A few weeks ago there was a thread on another forum about the Wixey Digital Angle Gauge, (one of many) and in that thread there was mention of a competing product called the, "Beall Tilt Box". I had just purchased the Wixey but I really wanted to see how the Beall compared to it. I ordered one and figured I'd return whichever unit I liked less. Here's the Beall Tilt Box http://www.bealltool.com/products/measuring/tiltbox.php
Appearance: When I got the Tilt Box from Beall the first thing I noticed was that it feels much more substantial than the Wixey. It's a little bit larger but the case is made out of metal instead of plastic. Also, it uses a 9v battery so that also would contribute to the extra weight.
The magnets are on the side of the box instead of the bottom. This means that when you zero the box it's not stuck to the table surface and you keep it upright when you stick it to the saw blade or other vertical surface. Obviously, when the saw blade is straight up and down, (90 degrees to the table) the Beall will read, "0.00 degrees". The Wixey magnets are on the bottom of the unit so you have to turn the unit on it's side to stick it to the saw blade. The Wixey readout is then sideways. No big deal but they are different in that respect.
It has two buttons, one for power and one to zero it and to switch between functions. Switching between functions is another difference between the Beall and the Wixey. When you first turn the Beall on it goes into, "Absolute level" mode. You can use it like you would use a very short bubble level. According to the instructions you can recalibrate it easily too. Push the zero button again and it goes to, "Relative level" mode and zero itself. Pushing this button toggles the unit back and forth between the two modes. In order to re zero the unit for relative level mode you have to push the button twice. Once to take it back to absolute level and then again back to relative level. Another difference is that the Beall display goes to two decimal places to the right of zero whereas the Wixey only goes to one. But the second decimal place on the Beall only reads a zero or a 5. Still, that can potentially add a little more precision. More on that later. The other difference between the two boxes is how they measure the angles. The Wixey uses an internal pendulum while the Beall doesn't. I spoke to J.R. Beall and he told me it uses an electronic method instead of a mechanical pendulum but I don't know much more about how it functions than that. They definitely work using a different principal.
Function: I wasn't too thrilled with the first Beall Tilt Box I received. Apparently it had only been available for a couple of weeks and there was a bug or two in the first ones shipped out. It was too hard to push the zero button and get the reading to actually read, "Zero". It would read .1 or .05 some of the time. I really had to work to keep from moving the box even slightly while zeroing it. When I called and talked to J.R. Beall he explained that the buttons on the one I received were harder to push than their second batch and that he would send me out a new one right away. He didn't even wait for me to send the first one back. I received it a few days later and there is definitely a difference between the two. It's easier to push the buttons on the new one because they stick out slightly farther. Therefore it's easier to keep from moving the box while it's being zeroed.
One thing is certain, the Beall is definitely more sensitive to movement than the Wixey. I've used them both side by side and you do have to be a little more careful not to move the Beall when you zero it. But after playing with it for a little while it was easy to zero it on the first try 9 times out of 10. It seems to, "Calm down" a bit after it's been on for a minute or two and J.R. Beall suggested that I turn it on right before I need it, presumably to let the electronics inside settle down a bit. Still, it's not hard to zero it at all even when it's just turned on.
I tested both the Beall and the Wixey side by side in a few different tests. First I set them both on my jointer table and zeroed them. I then picked them up and set them back down in the same spot. Both units went back to zero and I tried this several times. I then compared them on the face of my jointer fence. They both showed the fence to be right at 90 degrees to the table.I guess my Harbor Freight engineering squares are at least as accurate as both of these electronic boxes.
On one end of my fence, which apparently has a very slight twist to it, the Wixey read 90.1 and the Beall read .05. Close enough to show me that they are both reading about the same thing, only the Beall is able to read a little more precisely.
The final test I did was on my table saw. I zeroed both gauges on the table top next to the blade. I didn't place them on the MDF zero clearance insert I have because it's slightly scratched up and both gauges could rock slightly. The table top is smooth and clean and both gauges could sit flat to zero. I put both gauges onto the blade. They both indicated that the blade is right at 90 degrees to the table. The Wixey read 90.0 and the Beall read 0.00. Another accurate setup.
So what's the real difference between the two in my mind? I like the Beall better because: 1) it's made of metal instead of plastic. 2) A 9V batter is easier to find and probably cheaper than the smaller one on the Wixey. 3) I like the magnets on the side of the unit a little better than on the bottom. The readout is a little easier to read this way. 4) It's slightly larger. That won't make a huge difference but being a little larger I figure it might sit more consistently on a slightly uneven surface. This one's debatable but I thought I'd list it anyway. 5) It's a little more sensitive than the Wixey. This may be a negative for someone who doesn't have a steady hand but after a few minutes of playing with it I could zero it just about as easily as the Wixey. The advantage of the increased sensitivity shows up with the .05 decimal place and I saw the difference on both my TS saw blade and on the slight twist of my jointer fence. 6) Beall Tool Company has an 800 phone number and it's really easy to talk to J.R. Beal, the owner and inventor. Wixey doesn't offer any phone number at all and can only be reached by email. Mr. Wixey has been fairly quick to answer my emails though but a phone call, (even if it's not free) is much better in my opinion. 7) Both companies offer a good product and the end function of both units is very close. The Beall does offer a few differences that I consider to be improvements. They both retail at about $40. I've only had customer service with the Beall company and it was outstanding but I've heard that Wixey offers good customer service too. But without any phone number available I see the ease of resolving any problem or getting an answer to a question relying only on email, and I much prefer a phone call. Probably not a big deal to some people though. It's just my personal preference.
Bottom line: In a few minutes I'm leaving to go down to the UPS store with 2 boxes to be shipped. One will contain the first Beall Tilt Box that I received, (I like the second one much better) and the second box will contain the Wixey which is on it's way back to Woodcraft. I would have been happy with the Wixey if I had never heard of the Beall Tilt Box but now that I've tried them both I prefer the Beall. I don't think many people will be unhappy with the Wixey either but since I have to send one back I'll keep the one that I see as having the advantage. YMMV, of course.
Bruce
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Originally Posted by glenn bradley
) for tools that are a lot less useful.
I'm sort of in the same boat. I can't really afford new tools. Heck, I can't even afford new wood!
But this was cheap and I have several uses other than for the table saw. Actually I don't use my TS much anymore because I use the EZ instead. But the TS isn't it's only use. 