Suggestions for Biesemeyer Fence/clone for a Bosh400 T/S?

I’m actually surprised that you want an aftermarket fence! I have a 4100 and am really quite pleased with the fence. The only thing I’d like to change about it is the length; I wish it started a few inches earlier. Even if I found a better fence, I would probably be annoyed that I couldn’t stash it in that dedicated fence-storage spot while I use my crosscut sled.

FWIW, I wouldn’t recommend another table saw. I know everybody bashes on the portables (and they have their downsides, I agree), but I very very rarely feel like it’s holding me back. I can absolutely do 0.001” level work with no more effort than I’d need on a bigger/better saw. The downsides are mostly noise and handling of long and/or wide pieces. I did replace the miter gauge with a nice incra.

Finally, my shop is 12’x14’... I feel your pain.

-- -Michael

Make your own maybe… www.twistedknotwoodshop.com/tsquarefence.pdf

-- Backer boards, stop blocks, build oversized, and never buy a hand plane--

I’d be concerned that a commercial Biese will weigh enough to upset the balance of the Bosch 4100…it’s possible that the fence and rails weigh as much or more than the saw. I’d also be concerned that the installation could be complicated by the construction materials of the Bosch. You might have better luck with a lighter fence like the Incra, but I’m still unsure how well that fence would mate with the 4100.

It might be helpful for all of us to understand what you’re hoping to gain from the fence change. Would it be easier to add some faces or an aux fence over the existing Bosch fence to meet the same objective?

-- Happiness is like wetting your pants...everyone can see it, but only you can feel the warmth....

Thanks for responding. As usual LJ forums has given me more things to think about in coming up with a workable solution.

mstenner:
I’m thinking it would be nice to have a caliper style adjustment for really precise adjustments to fine tune cuts. And a better back rail system to keep things square. I’ve never felt the stock fence while good for general cuts was precisely adjustable & repeatably square enough when moved to cut thin and small stock consistently.

The locking lever mechanism on the stock fence vs. the aftermarket fences I’ve seen on the web leaves a lot to be desired. But I agree it is nice to pop off the stock fence & store it on the side of the saw body when folding up the saw for storage.

rance:
That’s the style of fence I’m shooting for. I’ll have to look into this more as a fourth option. But why reinvent the wheel if some other company has done all of the “heavy lifting” in the engineering department. (Grin) I can say this as I once ran a engineering R&D lab where I often had to custom build test jigs to perform a unique task/test. Seems like 95% of my labor/time/material went into designing/adapting something that netted at the end of the day 5% usage to get the answers needed by the engineers.

Now I’d rather spend my time in the shop turning rather then reverse engineering/building something to fit unless the isn’t another viable option already in existence. Too much of my time is spent adapting tooling to making something fit rather than creating turned wood projects. But I’ll keep this .PDF in my back pocket as an option.

knotscott:
You know I never thought about the added weight. The Bosch stand while a marvel of engineering & physics in motion isn’t designed to swing all that additional weight. Adding that much weight to the top could very well upset the easy of use & overall stability when folded allowing it to tip forward unless the fence was removed.

I may give some thought to aux fences that can slip over the stock fence to facilitate additional fixtures. But it still doesn’t help with the repeatability / square / fine adjustments issues of the stock fence.

Good suggestion on things to consider everyone. Keep ‘em coming. With you help I’m sure there is a workable solution out there.

-Dave

-- I'm not old. Just "well seasoned".

N6DSW: both of those points are good, and I agree with you. Here’s how I addressed (or mitigated) them:

repeatable squareness: I never just push down on the handle. I always push in on the little protrusion below the handle (the thing that’s flush with the handle when the handle is down) and then lock it. In fact, I usually put the heel of my hand on that protrusion and grab the rail from below with my fingers and then squeeze. This makes locking the fence a two-hand operation, but that’s never been a problem (I can do it with a push stick in my hand). This is so automatic now that I had to run downstairs mid-message to to see what it is I actually do. Basically, this forces the reference points to make solid contact before the clamp gets involved. I get absolutely perfect results every time (best I can tell).

micro-adjust: I got a cheap ($10) dial indicator from harbor freight and mounted it to a little 5-minute fixture that I clamp to the rail. It only gets 1” of travel, of course, but I only ever need it when I want to fine-tune a cut. Make cut, measure cut with calipers, then adjust with the dial indicator. The fence doesn’t slide super smoothly so it’s a couple of bumps back and forth. If I do the trick above as I watch the indicator, then it doesn’t move at all when I lock it down.

I’m not trying to convince you or anything :) If this helps you out, great. If not, tell us how you like the new fence!

-- -Michael

I have a Bosch 4100. Wanted the bennies of a biesemeyer style fence. Went with the Rousseau table saw stand. I love it.

I have gravity stand with my saw how do the roussean 2275 attach to bosch tablsaw.

I’m “patiently” waiting for my 4100-09 to arrive. I have a large stationary saw with an attached router table built into a cast iron wing and 52” Jet Lock fence. Can’t very well take that to a jobsite. I bought another set of yellow Board Buddies with the mounting rail for the Bosch. I have figured that the tee slot on the face of the Bosch’s fence can be used to attach an auxiliary 3/4” maple “face board” with which to attach the BB aluminium mounting rail to that. That being said if I wish to stow the fence on the saw in its storage slot all I will have to do is remove the aux fence board with the removal of 3 flat head machine screws that will be countersunk into the face of the aux board. There is an “entry point” at the far end of the fence to slide 1/4-20 hex nuts into that tee slot. The slot I’m told “locks” those nuts for tightening. All this leads to the fact that you can “extend” the length for the rip fence if need be. The table extends to 25”. Even with an aux face board of 1/2 or 3/4 you’ll still be able to rip a 4×8 sheet in half. I also ordered the left side table extension bar for it. That attaches the guides with 4 socket head cap screws into bosses cast into underside of the table. There is a set screw knob that locks on a flat side of the bar on the operator side. This gives another 12” of support to the left of the blade. It slides back against the table for stowage. As for the accuracy of the fence, that issue can be resolved with set up adjustments. This is a “jobsite” table saw, not a Bridgeport. If it will keep to 1/64, I’ll be happy. Hey, you need room for glue n’est pas? An Incra miter guide will be in it’s future too I think.

As for the 4100-09 I’m waiting to put it through its paces. I “kicked the tires” a bit at a Lowes where they had one on display. That Gravity Rise stand is simply marvelous. It even has pneumatic tires! I may Slime those just for S&G’s so that flats will be a non issue.

-- OK, who's the wise guy that shrunk the plywood?

I have the 4100. I raved about it in another thread, then two days ago, i went to make sure it was true 90 degrees to the table, and then noticed that when i lock down the handle, the left side slightly “pops” up. Took it apart, tried to find something that is out of whack, but it would still pop up on the left.

Nice thing is, the fence has a t-slot on the sides of it, so i’m going to make an auxiliary fence with recessed holes, which can tighten down in the t-slots, and use thin shims between the fence and the aux fence until I get a perfect 90.

Not a biggie, as I obtained all the episodes of WoodWorks recently, and David Marks uses an auxiliary fence to, so I will feel cool doing it anyway.

OTHER than that though, I love the saw, as I’m in a 10’x20’ one car garage, so it’s nice to easily roll it out into the driveway.

-- Ev in Framingham, MA

Hi Everett1,

My “beloved” factory Bosch fence went south on me a few weeks ago. In doing a autopsy on it I found that there are two el-cheapo plastic “guide pads” on either side of the “T” each held on by two flat head Phillips screws. One of the “pads” was broken off leaving only the two screws behind.

If you look at the link from the eReplacementParts.com website they are pictured in the drawing diagram, item #182 on page “A”. P/N 2 610 950 101. (2) each saw fence.

http://www.ereplacementparts.com/bosch-4100-0601b13010-table-saw-parts-c-128_167_14496.html

and more specifically

http://www.ereplacementparts.com/pad-p-200866.html?osCsid=23fk54vs8dh9nqmui7achb5cl0

Very cheaply made, but for $1.37 each, I ordered 6 pieces to lesson the $10.00 shipping charge.

I’m still stalking the mail person each day waiting for them to show up.

Hope this helps get things squared up.

-Dave

-- I'm not old. Just "well seasoned".

Hello,

I realize that this is an older topic, but I wanted to say something about the 4100 fence system anyway.
I have the European version of the Bosch 4100, called the xc10. The fence is square to the blade, that is not the problem. The problem is that the fence is not 90 degrees to the table when locked. it “leans” a degree or two to
the right. I need to cut a 2 by 4 in its length, at an angle of 6.5 degrees. it has to be accurate within .25 degrees.
That is very difficult with the fence not being square to the table. I guess I would have to attach a wooden shim plate, or buy an aftermarket fence. There are no instructions in the Bosch manual on how to adjust the fence, either to the blade or the table. Any ideas?

Jef

I think shimming is probably the easiest solution for truing up the fence vertically.

-- Happiness is like wetting your pants...everyone can see it, but only you can feel the warmth....

I’m surprised no one has mentioned the delta t2 yet

I think I will try this first.
I hope I am not disappointed. Normally Axminster has good merchandise

http://www.axminster.co.uk/axminster-axminster-rip-fence-upgrade-prod362802/

Jef

Hello everyone,

The Axminster Fence arrived, and I am sure it is great. But it looks like I won’t be to use my table extension to
the right anymore if I install it. So for now I went with a really cheap option. I pit some electrical tape on the outside support of the fence, so it it is now perfectly vertical. Ok, this is no permanent solution, but I can still use the tape measure on the front support rail.

Jef