# TS-Aligner: Decent Product as long as you do not have to deal with Ed.



## freidasdad

WOW! good luck and thanks for the heads up . I recently purchased a Sawstop and am now in the market for
this type of accessory.
I hope you get your money back soon. I'm afraid Ed isn't the type to stay in business very long.


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## IrreverentJack

*sent it back to him for re-calibration*

Why did you think it needed recalibration? I can't imagine any explanation for Ed's strange business behavior. He does, however, let you know what to expect (or not expect) from him on his site. I don't think a lack of integrity is his problem. I'm pretty sure you will get your tool or your money - just don't hold your breath. -Jack


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## patcollins

I agree, not a lack of integrety, he's just a d-bag.


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## marcuscraft

This is review is enough to keep me away from one. Im more than willing to buy a product that may take a little work to get right as long as the customer service is great. If I know that dealing with the company will be a hassle, I tend to just stay away no matter the product.


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## elingeniero

I bought the iGaging product. Pretty happy with it, although it's not as cool looking as the TS-Aligner.


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## Tedstor

Ed needs to hire someone (anyone) to manage his email traffic. A prick like that should not deal with the general public. Perhaps he's one of those social morons that doesn't realize that his written policies, while honest, make him sound like a jerk.


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## lj61673

Here is the solution:

http://www.woodpeck.com/sawgauge.html

Real company. Real customer service. Great product. No douchebags.


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## taoist

I tried to order from Ed but after about a month of silence I found his product in another place:

http://www.ptreeusa.com/tablesaw_products.htm#3157


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## rlamb007

Thanks for the Heads Up. This sounds like a company to avoid.


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## dpoisson

I'm sorry to be the one to come out and say it: But this is not a review of the product.

Did the product work? Any shortcomings? What are it's strong points and things that could be better?

I'm not saying the customer service behind the product isn't worth mentioning (especially with the examples given above), but it sounds more like you got frustrated with Ed's bad CS and decided to rant about it in the review section.

"The product itself works well" is not a review.

Peace.


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## bpatters69

"The product itself works well" is not a review."

dpoisson,

Fair enough. It is not a complete reivew but customer service is one component that makes up a product or service. So here is my reivew. The fact that I have gone to so much effort to get the unit back should tell you that I value the product. I bought it several years ago and for $150, the value to benefit is about even. I do not regret buying the product. I do regret trying to deal with Ed as a business person.

I have used the product for checking things like checking my blade and fence against my miter gauge. I have used it to check the runout on my drill press. To that end the product works. The three bearing adjustment system which allows the unit to move back and forth in the miter gauge works well. I have used the gauge for set ups such as various beveled cuts and it worked fine for that.

Can I recommend this product? No. Why? As lj1673 and taoist have stated, there are other products which perfom better. The term "product" entails the actual physical product and service. So the product works but the service fails miserably. Why would you want to put up with someone who will not even return your calls, emails or faxes?


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## Tennessee

I know a guy like this who makes guitars, and he struggles constantly also. Some people were just not cut out to deal with the retail public. Even I have been an ass to people on things I bought, and later had to admit that they were nice and tolerated me, so now that I deal with the retail public, I try to keep my mouth shut and give the customer what they want. Ed must have missed that class. Too bad, because it seems like he has a product that is right in the mix, and could sell a lot of them if he knew how to market and talk to customers.


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## mrg

The Peachtree TS Aligner Jr is made by InLine Industries in Massachusetts who also makes the Dubby. The one in the review is made by EJ Bennet in CA two different products and companies. They both do the same thing.

Look up both products and you will see that they are different.

You stated that you bought the product several years ago. A dial indicator you spin the face to zero it. What needs to be calibrated?


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## tierraverde

I have to agree with mrg…..what has to be calibrated?


> ?


It's a dial indicator running in a slot to check parallelism at the blade.
I can accomplish the same thing with a $20.00 indicator base and a $25.00 dial indicator from harbor freight. I could even make one out of wood with a couple of dowels running in the miter slot.
And people fall for the red anodizing on aluminum with shiny pins to shell out inordinate bucks for a useless, unneeded tool.
Ed is a jerk and won't be around long, but by having asked the question in the forum of "how to indicate a blade parallel to a miter slot" would have saved you money and having to deal with Ed as well.
Many here could have guided you to a simple solution.


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## bpatters69

I understand that there are some very good and far less costly solutions out there. I bought this jig several years ago and I was not as knowledgeable nor did I have the same skill that I have today. Not that I am anything special but I have moved from a beginner to an intermediate woodworker. Anyway, not to bore you with my background, I just wanted to explain why I bought the jig. Shiny anodized aluminum aside, i thought the jig would make up for my lack of skill which is a common mistake for beginners.

There is a set screw on the cross bar that keeps the indicator in alignment. For whatever reason, I tried to adjust at some point. I am not sure why I did it. Anyway, that is what needed to be calibrated. I was communicating with Ed at the time and he seemed friendly enough so for $10, I said what the heck, let him set it back to the factory setting.


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## tierraverde

The indicator does not have to be in any particular alignment. It just has to be tight so it doesn't wiggle.
It only has to "point" at the saw blade with about .005/.010 pressure on it. Dial the face to zero and go.


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## stefang

I realize that that this post is really about Ed's performance more than his product's, but when I look at that device it prompts me to ask the question 'do we really need stuff like this?' Sometimes I feel that others and myself too can be somewhat excessive in our quest for perfection. I'll admit I do have a digital device to set my saw angle, and i am aware of the need for the blade to run parallel, etc. but a properly set sliding bevel is just as good in practice. We are cutting wood after all, and if the saw blade angle isn't off a little, the wood will be anyway for different reasons. Some of my relatives were machinists doing close tolerance work for the aerospace industry where precision is critical, but for a chair or table? I'm not trying to be a spoil sport here, I just think our time is better spent building stuff rather than using excess set-up time. Just so you know it, I am not against the pursuit of excellence, just against all the super high priced equipment which seems unnecessary to me. But what the heck. If it makes folks happy I guess it must have a some value.


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## bpatters69

An update to this thread.

I heard back from Ed earlier today and he pointed out some facts which I left out of my thread. In the interest of fairness, I will post the updates below.

I asked Ed for permission to send back my unit on 12/28/2010. I had emailed Ed and asked if it was ok for me to send the items back to him for calibration. Ed responded by saying, that there was no problem and to include $10 for the recalibration. I know Ed is a small scale operation to preserve quality products so I did not understand that this would be an RMA and that a time limit would apply. What i am saying is that I did not realize that this would be an official RMA so that was a mis-undersanding.

I would also add that according to Ed's records, I bought the unit on 11/29/2000. I am not disputing the purchase date. I did not know that I had the product for 12 years.

Ed explained why he did not receive my correspondence and the changes to his business. I do not feel it is my place to comment on what Ed said about TS Aligner and his other businesses. I imagine Ed will do that.

Thanks


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## oldnovice

You don't need to spend that much money for checking the parallelism of the blade to the miter slots.

The TS Aligner's and the Woodpecker Saw Gauge's dial indicators ride way too high on the blade to get a decent measurement of parallelism. For parallelism measurements the dial indicator probe should be as close to the top surface of the table saw as possible to allow using the maximum amount of the exposed blade.

If the dial indicator is mounted at an angle, tipped to make contact at the blade very near the table top, the value indicated will be *incorrect* but the measurement of *parallelism will be more accurate* as more of the exposed blade can be used, i.e. 7-1/2" versus only 3-1/2" of the blade providing a better basis for a parallelism measurement

All that is needed is an inexpensive dial indicator and a mount to locate the indicator in the miter slot as shown below.










An inexpensive dial indicator from Harbor Freight and a small block attached to the miter head slide make an accurate alignment tool.

It comes down to whether exact parallelism is important or knowing the exact amount of parallelism error at some point above the table saw top surface.


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## IrreverentJack

*There is a set screw on the cross bar that keeps the indicator in alignment*

I think you were worried about the tilt stop adjustment (set screw) that keeps(references)the indicator's shaft parallel with the table . Check it by putting the angle adjusting block on the indicator shaft and see if it is perpendicular to the table. If you still have the manual it has a lot more detail on this. I haven't looked at the manual for a few years. It's a great manual with good illustrations and clear explanations. The TS Aligner Jr's a nice well thought out tool. Sure it's a pain to wait months and months to get it, but I don't think many owners have buyers remorse. I don't - and this cost more than my saw did at the time. -Jack


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## oldnovice

*As I stated above, you don't need it parallel to the table!*

The goal is to check displacement from the front of the blade to the back and as long as the angle doesn't change between readings the actual angle is irrelevant!

*The actual distance measurement is totally irrelevant for any purpose of alignment and tools specifically designed for that are a waste of money!*


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## tierraverde

oldnovice is correct in every aspect.
An angled indicator is perfectly OK, as you're not measuring anything, but instead comparing the front and back of the blade for any parallelism to the slot.


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## IrreverentJack

OldNovice, You are correct if all you want to do is align the blade or fence to the miter slot. If you look in the pic on the OP you might see that the blade angle is being checked. The angle adjustment block on the indicator has a point 1." offset from the shaft. Having the shaft perpendicular to the table allows you to determine the angle of the blade. I don't remember my geometry well but you have the lengths of two sides and one angle of a triangle. There are tangent tables in the manual that show the indicator has to move around .018" per degree of angle. I don't think other alignment tools have this capability. This was a selling point for me when I got mine (around 10 yrs ago). -Jack


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## oldnovice

There are much simpler and more accurate methods for setting the blade angle.

I have a $6.00 angle gauge that give me settings to 0.5° even though I doubt my saw can maintain that accuracy throughout the cut due to the way the saw is built!

There are now digital angle gauges/levels that are even more accurate than my old dial type:

Wixey

And even digital protractors

I am not pushing Wixey as I don't have any of their products, I am just using these as examples.


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## Zepluros

I took one look at one of these, went to the shop and made one from oak in about 30 minutes. Already had the 0-1" indicator. Works like a champ, they are a very simple device, the indicator does all the work.


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