I am shopping for a table saw, and have narrowed the choices
down to the Unisaw and a couple others. I really like the
sliding tables, and see that Delta has one too.

I would like some comments about the Delta sliding mitre table
on a Unisaw, as to accuracy, smoothness, solidity, etc...

Also, any comments good or bad as to sliding tables in general,
such as why I should avoid them, or why I would love one would
be welcome. Any experience with other makers' tables, such as
Jet and Grizzly?

Thanks so much,
Scotty

Scotty wrote:

Also, any comments good or bad as to sliding tables in general,
such as why I should avoid them, or why I would love one would
be welcome.

Have you ever tried crosscut sleds?

If so, neeeevermind!

If not, some basic building info he
http://www.bburke.com/wood/sleds.htm

In reality, a sled is simply an inexpensive sliding table that is task
customizable and removable when not needed. I've seen shop made sleds
as large as 4x8 feet and as small as 4x6 inches. A shop made sled also
provides excellent zero clearance support for the stock.

Barry

Some of the $10K multipurpose euro-machines have sliding tables that are
integral to the machine rather than an accessory. These tables come right up
to the blade (like 1/2" away). Expensive but very cool.

Sliding table accessories for a cabinet saw (such as the unisaw) replace the
left wing which is 12 or so inches away from the blade.... That makes it
basically impossible to use the sliding table for smaller pieces.

A sled rides over the table rather than next to it.

I'm with Barry, I think a sled (or several) is a much more sensible match
for a cabinet saw.

-Steve



If not, some basic building info he
http://www.bburke.com/wood/sleds.htm

In reality, a sled is simply an inexpensive sliding table that is task
customizable and removable when not needed. I've seen shop made sleds
as large as 4x8 feet and as small as 4x6 inches. A shop made sled also
provides excellent zero clearance support for the stock.

Barry

Scotty wrote in newsan.2005.04.27.17.45.41.973469
@ibigsky.com:

snip

I would like some comments about the Delta sliding mitre table
on a Unisaw, as to accuracy, smoothness, solidity, etc...


http://woodpeck.com/miter5000.html

A buddy has one of these on his Unisaw, and likes it. He has a lot of crap
to remove from the saw when it comes time to rip anything very large with
it, however. Often, he just crosses the street, and uses my saw, which is
far less 'accessorized.'

I use shop-built sleds similar to those Barry mentioned in his post. They
are of sufficient accuracy and scale for most of my projects. Large panels
are handled with a circular saw and guide rail.

Patriarch

Hi Scotty,

I put the Excalibur add-on sliding table on my Unisaw. I've had it for
a long time and have been very happy with it. I have put it through a
lot of use (and some pretty heavy abuse) and it's still accurate and
reliable. In addition to cutting wood, I've used it to cut up aluminum
extrusions for TS-Aligner parts. It's generally not difficult to hold
tolerances of +/-0.005". At one time I used a crosscut sled to do this
but the sliding table is far superior.

Let me know if you have any questions. You can find lots of places
which sell them, do a google search on using the keywords: excalibur,
sliding, table.

Ed Bennett


http://www.ts-aligner.com
Home of the TS-Aligner

Scotty wrote:
I am shopping for a table saw, and have narrowed the choices
down to the Unisaw and a couple others. I really like the
sliding tables, and see that Delta has one too.

I would like some comments about the Delta sliding mitre table
on a Unisaw, as to accuracy, smoothness, solidity, etc...

Also, any comments good or bad as to sliding tables in general,
such as why I should avoid them, or why I would love one would
be welcome. Any experience with other makers' tables, such as
Jet and Grizzly?

Thanks so much,
Scotty

wrote in message

Let me know if you have any questions. You can find lots of places
which sell them, do a google search on using the keywords: excalibur,
sliding, table.

Assuming you have to rip an 8' piece of plywood. How easy/fast can you
remove/move out of the way the sliding portion of the sliding table to
permit such a cut? Do you find it's sometimes a pain to have to walk around
the sliding table to grab what's been pushed through to an outfeed table.

Thanks

I can't remember which one is the sliding miter table... the one that
is permanently attached or the one that fits into the miter channel.
Just to let you know the sliding tables(mountable type) do take up a
great deal of room. I do have one for my unisaw(delta brand), but have
removed it recently. Accuracy is achievable, but continuously
questionable. There is a limit to the depth of cross cut. My table is
slightly warped.
I've also seen the miter type sliding tables and they are extremely
heavy. They also have a method of making miter cuts by pivoting the
fence. Most of my crosscuts are 90 deg and I find myself not trusting
the 90 deg stop on this unit.

They both work, but I myself think that a home made one works the best.

Scotty wrote:
I am shopping for a table saw, and have narrowed the choices
down to the Unisaw and a couple others. I really like the
sliding tables, and see that Delta has one too.

I would like some comments about the Delta sliding mitre table
on a Unisaw, as to accuracy, smoothness, solidity, etc...

Also, any comments good or bad as to sliding tables in general,
such as why I should avoid them, or why I would love one would
be welcome. Any experience with other makers' tables, such as
Jet and Grizzly?

Thanks so much,
Scotty

The fence on the sliding table is pretty easily removed. What's left
is a big broad flat surface which works well as a table extension. The
sliding portion has a locking lever so that it stays in place.

I've never considered it to be a pain to walk around to the other side
of the saw. It might be a consideration for the sedentary. Use a big
outfeed table and it will wait for you to get there.

Ed Bennett


http://www.ts-aligner.com
Home of the TS-Aligner

FWIW
I have to agree with Barry and others who would say try a sled first.
They can be customized for the task at hand and work very well if
built accurately.
I've posted a photo on alt.binaries.pictures.woodworking of one I
built recently based on Jim Tolpin's design in his book on Tablesaws,

good luck whatever you decide
Lenny
On Wed, 27 Apr 2005 11:45:42 -0600, Scotty wrote:

I am shopping for a table saw, and have narrowed the choices
down to the Unisaw and a couple others. I really like the
sliding tables, and see that Delta has one too.

I would like some comments about the Delta sliding mitre table
on a Unisaw, as to accuracy, smoothness, solidity, etc...

Also, any comments good or bad as to sliding tables in general,
such as why I should avoid them, or why I would love one would
be welcome. Any experience with other makers' tables, such as
Jet and Grizzly?

Thanks so much,
Scotty

In article ,
Lenny wrote:

Try Google with the search for Table Saw Sled. You will get numerous
articles and photos of different variations of the sled.

Dick

FWIW
I have to agree with Barry and others who would say try a sled first.
They can be customized for the task at hand and work very well if
built accurately.
I've posted a photo on alt.binaries.pictures.woodworking of one I
built recently based on Jim Tolpin's design in his book on Tablesaws,

good luck whatever you decide
Lenny
On Wed, 27 Apr 2005 11:45:42 -0600, Scotty wrote:

I am shopping for a table saw, and have narrowed the choices
down to the Unisaw and a couple others. I really like the
sliding tables, and see that Delta has one too.

I would like some comments about the Delta sliding mitre table
on a Unisaw, as to accuracy, smoothness, solidity, etc...

Also, any comments good or bad as to sliding tables in general,
such as why I should avoid them, or why I would love one would
be welcome. Any experience with other makers' tables, such as
Jet and Grizzly?

Thanks so much,
Scotty

"Scotty" wrote in message
news
Also, any comments good or bad as to sliding tables in general,
such as why I should avoid them, or why I would love one would
be welcome. Any experience with other makers' tables, such as
Jet and Grizzly?

I have the sliding table on a jet supersaw. Would I buy it again? Well,
I'll probably upgrade to a 3 hp cabinet saw in the next couple of years. If
I can get something similar to what's on my supersaw, I'll buy it. Its
super accurate and there is nothing like the stability of clamping your wood
down to a 75 lb. chunk of cast iron that runs on multiple ball bearing
slides.

I see the mention of cross cut sleds. Yes, they are very good and I use one
occasionally for things like bevel cuts. I make sleds to work in conjunction
with my sliding table. I don't have to take special care to build one
accurately. I make a simple sled with a piece of thin baltic ply and some
kind of fence. The difference is that I clamp the sled fence to fence of my
sliding table. This makes it dead on square and it slides with authority.

My needs don't lead to a huge sliding table like the excalibur, since I
don't do any production cabinet work. I also don't have the space for it.

Bob

"BillyBob" wrote in message

I have the sliding table on a jet supersaw. Would I buy it again? Well,
I'll probably upgrade to a 3 hp cabinet saw in the next couple of years.
If
I can get something similar to what's on my supersaw, I'll buy it.

And which sliding table do you have, made by Jet? Got a link to it?

Upscale wrote:
Assuming you have to rip an 8' piece of plywood. How easy/fast can
you
remove/move out of the way the sliding portion of the sliding table
to
permit such a cut? Do you find it's sometimes a pain to have to walk
around
the sliding table to grab what's been pushed through to an outfeed
table.

I've also got an Excalibur sliding table (the 40 model) on a Unisaw.

The sliding table fence has two lock levers that when loosened let you
slide it left to right. In a few seconds you can loosen it and slide
it to the left and get 14" rip capacity to the left of the blade
without taking it off the sliding table. As Ed said, taking the fence
off completely doesn't take much longer.

It does take a couple of extra steps to get around, but until you
mentioned it, I really hadn't noticed. I find the convenience and
accuracy far offsets the extra steps. It really shines cutting panels.
I don't have a RAS or SCMS, so I also use this for cutting to length.
The scale for the flip stop is a pain to calibrate, but once you do (or
often I use the saw's rip fence with a stop block to set cut off
lengths), you get really easy, repeatable length cuts.

That said, like everything there are tradeoffs. It can't compete with
a dedicated panel saw or one of those nice European sliding saws. OTOH,
for smaller work a sled is a much more economical option. For what I
do I wouldn't give up this saw/sliding table combination.

Tim

http://www.dewalt.com/us/products/at...productID=1800

This may not apply since I have DeWalt TS. Anyway, I bought the sliding
table at a WW show years ago (when I had the "money" for it). I like it a
lot. Only thing would be the table should be closer to the blade (for
smaller cuts).

http://woodpeck.com/miter5000.html

The Incra Miter5000 looks good. The only reason I didn't buy it (I almost
did though) is because I would have to raise the blade higher (due to the
thickness of the sliding table). However, the table is close to the blade,
so that's good.

As some mention, you could easily make one, go get 1/2" Baltic Birch Ply
and use flathead screws, etc... That is something I might do in the future.

Chuck

Also, any comments good or bad as to sliding tables in general,
such as why I should avoid them, or why I would love one would
be welcome.

On Wed, 27 Apr 2005 11:45:42 -0600, Scotty wrote:

I am shopping for a table saw, and have narrowed the choices
down to the Unisaw and a couple others. I really like the
sliding tables, and see that Delta has one too.

I would like some comments about the Delta sliding mitre table
on a Unisaw, as to accuracy, smoothness, solidity, etc...

Also, any comments good or bad as to sliding tables in general,
such as why I should avoid them, or why I would love one would
be welcome. Any experience with other makers' tables, such as
Jet and Grizzly?

Thanks so much,
Scotty
======================
I have very little experience with using a slidiolng opNo experience
with using

On Wed, 27 Apr 2005 11:45:42 -0600, Scotty wrote:

I am shopping for a table saw, and have narrowed the choices
down to the Unisaw and a couple others. I really like the
sliding tables, and see that Delta has one too.

I would like some comments about the Delta sliding mitre table
on a Unisaw, as to accuracy, smoothness, solidity, etc...

Also, any comments good or bad as to sliding tables in general,
such as why I should avoid them, or why I would love one would
be welcome. Any experience with other makers' tables, such as
Jet and Grizzly?

Thanks so much,
Scotty
===============
Darn I also have very little experience in using a keyboard also...

Last message was sent when all I wanted to do is backspace and fix a
typo....

Oh well... All I was going to ask is what the original poster
intended to use his saw for....production work or hobbyist
use.... I am a hobbyist and 3-4 sleds cover just about any cut I
needed over the years...lot less expensive...

Bob Griffiths

If money is not an object (and it is seldom not an object), then look
at the Laguna table saws. At least one model has a sliding table. They
also sell the sliding table separate which will fit a Unisaw.

Never Enough Money wrote:

If money is not an object (and it is seldom not an object), then look
at the Laguna table saws. At least one model has a sliding table. They
also sell the sliding table separate which will fit a Unisaw.


LT has two types of sliders - one that rides on a pair of
rails attached to the outside of the cabinet of the saw
and the other a long extruded aluminum set of parts
with internal ball bearings. The latter slides close to
the blade. Either one comes in real handy if you're
working with sheet goods.

I've got the LT distributed Robland X31 which has
the two rail sliding table. The unit has a 3 hp shaper
in the saw table so the sliding table can also be used
with the shaper as well as the saw. Handy but a bitch
to set up if the tracking alignment goes out.

charlie b

"Upscale" wrote in message
...
"BillyBob" wrote in message

I have the sliding table on a jet supersaw. Would I buy it again?
Well,
I'll probably upgrade to a 3 hp cabinet saw in the next couple of years.
If
I can get something similar to what's on my supersaw, I'll buy it.

And which sliding table do you have, made by Jet? Got a link to it?



They make one for their supersaw (which is what I have). They also have a
sliding table for the powermatic PM66. I've never seen it.

Here's the link for the Jet model with sliding table. The picture shows the
sliding table with cross cut fence in place. The fence is held on with two
large 3/8" threaded handles that screw into pre-drilled holes on the cast
table. It takes about 30 seconds to remove or mount the fence and it always
locks precisely into the same location every time.

http://www.wmhtoolgroup.com/index.cf...tail&iid=12993

Bob

I'm jealous!

Never Enough Money wrote:

I'm jealous!

If your referring to the X-31 - I had to go to the factory
in Brugge, Belgium, to watch them set up the X31 since
the "manual" that comes with the unit is a parts list with
exploded parts diagrams and the one provided by LT is
- I'm being charitable - "deficient". The blade height
adjustment is done with a lever with a twist to lock
handle and involves the "nudge and bump" procedure
when doing dadoes (the EU equivalent of OSHA doesn't
allow "blind cuts" - can't see the blade - so table
saws don't need fine blade height adjustment capabilities.
Oddly enough, the US version of the X31 does allow
for a dado blade

But it sure eats wood nice!

charlie b

On Wed, 27 Apr 2005 11:45:42 -0600, Scotty wrote:

snip
Also, any comments good or bad as to sliding tables in general...
snip


Thanks so much to all of you who responded. I have decided to
forego the sliding table, and spend the money on more saw.

I will use the saw mainly for low-volume furniture production,
and of course some hobby use. I have used sleds in the past,
but I was thinking that the smoothness of a good, and heavy
sliding table would be really nice. What convinced me otherwise
was the fact that most of them are quite far away away from the
blade, and are expensive. I can buy a better saw or more
necessary accessories for the amount of money I'd spend on a
sliding table.

It was all of your comments here that got me really looking
critically at them. Thanks again.

Scotty

Upscale wrote:
"BillyBob" wrote in message

I have the sliding table on a jet supersaw. Would I buy it again?
Well,
I'll probably upgrade to a 3 hp cabinet saw in the next couple of
years.
If
I can get something similar to what's on my supersaw, I'll buy it.

And which sliding table do you have, made by Jet? Got a link to it?

Don't bother with the Jet Sliding Table. Not worth it. I have one with
my Jet supersaw and wished I hadn't purchased the sliding table. Love
the saw but not thrilled with the sliding table. Better off with
homemade sled. More versatile.