Incra fence installation

[Randall Kline]

I have a Bosch 4000 tablesaw, and I was wanting to use the Incra Table Saw Fence (http://www.incra.biz/Products/TSLS.html) on it. The saw is a little too small, and it's alluminum not cast iron. I was thinking about building a custom table for the saw, and then attaching the fence to the table. Anybody know if there would be problems with doing this??

Thanks for the help!!

[Chris Padilla]

Randall,

I have the TS-3a (the older kind...not the new fancy red roller one) mounted on my Grizzly 1023.

What material are you considering? MDF? Plywood? Hardwood? Combo of those?

I don't see a problem except for potential flatness and durabilty of the top but lottsa folks flatten their benches (usually with a plane) and make router tables out of the materials I listed. Phenolic is another one...melamine too.

The Incra fence bolts to the edge of the top so you would want a good solid connection at those points so epoxied nuts or t-nuts into hardwood might be best at these points. You'll also want to pay special attention to how the top of the Bosch connects to the body. Again, you may need to (want to) add machine threads at these connection points

I think it could be quite nice and fun to build. Personally, I think I would go all hardwood like a solid maple benchtop. Grizzly even sells these at reasonable prices...you could just pick one up and you'd be half-way there.

Good Luck...post pics of your progress!

[Joe Spear]

I have a Bosch 4000 and love it. I also have a Jet cabinet saw, also great. But they are two different animals, and I don't think I would spend $350 for the Incra fence to put on my Bosch. If I had the room and money I would put one on the Jet, but the Bosch is comparatively small. To spend that much money for the Incra to put it on what is essential a benchtop saw (albeit an excellent one) seems like overkill. I use my Bosch for quick cuts when I don't feel like pulling out the Jet. (Everything is parked in half a two-car garage.) And I take it out on jobs at other people's houses. (I have the gravity-rise stand.) To make the Bosch into a super-accurate rip saw might also need a whole, shop-built, dedicated outfeed and rightside table system, turning it into a makeshift cabinet saw. It might be better to get a really good contractor saw or cabinet saw in the first place and put the Incra on it.

[Randall Kline]

You both make interesting points. I was thinking about using particle board for a flatter surface, and to resist warping. I would then laminate it with melamine and wax it. The table would include an extended outfeed and side support that would be removable for portability. To support the weight of the fence I was going to attach a metal plate to a lip on the front and rear of the table. Holes would be drilled through the metal plate and wood lip for the bolt to go through. You make an excellent point about better supporting the saw.

As to why add this to a Bosch 4000 the answer is $$ and space. I got this saw for it's portability, and I don't have room for two saws no matter how portable they are (I wish I did). Also, the Bosch was bought for me as a gift so it's a lot cheaper for me to just add some functionality to it.

I'll also add here that it's my belief if someone is going to have a wood working shop, why buy pre-built anything you don't have to? Why buy what you can build? That's not the point. :)

Please keep the comments coming. I appreciate them, and they keep me thinking!

[Chris Padilla]

You both make interesting points. I was thinking about using particle board for a flatter surface, and to resist warping. I would then laminate it with melamine and wax it. The table would include an extended outfeed and side support that would be removable for portability. To support the weight of the fence I was going to attach a metal plate to a lip on the front and rear of the table. Holes would be drilled through the metal plate and wood lip for the bolt to go through. You make an excellent point about better supporting the saw.

As to why add this to a Bosch 4000 the answer is $$ and space. I got this saw for it's portability, and I don't have room for two saws no matter how portable they are (I wish I did). Also, the Bosch was bought for me as a gift so it's a lot cheaper for me to just add some functionality to it.

I'll also add here that it's my belief if someone is going to have a wood working shop, why buy pre-built anything you don't have to? Why buy what you can build? That's not the point. :)

Please keep the comments coming. I appreciate them, and they keep me thinking!

Keep in mind that the Incra fence will add a whole-lotta extra dimensions to your TS--especially when you have the max rip going. The Incra will hang to the right quite a ways! It might make it a little less portable, IMO, but it is a helluva fence and I love it!

The "buy your jigs" vs. "make your jigs" is one I struggle with all the time. It all depends on your budget, skill level, and time. Often, I just don't have time to make jigs and so buying something can be easier and better in some cases.

[Randall Kline]

In considering all of your comments I came up with another idea which may be a better option. Really I wanted to add the other fence to increase the cross cutting capacity of the saw. I do a lot of projects with boards 28"> in length. What about a sled that rides in both miter grooves?? Remove the fence entirely, and just use the sled to support the piece. The only drawback I can think of is that I would lose the speed of relying on the fence to line up the cut. This would be cheaper and much more portable.

Have any of you built/used a sled before??

[Joe Spear]

I'm a little confused. If you want a greater crosscutting capacity, a ripfence doesn't help you at all. In fact, if you use a miter gauge to guide the cut and use the ripfence as a kind of stop to get the right length, that is very dangerous because of the likelihood of kickback. You never put a board against both the miter gauge and ripfence at the same time. If all you want is more support for crosscutting longer boards, you can make a support table for the right side of the saw, or left, or both. A sled is also very useful, and there are many different plans for sleds. You can go to the WoodNet Forums because there have been several discussions and plans for sleds there during the past couple days. A sled on the Bosch 4000 would be primarily useful so you could cross cut WIDER boards than you could with a regular miter gauge. Howver, it could also help support longer ones. Please clarify what you really want the Incra fence for.

[Randall Kline]

I appreciate your concern about me using a miter gauge and fence. No, I don't use both together. Ultimately I wanted the Incra fence for both it's greater capacity and its improved accuracy. However, after taking into consideration all of the comments I've read I believe a sled would better fit my needs for capacity, portability and cheapness. Ultimately I would still like the Incra fence, but I believe that's for the future.

Thank you all for your comments. It's helped me make a more logical choice. :D

[Andrew Ault]

In considering all of your comments I came up with another idea which may be a better option. Really I wanted to add the other fence to increase the cross cutting capacity of the saw. I do a lot of projects with boards 28"> in length. What about a sled that rides in both miter grooves?? Remove the fence entirely, and just use the sled to support the piece. The only drawback I can think of is that I would lose the speed of relying on the fence to line up the cut. This would be cheaper and much more portable.

Have any of you built/used a sled before??

I have a Bosch 4000 (recently added the Gravity Rise, which I really like). I too was bumping against its limitations. The biggie for me was cross cutting capacity. There is little room in front of the blade. I made and have been using a sled. It really helps.

Another trick you might try is to flip your miter guage around the other way for wide boards. So instead of pushing the miter guage against the stock, you push the stock against the miter guage. This way you're not hanging the miter guage out in space.

-Andy

[Randall Kline]

Thanks for the comments Andrew. The trick with the miter gauge I don't think I would've thought of. It's good to know that a sled works well with it also. That's encouraging. Might try to build a little something this weekend. :)