# I think this is a great product, but you have to do some work.



## a1Jim

Great review thanks


----------



## drfixit

Ive got one, took 3 before I had one that worked right, But now I love mine…. just seems to eat batteries.


----------



## SBG

I bough one of these with my Christmas money too. Seems very accurate.


----------



## sbryan55

This is a nice review. I have several Wixey products and enjoy them. I have been considering one of these and this review has helped.


----------



## jbertelson

Spot on review, I agree with all you said. I have used this product for a few months now, and it is indeed quite accurate. I use it constantly when sawing for a project. I never measure. Once it is set, making relative measurements is truly a breeze. Seems to me I had to do a little filing on the junction as well. On my old Delta Contractor's saw I did not have to drill any holes. I keep a calculator near by if I am adding and subtracting a lot.

Those of you not OCD, would push the fence up to the blade with gentle pressure, and settle for that as zero.
Now the rest of what I say can be skipped if you are not OCD like me, because this is certainly overkill….....

I have calibrated it a few times using a block of wook, and measuring the cut block with…....a Wixey digital caliper…...and then setting the error as the fence position, and pushing the zero button. I checked, and that truly calibrates it. Meaning, if the Wixey is reading 5.250, and if you cut a piece of wood and it measured 5.000, then you would set the fence at 0.250 by the Wixey indication, and push the zero button. Pushing the fence up to the blade can deflect the blade some, and will affect the zero slightly.

When you change the calibration by zeroing to a different location to make relative measurements easier, then you need to put it back to true blade zero when you are done. So I am going to make a standard block today that fits in a miter slot, that I can butt the fence up to. Then record the exact true position of the fence on the block with a cut made at that position and measured with a caliper. Then you can check the Wixey read-out against the standard, set the fence to the difference and zero the Wixey.

I think maybe I will do that today, since I am already busy with work again, so no big projects. Tough weekend to be on call. Rats.


----------



## JasonWagner

drfixit - Do you leave it on until it turns off, or turn it on and off? I don't know how long the auto-shutoff feature is.

Jim - I like the standard block idea. I do have a form of OCD (this is my 114 post in 114 days!) if you go look at the order of my shop, but not with measurements using dial indicators and micrometers. One thing I wanted to include in the review is that the accuracy will have you bumping and nudging your fence trying to get 5.000. I may need to fashion a fine adjustment. I put my fence up to the saw blade until I can't tell if the teeth are touching the fence or not but the blade still rotates without touching. I'll have to break out the calipers and see how well that is really working. And I know it was just an example, but your error would probably be more like 0.005 by blade deflection right? Just so people know this is very accurate.


----------



## jbertelson

*Jason*
It seems to me it was more than .005. 005 is inconsequential, although I usally try to get right on. When my fence is locked, it drifts that much, but it is consistent, so I usually just set it .005 low. I have a Vega fence with a fine adjustment. I have the analog indicator spot on, and you know, it is so darn close, I really could just use that. That's what I do for the RAS with the fence I built for it, http://lumberjocks.com/jbertelson/blog/11296.

I think one of the best uses is for sequential relative measurements, it is easier than using the analog scale. Also good for precisely duplicating a previous cut. So I would like to have the zero set quick, and not involve any guess work. Let's face it, this item is for primarily for ease of use, rather than some extraordinary accuracy. The front to back variation on a piece of wood we cut is more like 1/64". In other words, the accuracy of our ability to keep a piece of wood against the fence, and the variation in the fence and the piece of wood add up to considerable inaccurracy….....this is woodworking, not the machine shop….......I think I quote that saying correctly, I have seen it a dozen times on this forum. But I still want to know I haven't started out with any error in the fence setting….......OCD all the way…...(-:


----------



## jbertelson

*Jason*
Made my calibration block. I took a piece of Oak, just a few inches long, and cut it exactly to fit my miter slot tightly, and protude above the surface of the table. I placed it in the right hand miter slot, at the edge of the table for consistency, with the fence between the slot and the blade. The I moved the back side of the fence to the block. This left me with a 1.510" setting, as shown by measuring a piece of cut wood with the fence in this position. If you find the Wixey is reading less than this, say 1.500, then you put the fence at -0.010, and push the zero button.

'Wixey reads too little, adjust the difference with a negative Wixey reading.'

I labeled the top of the block with 1.51. And I wrote the last instruction on the side in abbreviated form. Now I can quickly reset the Wixey to true zero.

As to the amount of blade flex, I use a thin kerf blade with a blade stabilizer. It flexed in the hundreths, not the thousands, so if you set your Wixey with the fence to the blade, you better check what that means with a cut, and make sure you have a consistent method of doing it.

Got to run, work to do.


----------



## richgreer

This is a very informative review. Thank you. I admit - - I'm a gadget guy and things like this appeal to me. I love my laser guides and digital measuring equipment. I'm going to take my time on this one and hope that the price comes down a little.


----------



## drfixit

I turn it off… I Think it was just one of the problems with the second unit i had. This one doesnt seem that bad on the battery


----------



## knotscott

That's a great review Jason. I have the same readout on my Shop Fox W1677, which is pretty similar saw as your Grizzly. I made many of the same observations about the Wixey and have a very similar opinon of the Wixey as you do. Nice job with the review!

Ironically, I also have a very similar router fence setup on the right side of the fence. However, I did add a Jet Exacta II fence as part of that router fence installation.


----------



## JohannM

ignorance? the ad here in South Africa is not very clear! is this only a measurement indicator?
not a fence?


----------



## TheFridge

Not a fence. Only a measuring device.


----------

