New Toy Gloat - Miter Gauge

[Ed Sallee]

I don't work for these folks, but thought I'd share. I chose the Incra 1000SE with the Express Sled thanks to some advice from ya'all in another post. I received it today at the office from the brown Borg on wheels. Couldn't wait to get home!

Got home, opened the box to both parts, the miter gauge and sled. Set the sled parts aside....might put that together tomorrow. But, my DW746 has the sliding table, not sure how much of a hurry I'll get in. Plus, I have to decide if I want to set it up with the miter on the left or the right of the blade. I have a left tilter..... (Could use a recommendation here)

One comment I'll make right away, about the sled.... is that the miter gauge comes with an attachment for a 'T-Slot' style table slot, which my saw has, but the sled does not have the 'T-Slot', so I'll have to take off the attachment when using between sled or no sled.

After easy instructions for set up..... I tested a couple of pieces. This is how the 45's look with a "right out of the box" set up. So far, I like the miter and the miter stop....

By the way, I never thought about using the digital angle gauge to test a miter before.....but it looks like it worked! Time to make some boxes!!!
http://i302.photobucket.com/albums/nn88/evsallee/1.jpg
http://i302.photobucket.com/albums/nn88/evsallee/2.jpg
http://i302.photobucket.com/albums/nn88/evsallee/3.jpg
http://i302.photobucket.com/albums/nn88/evsallee/4.jpg

[Norman Pyles]

I gots that miter gauge too, and love it.

[Dewey Torres]

I gots to get that miter gauge!

[Don Eddard]

I'm very happy with my 1000SE. Bummer about the sled not having t-style slots. Any way they could be routed out?

[J. Greg Jones]

Left side vs. right side placement is largely a matter of personal preference. Some people are so accustomed to using the miter gauge on the left side of the blade that a switch to the right side is uncomfortable for them. If you will be making angled cuts (blade tilted to the left) often, then the right side is preferable so that the workpiece is not trapped during the cut. I originally set my Miter Express up for the right side, but later switched it to the left side by purchasing a replacement cutoff panel.

Another suggestion that I would make is, if possible, leave the "slick strips" off the bottom of the sled. Wax the bottom of the sled and it will slide better than what it will with the slick tape. The tape can catch on the front of the saw's table when mounting the sled and peel back, which ruins the tape. You may need to apply the strips as a spacer to raise the panels enough to keep the main connector utility plate from bottoming out in the miter slot.

You'll also want to check to see that all the connector panels are coplanar once assembled. I own two of the Miter Express sleds and both required shimming with blue painter's tape in the rabbets to make the sled panels coplanar. The panels have a tendency to pull up the opposite end when tightening the screws, sometimes to the point where part of the panel no longer touches the saw table. Finally, you'll want to put a straight edge over the width of the sled to ensure that the panels are flush with, or slightly above the top of the utility plate. If not, you'll need to shim the rabbets to raise the panels. This is my biggest complaint with the Miter Express as it may need considerable trial and error in shimming and tightening of the screws to get it perfect.

[Ed Sallee]

Thanks for the great advice, J.Greg..... I'm still on the fence as to whether I want to use it all..... The cast iron slider I have on my DW746 works very well...... not sure if I'd see a noticable improvement. I'll try it out, and if it don't work like I want, then maybe I'll build something out of the parts for my router...... or something..... I plan on playing around with it all on Saturday.... :D