Woodpecker Table Saw Gauge

[NYC Tiny Shop]

Any opinions on the Woodpecker Saw gauge?
http://www.woodpeck.com/sawgauge.html

 

[jacko9]

I bought one last year and it's great.  You can accurately and quickly adjust your miter saw slot to the blade within .001- .002" then adjust your fence to blade with the same accuracy.  There are three roll pins that center the gauge in your miter slot every time with no fuss.  I'd highly recommend it for fast and easy saw alignment.

Jack

 

[NYC Tiny Shop]

Thanks, Jack. Your opinion is good enough for me...just ordered it. Thanks, Jim

 

[jacko9]

Thanks, Jack. Your opinion is good enough for me...just ordered it. Thanks, Jim

Jim, I couldn't believe how much better my saw cut after tuning it up.  I have tried dial indicators sliding with my miter gauge in the past to get close but, the Woodpecker Gauge got me dead nuts on very quickly. 

I think you'll enjoy the results of a dead on cut.

Jack

 

[PaulMarcel]

I have it and like it a lot; works well.  A cheaper alternative now, though, is a Mag-Dro miter-slot caliper base.  Just attach your own 6" caliper (digital or otherwise).  The base is just $10ish.  Might be a good alternative since the table saw gauge gets used the day you get it to calibrate the fence and adjust table to get the miter slots parallel the blade.  After that, you might use it once a year.  I have both Mag-Dro products to test and review... someday when my day-job gets under control...

 

[jbasen]

I have the A-Line-It

http://in-lineindustries.com/products/a-line-it-system/

It is also an excellent product.  The adjustments on the bar that fits within the mitre slot give you consistent readings as you move the gauge from one end of your saw blade to the other or one end of your fence to the other.  Highly recommended

I just noticed that the A-Line-It is on sale at incremental tools for $10 off or available from amazon with free shipping. 

Hope this helps

Jay

 

[NuggyBuggy]

I've got the Woodpeckers gauge as well as the TS-Aligner Jr.

The Woodpeckers is really easy to use for *most* table saws.  But for my initial use case (with an Inca Major table saw), it didn't work so well.  If I recall, it was because the alignment pins had a tendency to fall down a slot that the Inca has to where you insert a wrench to lock the arbor when changing blades.  Also IIRC, the Inca's miter slots were narrower and so if you weren't careful it was possible to have the pins not fully seated. 

The ts-Aligner also didn't work so great initially on that saw, because the slots were too shallow to allow the assembly to sit flat.  I needed to stick some UHMW onto the base with double-sided tape. It works fine now.

For most, neither of the above would be a problem.  If I had to pick one,  the Woodpeckers is almost fool-proof , there are less little parts to fiddle with, the price is right, and it comes in a handy little case.

 

[NYC Tiny Shop]

Thank you, all, for your generous comments, suggestions, and advice. Much appreciated! Jim [smile]

 

[alpastor]

I use the Betterly una-gage because it it so versatile.  See

I can't post links but to a search for "Betterley-UNA-GAUGE" if you are interested. It's available from Rockler and other sources.

It works well for everything it's designed for, but there is setup time for every application, so a dedicated device for a single purpose had some merit.  I substituted a digital gage for the analog gage after I got mine.

Brenton

 

[cgmojoco]

I have it and like it a lot; works well.  A cheaper alternative now, though, is a Mag-Dro miter-slot caliper base.  Just attach your own 6" caliper (digital or otherwise).  The base is just $10ish.  Might be a good alternative since the table saw gauge gets used the day you get it to calibrate the fence and adjust table to get the miter slots parallel the blade.  After that, you might use it once a year.  I have both Mag-Dro products to test and review... someday when my day-job gets under control...

Looks like they have two products.
Does one do everything the other does do you know?
I like the idea of leveling extension tables on table saw with the "Magnetic Caliper Base".
I like the idea of using the "MAG-DRO MITRE SLOT BASE" for aligning miter/blade/fence.

 

[PaulMarcel]

I have it and like it a lot; works well.  A cheaper alternative now, though, is a Mag-Dro miter-slot caliper base.  Just attach your own 6" caliper (digital or otherwise).  The base is just $10ish.  Might be a good alternative since the table saw gauge gets used the day you get it to calibrate the fence and adjust table to get the miter slots parallel the blade.  After that, you might use it once a year.  I have both Mag-Dro products to test and review... someday when my day-job gets under control...

Looks like they have two products.
Does one do everything the other does do you know?
I like the idea of leveling extension tables on table saw with the "Magnetic Caliper Base".
I like the idea of using the "MAG-DRO MITRE SLOT BASE" for aligning miter/blade/fence.

One has a magnetic base, the other a miter-slot base. For aligning the blade parallel the miter slot (shifting the table), you'd need the miter slot base.  You'd probably then want to use that miter-slot base to set your fence's toe-out of 0.002"-ish.

The magnetic base is useful for making, say, a height gauge.  I could stick it on my planer and extend the caliper to read the height relative to a zeroed baseline.

 

[rvieceli]

Here's a link that uses the magnetic base and a combination square to true the blade.

http://www.mag-dro.com/pdf_files/1b.%20Magnetic%20Caliper%20Base%20-%20Table%20saw%20blade%20alignment.pdf

kind of slick

 

[NYC Tiny Shop]

These are slick!
Maybe, it's also time to upgrade to a digital caliper? [scratch chin]

I tried the Woodpecker Saw Gauge on my DeWalt table saw. There were many problems using this tool on that table.  The rough plastic surface made it difficult to slide the gauge. The gauge pieces kept coming apart. Also, the miter slot is a little wider than standard, which also made it more difficult.

The degree of tolerance is much more contrasting than a fine cast iron top shop saw is. In my frustration, I used my Paolini rule, some demo cuts, and settled on something that ended up working pretty well.  I think that I will save my new Woodpecker tool...hoping that maybe it will use it's inertial gravitational pull to attract a Sawstop Industrial or a Felder...and a shop to fit those in.

 

[Motown]

For those interested it looks like Incra is selling them for $10 off:

http://www.incrementaltools.com/Articles.asp?ID=131

 

[cgmojoco]

I'm typing this up for myself to analyze, perhaps others will find it useful:

TS-Aligner Junior
$133.00+ $133.00 for the dial indicator (that is the Starett dial indicator, you can purchase cheaper)= $266.  Additional $50 if you have a Sawstop and buy that version (don't know why there is a Sawstop specific version).
Looks to have full functionality.
Unique features.  Made by hand by a machinist.  Long lead time.
Accuracy advertised .0005" (Depending on how much you want to spend on the dial indicator)
This is a nice tool and the owner/manufacturer seams a top notch fella, he lists many competitors projects on his own site and leaves what I deem accurate fair reviews of their products:
http://www.ts-aligner.com/comparison.htm

Betterley UNA-GAUGE
$199.99 (+~$18 shipping to San Diego, CA)
Full functionality
Unique features...looks pretty modular so when I saw full functionaliy I'm sure its one of if not the fullest.
Accuracy advertised .001"

A-LINE-IT Basic kit
$79.99 free shipping amazon (or $69.99 on sale from Woodpeckers +~$14 delivery to San Diego ,CA)
Near full functionality (can be upgraded late to have full functionality).
Unique features self centering in miter.  They claim only device in USA that will measure arbor vs. blade run-out properly.
Accuracy advertised .001"

MagDro
~$12 for either of their models. + whatever you need to spend on a caliper if you don't have one already with sufficient accuracy (and if you don't you should probably get one anyway!)
One model is specific to miter slot.
One model is magnetic and can be used similar to miter model provided you have a good square that has a ruler that will fit into miter (seems like room for error here).
Unique functionality, dirt cheap.
Accuracy advertised, check your measuring calipers accuracy rating.

I don't know which one I'm going to get.  I purchased my table saw not to long ago, this tool only really needs to help me with table saw setup.
...

 

[copcarcollector]

I bought this but have not used it yet, just to add to the mix! About 50 bucks, has pretty good reviews--- Big selling point for me was the digital readout.

iGaging Digital Saw Gauge

I also have the Mastergage Superbar and Masterplate - but could not figure out how to use it! The pointer on the gauge kept falling into a huge hole in the plate.. operator error I am sure!

 

[alpastor]

I like the digital gage. I find that they give more stable and repeatable readings than analog. Are they as accurate? I don't know.

I own the TS-aligner Jr. It was a revolutionary product at the time. I don't believe it's still available for sale which is a shame. It hasn't been updated in many years.

The Betterly a UNA-gauge is a step up from the TS-aligner. It's a little easier to use and can be used to test more things. It's the most expensive, but it can test many, if not all, your tools. On mine, I replaced the analog gage with a digital gage.

I'm not sure that using a caliper in the MagDro is such a good idea.  I think a dial indicator is the tool you want to use.

The iGaging saw guide looks nice!

Brenton

 

[GreenGA]

Unless you or someone else knows otherwise, Ed, the owner/designer of the TS ALigner, has not responded to emails for about two years now.  Many woodworkers on other boards have commented on the quality and accuracy of his alignment guages, but have been unable to purchase anything recently.

I have the senior version of the Aligner and need a couple of small parts, and have be unsucessful in acuiring them.  [crying]

I'm typing this up for myself to analyze, perhaps others will find it useful:

TS-Aligner Junior
$133.00+ $133.00 for the dial indicator (that is the Starett dial indicator, you can purchase cheaper)= $266.  Additional $50 if you have a Sawstop and buy that version (don't know why there is a Sawstop specific version).
Looks to have full functionality.
Unique features.  Made by hand by a machinist.  Long lead time.
Accuracy advertised .0005" (Depending on how much you want to spend on the dial indicator)
This is a nice tool and the owner/manufacturer seams a top notch fella, he lists many competitors projects on his own site and leaves what I deem accurate fair reviews of their products:
http://www.ts-aligner.com/comparison.htm
I don't know which one I'm going to get.  I purchased my table saw not to long ago, this tool only really needs to help me with table saw setup.
...

 

[cgmojoco]

Gotcha nope.do not know any differently.
Put in for a used a-line it deluxe on SMCreek.
Will do miter saw fence and table height. That works for me