Grant Posted December 9, 2017 Report Share Posted December 9, 2017 I have an old Powermatic contractor table saw (circa 1985) with Vega Fence. I am intrigued by the jig flexibility of the extruded aluminum T-slot. Rather than buying a new Biesemeyer fence, has anyone looked into modifing a Vega with this add-on? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Just Bob Posted December 9, 2017 Report Share Posted December 9, 2017 22 minutes ago, Grant said: I have an old Powermatic contractor table saw (circa 1985) with Vega Fence. I am intrigued by the jig flexibility of the extruded aluminum T-slot. Rather than buying a new Biesemeyer fence, has anyone looked into modifing a Vega with this add-on? Hey Grant, welcome to the forum! I have not worked with a Vega fence, but I do have a VSCT , https://vsctools.com/, extruded aluminum fence. I replaced my worn out Biesemeyer , Its a great fence, I really like the fence, very versatile and it is the best fence I have ever owned. Give them a call, they sell the extruded aluminum separately, and they friendly people to work with. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gee-dub Posted December 9, 2017 Report Share Posted December 9, 2017 Where do you want the t-track? If on the face you could attach a sacrificial fence with the t-track built in with something like the Rockler Universal clamp or the MicroJig DT clamp. That way it would not be so permanent. I have both and prefer the Microjig as they resist twisting when tightening them down. If you want the track on the top you can drill and tap the tube and add a carrier board with the t-track mounted in it. I have the Saw Stop fence which allows the face to be removed for shimming or replacement. I added an extrusion because like you, I though it would be super useful. I went through a fair amount of effort to get everything mounted clean, shimmed true an all that. I am one of those guys that uses feather boards all the time and all sorts of jigs and helpers so I should use this thing all the time, right? In practice, despite consciously looking for times to use it, I found that I almost never used the t-slots and just put the regular face back on. I still add sacrificial fences for various purposes but, do not miss having the t-track readily available at all. Just food for thought. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tom King Posted December 9, 2017 Report Share Posted December 9, 2017 Do a google search for "80/20 extrusions", and you can find any configuration you want. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brendon_t Posted December 9, 2017 Report Share Posted December 9, 2017 I've got the Vega pro 40. Unless your existing fence is warped, I don't see a reason to replace the existing fence part for jigs. Like Gee-Dub I have an assortment of jigs that'll hook on or use with the existing fence. If you buy the extrusion and modify it to come on and off, you lose no functionality and don't have to re-engineer mounting the extrusion into the t lock. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wdwerker Posted December 9, 2017 Report Share Posted December 9, 2017 I've got the Vega pro 50 and I use add-on fences & jigs all the time. The micro jig dovetail clamps are far better than the Rockler fence clamps. Haven't wanted a T slot but it shouldn't be hard to add one to a Vega fence. You might have to look around to find long Tee bolts that would reach through the fence and fit in the back of the extrusion. I have drilled a few holes in my fence over the years and it hasn't caused any problem. Chamfer the hole to remove any burr. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Carl10 Posted December 9, 2017 Report Share Posted December 9, 2017 Grant, I have looked at doing exactly that modification. It appears very easy (just haven't order the material.). It looks like removing the fence and replacing with a plate to cover the 4 mounting screws (~4"x5") from the top and an extrusion to mount on the middle of the plate. I look at the Mitsumi extrusions (~1x3?) for a milled length and I think it was about $25-30. The plastic runner on the back of the current fence could be reused. Hope that helps. Let us know what you do. Carl Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Grant Posted December 10, 2017 Author Report Share Posted December 10, 2017 Thanks to everyone for the input. Much appreciated. I just bought a magswitch extruded fence, mainly to use in the bandsaw and drill press. With several comments questioning the usefulness on the extrusion on the table saw, I think I'll just play with the magswitch for a while to see what is most useful. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RichardA Posted December 10, 2017 Report Share Posted December 10, 2017 Tracy City???? Welcome from another middle Tennessee guy, There's a few more Tn guys on here, you'll like the site and the bums that post here. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.