Harvey MG-36 Miter Gauge?

[Steve Mathews]

Where is the Harvey MG-36 Miter Gauge made? I'm looking to purchase either the Jessem miter gauge or this one.

[Steve Eure]

Harvey is a Chinese company, so I assume it's made in China. This company also contracts with several of the other higher end tool
companies here in the states. They are a very reputable company and are well respected for their quality tools.

[Phil Mueller]

You might want to check out the Wood Whisperer’s recent YouTube vid reviewing a number of miter gauges, including Harvey and Jessem. There is also a “rebuttal” from Stumpy Nubs on the Harvey. Both worth looking at before buying a premium gauge. Watch Wood Whisperer first, then Stumpy.

[Robert Engel]

I can't figure out why the price dropped from 399 to 319. That's a pretty big discount, isn't it?

I watched them both, interesting, but I would never pay that much for a miter gauge anyway.

[Steve Mathews]

I watched both the Wood Whisperer's and Stumpy Nubs videos. The former appeared specific to the features of the gauge while the latter more like sponsored damage control of the Wood Whisperer critique. The Incra 2000 that I now have works fine but is cumbersome switching from one side of the blade to the other. Both the Harvey and Jessem gauges make that adjustment easier. I tend to shy away from anything made in China (not Taiwan) so I'll probably purchase the Jessem miter gauge.

[Bryan Lisowski]

I have heard great things about the Harvey miter gauge. If you want another review go to Kev’s woodworks on YouTube and watch his review.

[George Kasten]

I just received a Harvey MG-36 miter gauge with my new Harvey HW110LC-36 table saw. The fit and finish is very impressive. It's solid, accurate and easy to use. I'd been using an Incra 1000SE for years with a Delta Contractor Saw and it worked fine too, but I think the Harvey gauge will be nicer to work with. If I hadn't received the MG-36 as part of a table saw package, however, I don't know if I would have spent so much money on a miter gauge.

[Steve Mathews]

I have heard great things about the Harvey miter gauge. If you want another review go to Kev’s woodworks on YouTube and watch his review.

I watched Kev's video review but found it bland compared to the indepth review by the Wood Whisperer. I'm getting the impression that some are getting overly enamored with the MG-36 glitz. A fancy box and colorful anodizing does not make a good miter gauge.

[Ray Newman]

I came across the miter gauge brouhaha by happenstance yesterday, so I decided to watch both videos. First the one by Wood Whisperer, then the Nubbs. As Steve Matthews posted, I agree the Nubbs video was damage control. What aslo caught my attention was that the Whisperer purchased all of the miter gauge for his test.

Myself, for about the last 15+ years I an INCRA 1000SE. Never felt the need to upgrade it and it has done everything I needed it to do.

And as Steve Matthews mentioned about some who are over enamored with the Harvey glitz, I have observed that with a great many other tools on other woodworking sites. In my opinion, a great deal of one upmanship and keeping up with the Jones' occurring.

[Frank Pratt]

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I watched Kev's video review but found it bland compared to the indepth review by the Wood Whisperer. I'm getting the impression that some are getting overly enamored with the MG-36 glitz. A fancy box and colorful anodizing does not make a good miter gauge.

I've watched a few of his videos & can't say I've actually made it all the way through one. He just makes me want to do something more exciting, like watch some paint dry.

[Marc Fenneuff]

I came across the miter gauge brouhaha by happenstance yesterday, so I decided to watch both videos. First the one by Wood Whisperer, then the Nubbs. As Steve Matthews posted, I agree the Nubbs video was damage control. What aslo caught my attention was that the Whisperer purchased all of the miter gauge for his test.

I thought it was strange that Stumpy didn't address the fact that TWW said he contacted Harvey tech support about the pointer issue and after a couple rounds with them was told that it was working as designed. Marc's gauge pointer did seem to differ mechanically from Stumpy's.

[Clifford McGuire]

I watched both videos and don't know what to conclude. And I say that as someone who owns three Harvery products.

This is what we get when YouTube'ers get sponsored by products. Their objectivity goes out the window. You could tell that Stumpy Nubs was in damage control mode. And it's the viewer that suffers.

I'm a big consumer of YT woodworking videos. But I avoid the ones that are sponsered (which are becomming fewer and fewer).

[Robert Hayward]

I can't figure out why the price dropped from 399 to 319. That's a pretty big discount, isn't it?

I paid $269 for mine less than a year ago.

[Doug Garson]

Watched both videos. My takeaway is Harvey has a quality control issue but more important they have a customer service issue. The one Mark got was clearly defective. Whether it was fixable by adjusting mounting screws we don't know. Harvey's customer service agent should know and if so should have advised Mark how to adjust it AND offered to replace it. Some have suggested that James should offer to help Mark fix it. James was clear none of the ones he has have the issue so why would he be any better qualified to fix it than Mark?
Someo have characterized James video as damage control. Put yourself in his shoes, you have used and recommended a product and a respected fellow woodworker posts a video showing a clearly defective one. What would you do?
I think the ball is in Harvey's court. They need to contact Mark and make it right.

[Kurt Wyberanec]

I can't figure out why the price dropped from 399 to 319. That's a pretty big discount, isn't it?

I watched them both, interesting, but I would never pay that much for a miter gauge anyway.

I am a big fan of Bridge City tools and have many from both the US and Chinese new era. I know that John as put and continues to put a lot of work in with Harvey to ensure the highest quality and so far he has done a great job and when there have been any issues they fix them.

That said, in terms of the MG it seems like a very nice piece and I have no doubt that the craftsmanship is probably 2nd to none right now, but the one big issue I have with it, is that it doesn't appear (and Wood Magazine pointed this out recently too) to have any numbers on the fence scale. That's a big issue for me....either I have to measure it and then adjust or I have to literally count the scale every time. I don't know if they have addressed this, but I would certainly consider that one issue before buying.

As for the price, $319 is what you would expect to pay for a high quality gauge these days....that said, Harvey runs a new sale basically every week. Occasionally things are full freight and they can also be 60% off. This is the one thing that I really don't like with the company. It makes the buyer always wonder if they've gotten the best price and when it is on sale it cheapens the purchase. I feel like they should just offer it for a reasonable price for what it is and just once in a while run a sale of some sort. But in terms of quality I wouldn't hesitate, just make sure it suits your needs.

Miter Gauges are an interesting thing, and there appears to really be a widespread amount of them on the market and price doesn't appear to = quality in all cases. I just ordered a Hammer HS-950 sander and would really like to have the gauge that they offer, primarily because they use a crazy 15mm slot which makes it hard to adapt (another pet peeve of mine....companies that force you to use their gear) but the gauge itself APPEARS to be nothing special and for $250+ I don't get it. It looks equivalent to a lot of gauges you can pick up around $100.

I have an INCRA 1000SE and find it to be a great gauge....some small issues here as well though....

a) the sliding plastic scales can sometimes move too easily forcing you to recalibrate
b) there's a little too much droop on the extendable portion
c) and this has become a big one for me that I'll post about...the adjustable screws to fix slot slop get stuck and I can't turn them

That said, it's a lot more for the money in my opinion than the Harvey but to each their own.