Table Saw fence rail setup

[brian cammarata]

So in a previous post I picked up my first (and hopefully last) cabinet saw. Its a 1973 34-450 Rockwell Unisaw with fence. The prior owner had it set up with two stamped wings to the left of the blade and a home made extension table (not shown) to the right of the blade.

The rails to the left the blade are / extend 38" and to the right is 45". Is there any advantage to leaving this setup as is? I have to tear apart to move into basement so just curious how is how resurrect this beast? I.e. should I shift all the rails to the right side for more "standard" setup?

This will be center piece of 20' x 20' shop.

thanks!!!

[Don Jarvie]

I have my PM 66 in the center of the same size shop. It’s 7 ft wide with the 8” extension to the left and a 44” extension to the right. I have approximately 5 and 1/2 ft on either side to the wall. It’s more to the front of the shop so for long pieces over 7 ft need to open the door. If you have 9 ft in the front you should be able to rip 8 fters.

[Andrew Seemann]

That is an odd set up. Only advantage I could maybe think of is maybe for ripping wide panels at a bevel on the left side of they blade since it is a right tilt saw. Or maybe for a really wide crosscutting sled. If it were me, I would take off the stamped extensions and set it up normal and build a plywood extension on the right side, but that is because I just do normal standard stuff on a table saw, no specialties.

[Rick Potter]

If you decide to cut down the fence to a shorter size, The aluminum cuts easily with a chop saw..carbide blade. Did a neat job on mine.

[glenn bradley]

It is a right-tilt machine, yes? I would want more table to the left of a right-tilt machine for bevel cuts. I avoid trapping the material under the blade although I know this was common practice and still is for some. In the end you want to make the saw what you want it to be. If you are unsure, run it for 6 months and see what you require out of your fence positions. what is right for me may not be best for you ;-)

[Robert Engel]

He must have done this for a certain task like cutting sheet stock. But it would be an odd set up for normal.

I would move the wing to the right side and add an extension table to the right.

You could either cut down the excess fence to the left, or move it to the right.