INCRA Miter1000/HD Miter Gauge

We make tenons on the tablesaw. It has always been a struggle to get square shoulders on the tenon. With the Incra miter this is a repeatable operation made easy with the indent system. The key to accuracy is the initial setup. The directions are clear. As with any new tool there is a learning curve to master but with this tool it is not difficult. Framing squares and machinist's squares will get the initial adjustments very close. But one of the best methods to determine squareness is by cutting the shoulders of a tenon in succession. As the last cut is made, there should be no visible misalignment in the wood. If there are, minute adjustments for square will solve any issues. The beauty of this tool is, barring rough treatment (think dropping or hitting it) this is only a periodic event.One word of caution is crucial. Make certain that square material is used for any testing.The sliding stop is well made and reflective of Incra's quality.I have not taken the time to understand the ruler applique. Several reviewers mentioned they wished they had cut it longer. Until i have a need, it will remain in the box.Incra has provided a very good system to reduce side-to-side motion between the miter bar and the miter track in the tablesaw. If you are finicky try to adjust the individual adjustment screws the same amount to reduce skewing of the tool in the miter track.BTW, for use with small panel cutting operations, I added a short platform on the tablesaw fence support. This allows the miter to slide off the cast iron table and eliminates twisting or trying to hold the free end of the miter up until the cutting advances enough to provide support. We are using an Incra Tablesaw Fence which allows this support to be mounted quickly.The vernier system to allow 1/10 degree adjustment requires some getting used to. It functions the same way a transit does, but reading and setting it are different. It is very good for fine adjjustmentsPotential product improvements include: Allen head screwdriver storage on the end of the main miter arm. The screwdriver fits one of the aluminum extrusion's slots/cavaties There is not enough friction to hold the screwdriver and allen wrench securely. Mount the vernier tables on the tool. The photos in the manual are good, but better if the tool is totally self-containedThis is best miter tool I have ever seen. Well designed and sturdy. You won't regret the purchase. Glenn

By way of introduction I am a fairly serious woodworker and have been for 40 years or so. Projects range from furniture, home finishing, cabinetry and several mixed hardwood rocking horses and art pieces. I am not extravagant with purchasing tools but I do pay more for quality when it makes sense. This usually pays back in the long run.This past year I helped my wife select a few items that "might" end up being a Christmas gift. Among them were this INCRA 1000HD & the Kreg KMS series gauges. I was comfortable with both and, in fact, bought the Kreg for our son-in-law a few years ago. Santa ended up putting the INCRA on his sled and I couldn't be happier. I knew from research and others testimonials that it would be a pretty high quality product. I certainly was not disappointed. All of the machining and finishing is first rate. The set-up instructions are pretty good and the finished product seems to deliver good, accurate cuts. I believe the most impressive thing about the INCRA 1000HD is the apparent thought that went into design and use of this tool. The slots in the extrusions are deliberate and some fill more than one purpose. The hardware package gets you going, and then they threw in a few parts for future upgrades or repairs.An example of their accommodation for upgrade is the ability to add a wooden or MDF face plate. The manual suggests addition of such a fence to reduce tear-out. But on an adjustable-length miter fence I was reluctant to use one because it would be time consuming to put it on and then take it off to allow length adjustment of the basic fence. However, they provide plate nuts, screws, washers and a basic dimensioned drawing making fabrication and installation of the face plate easy; and thanks to the overall design of the fence it is very easy to put on and take off. - a minute or so. They also provide extra slot bushings to accommodate various widths of table saw slots, or to be used as spares. And they provide all of the Allen wrenches and a Torx-type screwdriver needed to set the fence up and install/remove the face plate mentioned above (I drilled a hole in the handle of this screwdriver, added a length of leather shoelace and hung in on my saw for easy access). They even provide an extra length of the plastic ruler scale strip used to make adjustments in case the ones they installed are damaged.Expect set-up to take some time - a couple of hours. First you fit the bar to the slot in your table saw using three sets of built in bushings and an Allen wrench. This can take some time to get good, smooth travel without wiggle. Squaring the fence to your blade is straight forward but a little fiddly. But the end product is a miter gage that should require very little, if any, readjustment in the future.Disadvantages - Can't think of any. I also can't believe I went this long with the old stock miter gauges. This is more than head and shoulders above those.