At the risk of annoying you all to death, I’m going to ask the collective wisdom here for some additional advice. Yes, another one of those “vs.” questions. You may have read my other post on table saws and know that I am now seriously considering the Unisaw. I’d like to know what you think about the two fence brands, pros and cons, as well as for the two sizes of fences. The Bies seems nice and simple, sturdy and true, while the Unifence has lots of pizazz and flexibility. Also, I had been planning on just getting the 30″ fence to keep the saw the same overall size as my current contractor’s saw. I think I could make the 50″ fit in my small basement shop and even keep the saw in its current location, but it will take away my flexibility for moving it around for various situations. In reality, when will I appreciate the 50″? Is it just good for ripping sheet goods? Will I curse the size of the saw 4 times for every time I use it to rip something over 30″?
Thanks, as usual, for any input.
Replies
I have the Unisaw with the Unifence and the 32" table extension. I don't usually build stuff big enough to warrant cutting a 4 X 8 sheet on the table saw. I used to have the big extension, but I found that I really couldn't manage the big stuff well enough to get an accurate cut anyway. I don't use a lot of sheet goods, but when I do, I usually bring it down to size with a circular saw, then go to the table saw. What I'm trying to say is that the 32" extension works just great for me. I really like the Unifence, specifically for it's flexibility and the ability to make it high or low depending on what I'm cutting. I did recently read a post where someone had a major mishap with the Uninfence when it unexpectedly came disengaged. I haven't had that happen, but I can see how it could if you don't make sure the locking mechanism is completely engaged. PS, if you want to move it around, get the mobile base that Delta makes. It makes it easy to move around.
As for size, I think 30" is just fine and all you are likely to need most of the time. The 50" size seems to be more popular though. If you have the space I would go for it, I also think it would make re-sale easier if that is a consideration.
As for the differences between the bessy and uni, I have a comparison article on my web site if you are interested.
PMB
http://benchmark.20m.com
I really wouldn't hesitate buying the 30" fence, especially since you don't plan to work with sheet goods anyway. Should you decide otherwise at some future time. you can easily replace the 30" rails with 50" while keeping your current fence.
To tell the truth, my extension table area has become a "temporary storage area" for small tools and parts. I'll bet that's the case for others too.
Jeff
I have had the unifence on my Unisaw, 52", since '92, and am thinking about a new saw. If so, I would go with the 30", and Bies, which I used to have on my old 1975 Delta 34-440 contractor's saw. The Unifence is not that flat, and so I added a sacrificial fence, (which is handy anyway for that occassion when you want to bury a blade a bit, such as a dado), and just jointed it. Works OK, but now and again I need to tweak the alignment, which I don't recall having to do on my old Bies.
One consideration is if you are going to mount a router in the table board. I did, long ago. Not sure how much room there would be for it on a 30", but I think there would be plenty.
Before you assume that the 30 inch saw will be close to overall size of your contractor saw, I would recommend you take a tape measure to the local store and check the actual footprint.
I opted for a Unisaw with a 30 inch Beis when I replaced my Delta contractor saw because squeezing a 50 inch model into my shop was out of the question. I was shocked to find that the 30 inch Unisaw was almost a foot wider than my 30 inch CS.
The extra length of the rails to support the much wider fence "T" support made the difference on both the left and right side. I also found that the Beis fence overhangs the saw on the back so that the depth of the saw isn't much shallower either.
I still love the Unisaw but had to change my shop around to accomodate it.
Pete
You're absolutely right about size! I bought the 30" Biesemeyer, thinking I could never fit the 52" in my basement shop, and I was surprised to find the 30" only just fit. The only time I've regretted it was when I went to make a corner kitchen base cabinet with carousel and discovered the width of the bottom and middle shelves (it was a FWW plan using TV turntables instead of a center pole) was 36". Had no trouble making the other, 24"-wide cabinets though.
My local dealer told me that there isn't much savings going to the 30" because Delta doesn't do much in terms of package deals and pricing to make it attractive. He told me I'd only save about $100. The 50" package on the Limited Edition comes with the mobile base, 50" fence and table and carbide blade. The price on the LE is $1599 after rebate. If the 30" fence only saves me $100 is almost seems like I could at least try out the 50" and ebay it if it didn't work out.
By the way, is the Bies fence as "bullet proof" as I'm hearing? Any compelling reason to go with the Unifence?
Edited 3/27/2003 9:36:30 AM ET by CAMPBELLDUST
Hi. I have never worked with a Unifence, but have found the Bies. to be fantastic. For about 3 years I used a Unisaw with a Bies. fence that had 96" rails. It was wonderful for cutting sheet goods, of which I did a bunch. The Bies. was straight, solid as a rock and stayed accurate. The charateristic I most miss about it was that it lifted right off the saw any time I wanted it out of the way. I have an old Inca saw now and the fence has to be slid off the end of the rails to be removed. Hope this is helpful.
Campbelldust:
I have a Unisaw w/ a Biesemeyer fence. To my knowledge, the fence was put on by the cabinet-maker I bought it from when he purchased it in 1976. At any rate, I've had it for over 10 years, it's cut many cabinet jobs. However, it is finally time to replace it, it is no longer perfectly straight down its length. I've been very happy with it. As far as a 30", I have a 50" and I have no regrets about leaving my skilsaw to gather dust in the tool cabinet.
Jordan
I bought the 52 inch unifence and planned to cut it down a bit to fit in my shop. But I like the full size fence so I cut a hole in the wall. With the Unisaw on a mobile base the fence is about a 40 inch with the rest in the wall. if I need the full fence I just pull it out on the mobile base. Small shops result in a lot of creativity!
I have used both fences on Delta Unisaws and much prefer the Beis. When I was teaching shop several years ago, I ended up replacing my unifence with a beis. Since you turn the locking handle to release the fence from the rail, I was always concerned about student safety. On the unisaw I purchased for myself last year I opted for the 50" Bies.
Either will work, and likely give you years of trouble free service.
When I replaced my contractors saw a little more than a year ago I too thought I would get a 30" and that I could never fit a 52" but the price was exactly the same and I figured if it didn't fit I could cut the rails down. Well, I gotta tell you it's close now in the shop but I got it in and I don't regret getting the bigger fence. I would recommend getting it in the shop , and like I said cut it down if it doesn't fit. This way maybe you could live with something in-between 30 and 52". The wider the better. also, think about the future. You may have a bigger shop one day. You may never have to buy a bigger saw.
TDF
Great points, Tom. Thanks. I guess if I got it down there and it was just too big I could buy a set of 30" rails and keep the longer ones for some day down the road.
Now if I can just decide between right and left. I have a lefty now, and thought I was going that direction, but then I learned about sliding tables. Doh! They look life-changing, but the Delta doesn't fit on the left tilt. I like the Delta model because it is small and simple and gets good reviews for the price.
Any thoughts?
As of 5 years ago, Biesemeyer actively promoted 3 lengths of rails on the industrial / professional fence: 26", 38" and 50".
I bought the 38" and found it is perfect for all but a few instances. Having up to 38" is very helpful in ripping sheet goods for kitchen cabinets -- height dimensions approach 36" in most applications.
The 30" seems to me to be an odd compromise. I don't know when the extra 4" (compared to the 26") would ever be necessary. Is this just marketing?? Now Powermatic does the same thing.
Well, I don't have any data on the sliding table. I tend to think they are a gimick that will just get in the way. Maybe usefull for some types of work but not for the average user. I went from a right tilt contractors to a left tilt cabinate and I like the left tilt. I find myself working on the right side of the blade more because there is more table room avaliable and I like the finish side of the work on top of the blade. I do however find that because I use the fence measuring tape a lot, the a calibrationof the tape is affected by blade thickness on a left tilt and this is inconvenient. Otherwise, I think it a personal perference thing. Some will say that the left tilt is safer because the waste is not trapped under the blade, between the fence when ripping on the left of the blade, but I don't find myself doing this much anyway.
TDF
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