want to go for it, get a SIKO unit. All that being said, what exactly is the issue with your Wixey? Is it losing continuity along the mag strip, maybe some dust inside it, or? Could it just need cleaning or maybe some tweaking of the sensor? Just brainstorming.

Best,

Erik Loza
Minimax USA

[Matt Meiser]

Let me guess...it magically jumps some multiple of 0.2"? Welcome to the world of Wixey. Barry will tell you that your gap is wrong between the two fence parts, that the head is too loose on the rail, and then when all that fails, will blame "static." I've seen it on both a fence readout and a planer readout. I've had way less problems with an iGaging unit that's half the price on my jointer planer--only when the batteries die do I have to recalibrate. I bid the fence readout good riddance with a TS and instead replaced the scale with a good quality one carefully applied so that it didn't get stretched which was a problem with the OEM one on a new Biesemeyer fence I had. I haven't seen that on a subsequent Unifence or a Sawstop fence (or similar scales on a Kreg miter saw fence system) so maybe that was a fluke.

[Phil Thien]

I bid the fence readout good riddance with a TS and instead replaced the scale with a good quality one carefully applied so that it didn't get stretched which was a problem with the OEM one on a new Biesemeyer fence I had.

Yep, I found Starrett makes the self-stick tapes and they are some sort of thicker metal that doesn't stretch. Incredibly accurate.

[Curt Harms]

I had a problem similar to Matt's with a Wixey planer setup. I too replaced it with a iGaging 12" unit. It's possible that the Wixey didn't have adequate capacity to allow the Jet JJP-12 table to lower enough. The Wixey is supposed to have a little over 6" of travel, the Jet planer bed requires a little over 6" of travel. I tried moving the Wixey to a Performax drum sander that only requires around 4" of travel. I had the same problem with the Wixey on the drum sander, it'd 'jump' digits. I also found the battery holder on the Wixey fussy, it'd lose contact and the display would flicker. Possible cause of calibration problems? Others have had great luck with Wixey DROs so I guess it's a YMMV situation.

[Alan Lightstone]

I've had good luck and have enjoyed my Wixey DROs on my Sawstop, as well as my jointer/planer. It's been more problematic on my Drum Sander, where it might in theory be the most useful. It seems to lose calibration on that. I've been fussing with it, and may solve that. For a while it worked great.

It occasionally loses calibration when I remove my table saw fence and reinstall it. Pretty quick to recalibrate on a table saw, but it would be nice if I didn't need to do it.

I do very much like working with tools with digital displays. It's the geek in me.

[fRED mCnEILL]

So it would appear that the Wixey DRO's are just not well enough made to last very long.
Oh well, I guess you get what you pay for.

[Stephen Cherry]

I've got a siko on my felder table saw- and it works. One thing I like about it is that the calibration can be dialed in. First you zero against the blade- make a test cut- measure the error, then put in the offset.

Here is another alternative that looks like it bridges the gap between el cheapo and pro, plus it looks like it's on sale this month:
http://www.proscale.com/products/digi/DigiFence.htm

[glenn bradley]

I had to go back and look but, I installed my Wixey DRO in October of 2008 and changed it to my current saw earlier this year. The inaccuracy is a symptom of batteries going south but, if leaving it without power for about a minute and installing new batteries doesn't cure it, something is wrong. I do live in SoCal so I don't have much of a weather swing throughout the year. If you live where there is actual weather, that may shorten the life?

I will say that discount batteries do cause problems. Since it only takes batteries one or twice a year, I started going to the pharmacy and buying Duracells or Energizers off the medical rack (higher turnover). No problems since. In the past I would even have problems with Energizers/Duracells that had picked up and stored (properly AFAIK). After 6 months or so in a drawer (or the refrigerator, I tried both) they would cause the DRO to read wacky. Run to the pharmacy and pick up a new battery and everything is fine for another 6 months or so. Maybe the unit is just really touchy(?).

At any rate, I've run mine almost daily for 5 years and it is still going strong.

As to the question of why a DRO instead of just a good tape; the answer is obvious if you ever change blades or have them sharpened. The zero mark is relative to a changing reference point, the blade tooth. Some blades are .104" or thinner, some .118" and still others .131" or more. Unless you are framing a house, 2 or 3 hundredths of an inch matters ;-)

[johnny means]

As to the question of why a DRO instead of just a good tape; the answer is obvious if you ever change blades or have them sharpened. The zero mark is relative to a changing reference point, the blade tooth. Some blades are .104" or thinner, some .118" and still others .131" or more. Unless you are framing a house, 2 or 3 hundredths of an inch matters ;-)

Hmmm? Seems to me I can just as easily re-calibrate my cursor and still have the consistency of my trusty tape scale. And even if I don't re-calibrate to match the blade, I know I will never ruin a board because my tape was a full inch off the mark. I would bet that none, absolutely none, of the world's best woodworking was done with a digital readout on a table saw. Now if you just like gadgets, hey that's cool. My wife likes shoes, I have way too many bicycles.

Anyway, Fred, if I had a tape measure that I knew gave me inconsistent readings, I would toss it out and use one that I knew I could trust.

[Roy Harding]

I've got a siko on my felder table saw- and it works. One thing I like about it is that the calibration can be dialed in. First you zero against the blade- make a test cut- measure the error, then put in the offset.

Here is another alternative that looks like it bridges the gap between el cheapo and pro, plus it looks like it's on sale this month:
http://www.proscale.com/products/digi/DigiFence.htm


What's the model number of your Siko? I've got a Felder, and have been looking at Tigerstop, but don't want to spend the bucks required.

[Stephen Cherry]

What's the model number of your Siko? I've got a Felder, and have been looking at Tigerstop, but don't want to spend the bucks required.


It's the one that came from the saw- looks like felder buys siko.

[Roy Harding]

It's the one that came from the saw- looks like felder buys siko.

Roger that. Thanks - I'll make inquiries at Felder. (I REALLY should have included it when I bought the Felder - but what did I know?)