Decked Out Ridgid Model R4511 Table Saw

paulnwa said:

On-Board Storage

My present shop is very small - approximately 9 1/2 ft. x 20 ft. With tools along both long walls, it is more like a woodworking corridor….......... It does take some planning of operating sequences! Needless to say, I don't whack up any 4' x 8' sheet goods - that's what my sawhorses and Skilsaw out in the carport are for! However, I am thankful to have even a small shop space to putter in, and most of my projects will be small items.

That said, real estate in my shop is a very precious commodity. Consequently, I designed the new mobile base for this Model R4511 with provisions to add modular storage cabinets.

The left side of this saw table extends about 12 inches beyond the cabinet. As designed, the only residents of this space were the Tilt Handwheel and the fence storage brackets.

To make the best use of this space, I was willing to give up the fence storage brackets and try to figure out some way to relocate the Tilt Handwheel. So I designed a five-drawer cabinet to fit this space under the table extension and between the caster outriggers on the mobile base. Cabinet construction was mostly Baltic Birch plywood, with various other varieties used in less visible places. Visible edges on the front of the cabinet were faced with 1/2" poplar. The 1/2" back panel of the cabinet was secured to the saw cabinet with screws.

All of the drawers are 10 1/2" deep with 1/2" Baltic Birch frames and most have 5mm Birch plywood underlayment bottoms. The drawer sides are dadoed into the drawer fronts, which, I discovered later, made them much harder to get aligned with one another on installation. If I were doing it again, I would make separate drawer fronts. All drawers are mounted on ball bearing full extension slides with 1" overtravel. I found a lot of these slides for $4/pair, so I couldn't pass them up.

The large drawer was designed to hold my saw blades, and has a 1/2" thick BB ply bottom to accommodate the extra weight. The drawer will store 11 saw blades. In addition, there is also space along the side of the blade compartment for my 8" dado set and my 8" box joint cutter set.

In the matching space on the right side of the saw cabinet, I designed a small cabinet with a drawer mounted on the same full extension ball bearing slides with overtravel. Construction of this cabinet was the same as for the cabinet on the left side of the mobile base. The space above this cabinet is taken up by the motor cover. Tho small, this drawer will still be useful for storing miscellaneous accessories and tooling.

As mentioned earlier, I designed the new mobile base with a deep drawer in its front panel. This drawer is about 20" deep and is mounted on full extension ball bearing slides. The large size of this drawer will accommodate storage of bulky items like my Delta Tenoning Jig, Zero Clearance Inserts, etc.

So, that's it for the on-board storage provisions. Thanks for coming along - but there is much more to come…............

Click to expand...

paulnwa said:

On-Board Storage

My present shop is very small - approximately 9 1/2 ft. x 20 ft. With tools along both long walls, it is more like a woodworking corridor….......... It does take some planning of operating sequences! Needless to say, I don't whack up any 4' x 8' sheet goods - that's what my sawhorses and Skilsaw out in the carport are for! However, I am thankful to have even a small shop space to putter in, and most of my projects will be small items.

That said, real estate in my shop is a very precious commodity. Consequently, I designed the new mobile base for this Model R4511 with provisions to add modular storage cabinets.

The left side of this saw table extends about 12 inches beyond the cabinet. As designed, the only residents of this space were the Tilt Handwheel and the fence storage brackets.

To make the best use of this space, I was willing to give up the fence storage brackets and try to figure out some way to relocate the Tilt Handwheel. So I designed a five-drawer cabinet to fit this space under the table extension and between the caster outriggers on the mobile base. Cabinet construction was mostly Baltic Birch plywood, with various other varieties used in less visible places. Visible edges on the front of the cabinet were faced with 1/2" poplar. The 1/2" back panel of the cabinet was secured to the saw cabinet with screws.

All of the drawers are 10 1/2" deep with 1/2" Baltic Birch frames and most have 5mm Birch plywood underlayment bottoms. The drawer sides are dadoed into the drawer fronts, which, I discovered later, made them much harder to get aligned with one another on installation. If I were doing it again, I would make separate drawer fronts. All drawers are mounted on ball bearing full extension slides with 1" overtravel. I found a lot of these slides for $4/pair, so I couldn't pass them up.

The large drawer was designed to hold my saw blades, and has a 1/2" thick BB ply bottom to accommodate the extra weight. The drawer will store 11 saw blades. In addition, there is also space along the side of the blade compartment for my 8" dado set and my 8" box joint cutter set.

In the matching space on the right side of the saw cabinet, I designed a small cabinet with a drawer mounted on the same full extension ball bearing slides with overtravel. Construction of this cabinet was the same as for the cabinet on the left side of the mobile base. The space above this cabinet is taken up by the motor cover. Tho small, this drawer will still be useful for storing miscellaneous accessories and tooling.

As mentioned earlier, I designed the new mobile base with a deep drawer in its front panel. This drawer is about 20" deep and is mounted on full extension ball bearing slides. The large size of this drawer will accommodate storage of bulky items like my Delta Tenoning Jig, Zero Clearance Inserts, etc.

So, that's it for the on-board storage provisions. Thanks for coming along - but there is much more to come…............

Click to expand...

paulnwa said:

On-Board Storage

My present shop is very small - approximately 9 1/2 ft. x 20 ft. With tools along both long walls, it is more like a woodworking corridor….......... It does take some planning of operating sequences! Needless to say, I don't whack up any 4' x 8' sheet goods - that's what my sawhorses and Skilsaw out in the carport are for! However, I am thankful to have even a small shop space to putter in, and most of my projects will be small items.

That said, real estate in my shop is a very precious commodity. Consequently, I designed the new mobile base for this Model R4511 with provisions to add modular storage cabinets.

The left side of this saw table extends about 12 inches beyond the cabinet. As designed, the only residents of this space were the Tilt Handwheel and the fence storage brackets.

To make the best use of this space, I was willing to give up the fence storage brackets and try to figure out some way to relocate the Tilt Handwheel. So I designed a five-drawer cabinet to fit this space under the table extension and between the caster outriggers on the mobile base. Cabinet construction was mostly Baltic Birch plywood, with various other varieties used in less visible places. Visible edges on the front of the cabinet were faced with 1/2" poplar. The 1/2" back panel of the cabinet was secured to the saw cabinet with screws.

All of the drawers are 10 1/2" deep with 1/2" Baltic Birch frames and most have 5mm Birch plywood underlayment bottoms. The drawer sides are dadoed into the drawer fronts, which, I discovered later, made them much harder to get aligned with one another on installation. If I were doing it again, I would make separate drawer fronts. All drawers are mounted on ball bearing full extension slides with 1" overtravel. I found a lot of these slides for $4/pair, so I couldn't pass them up.

The large drawer was designed to hold my saw blades, and has a 1/2" thick BB ply bottom to accommodate the extra weight. The drawer will store 11 saw blades. In addition, there is also space along the side of the blade compartment for my 8" dado set and my 8" box joint cutter set.

In the matching space on the right side of the saw cabinet, I designed a small cabinet with a drawer mounted on the same full extension ball bearing slides with overtravel. Construction of this cabinet was the same as for the cabinet on the left side of the mobile base. The space above this cabinet is taken up by the motor cover. Tho small, this drawer will still be useful for storing miscellaneous accessories and tooling.

As mentioned earlier, I designed the new mobile base with a deep drawer in its front panel. This drawer is about 20" deep and is mounted on full extension ball bearing slides. The large size of this drawer will accommodate storage of bulky items like my Delta Tenoning Jig, Zero Clearance Inserts, etc.

So, that's it for the on-board storage provisions. Thanks for coming along - but there is much more to come…............

Click to expand...

paulnwa said:

On-Board Storage

My present shop is very small - approximately 9 1/2 ft. x 20 ft. With tools along both long walls, it is more like a woodworking corridor….......... It does take some planning of operating sequences! Needless to say, I don't whack up any 4' x 8' sheet goods - that's what my sawhorses and Skilsaw out in the carport are for! However, I am thankful to have even a small shop space to putter in, and most of my projects will be small items.

That said, real estate in my shop is a very precious commodity. Consequently, I designed the new mobile base for this Model R4511 with provisions to add modular storage cabinets.

The left side of this saw table extends about 12 inches beyond the cabinet. As designed, the only residents of this space were the Tilt Handwheel and the fence storage brackets.

To make the best use of this space, I was willing to give up the fence storage brackets and try to figure out some way to relocate the Tilt Handwheel. So I designed a five-drawer cabinet to fit this space under the table extension and between the caster outriggers on the mobile base. Cabinet construction was mostly Baltic Birch plywood, with various other varieties used in less visible places. Visible edges on the front of the cabinet were faced with 1/2" poplar. The 1/2" back panel of the cabinet was secured to the saw cabinet with screws.

All of the drawers are 10 1/2" deep with 1/2" Baltic Birch frames and most have 5mm Birch plywood underlayment bottoms. The drawer sides are dadoed into the drawer fronts, which, I discovered later, made them much harder to get aligned with one another on installation. If I were doing it again, I would make separate drawer fronts. All drawers are mounted on ball bearing full extension slides with 1" overtravel. I found a lot of these slides for $4/pair, so I couldn't pass them up.

The large drawer was designed to hold my saw blades, and has a 1/2" thick BB ply bottom to accommodate the extra weight. The drawer will store 11 saw blades. In addition, there is also space along the side of the blade compartment for my 8" dado set and my 8" box joint cutter set.

In the matching space on the right side of the saw cabinet, I designed a small cabinet with a drawer mounted on the same full extension ball bearing slides with overtravel. Construction of this cabinet was the same as for the cabinet on the left side of the mobile base. The space above this cabinet is taken up by the motor cover. Tho small, this drawer will still be useful for storing miscellaneous accessories and tooling.

As mentioned earlier, I designed the new mobile base with a deep drawer in its front panel. This drawer is about 20" deep and is mounted on full extension ball bearing slides. The large size of this drawer will accommodate storage of bulky items like my Delta Tenoning Jig, Zero Clearance Inserts, etc.

So, that's it for the on-board storage provisions. Thanks for coming along - but there is much more to come…............

Click to expand...

paulnwa said:

Upgraded Rip Fence

For those who don't have the Ridgid Model R4511 or have never seen one, the stock fence is a T-square type - sort of a mini-Biesemeyer configuration, very loosely speaking. This configuration is somewhat similar to the Delta T-2, which a number of folks have purchased to replace the stock fence on this saw. It has a square tube front rail, bolted to a formed steel angle which is screwed to the front of the granite table top. For ease of shipping, the front rail is split in two pieces, with a plastic coupler fitting between the two halves. Like the Biesemeyer, the fence body straddles the rail and a cam lock mechanism pulls the body against the steel tube rail. This mechanism seems to lock the fence position quite well. The fence itself is a 2" square steel tube, which has a "hook" fitting on the rear end that catches underneath the rear angle rail.

There have been quite a number of folks who have found the original rip fence on the Model R4511 to meet their needs and expectations very well. And of course there have been a fair number of folks who have had difficulties with the fence - issues related to the two piece front rail, alignment front to back, excessive height off the table, etc. I didn't have any major issues with the fence except the excessive height off the table, altho I think the 2" square tube is too small to be useful for a lot of ripping applications on thicker/longer stock. In addition, I could not get used to the debris-catching space between the front rail tube and the rail support angle - it seemed like I was always losing a pencil in that space and it was always full of sawdust!

My biggest problem with the original fence was a historical one! I had been using a Delta Unifence for the last 20 years or so, and I just couldn't get comfortable using a difference fence. In addition to the "perceived deficiencies" mentioned above, I missed some of the features of the Unifence - especially the unique feature of the Unifence which allows the fence extrusion to be retracted to a position in front of the blade so it can be used as a stop block for uniform length cross cuts.

The Delta Unifence I purchased for use on the Model R4511 had a 30" rail, allowing a maximum cut of 30" to the right of the blade and 9" to the left. The total length of the front rail was about 60". Unfortunately, since I purchased the one for this project, it seems like the Unifence is either no longer made or is in very short supply. I suspect that since Delta bought Biesemeyer, they would rather sell only the Bies. - which is indeed an excellent fence, as many of you can probably attest.

The Unifence is a three-piece rip fence - an extruded aluminum front rail, a machined cast aluminum body, and an extruded "L"-shaped aluminum fence. The fence body is supported by the front rail, and a nylon tipped "foot" that rests on the table top - there is no attachment to the rear rail. A steel bar running in a tee slot in the front of the rail is cam locked to the face of rail to lock the fence position. The fence extrusion can be positioned on either side of the fence body, allowing left-of-blade cutting.

The fence extrusion can be mounted to the body in two ways. To accommodate this feature, two index lines are provided on the clear plastic scale cursor, with an icon to show which one applies -therefore, it is possible to read the wrong cursor line if one isn't paying attention…... :-( DAMHIKT...........!!The following photo shows the fence extrusion in the Low Fence Mode, (my favorite) providing a 1/2" high fence surface and allowing space for hand holding the workpiece without obstruction from the higher part of the fence.

This view shows the fence positioned in the High Fence Mode providing a 3 1/2" fence face.

The addition of an After Market Auxiliary Fence extrusion allows the use of feather boards or other hold down devices. However, the use of such devices does require the fence extrusion to be clamped down to the table or rear rail, which is easily accomplished.

Mounting of the Unifence proved to be challenging. The Unifence was designed to be attached to the front face of a cast iron table, which typically has a flange around the edges of the table. Bolts with heads inside the flange and nuts inside integral tee slots in the back face of the fence extrusion are used to secure the fence to the table. However, the Model R4511 has a solid granite table with no edge flanges. So I had to dream up an alternate mounting method.

This installation required the mounting of a new steel rail support angle to the front edge of the table, using the original hole pattern, which I transferred from the original fence rail - the cheapo transfer punch set from Harbor Freight worked like a champ for this application. I used 1/8" x 2" x 2" angle stock from Home Depot. In retrospect, I wish I had used 3/16" or even 1/4" thick stock, which would have made it more rigid. The thinner stock is adequate, however - sometimes bigger is better! In addition, I replaced the stock rear fence support angle with a 1/8" x 1 1/2" x 1 1/2" steel angle I had lying around the shop to provide support for a right hand table extension to fill the space between the fence rails outboard of the granite table.

To accommodate the radius between the rail angle legs, I fabricated a maple filler. The filler was attached to the rail extrusion with 1/4" machine screws and either speed nuts and hex nuts. The speed nuts were used to accommodate the large upper tee slot, which was designed for 3/8" hex nuts in a normal installation. I didn't have room for the large heads of 3/8" FH machine screws in the face of the filler.

This view shows the rail support angle, filler, and rail extrusion installed on the front of the granite table. Note that there is no channel between the table and the fence rail to collect debris - or lose pencils….

The Unifence rail extrusion was attached with 1/4" machine screws tapped into the bottom surface of the fence rail, as shown in this view. Altho the fence rail extending beyond the edge of the right hand granite table extension was unsupported, it is so rigid as to not pose a problem.

Since installing the Unifence, I have felt much more at home using the saw-kinda like putting on an old pair of slippers…........

Well, that's about it for this chapter. Stay tuned, there is lots more to come….....................

Click to expand...

paulnwa said:

Upgraded Rip Fence

For those who don't have the Ridgid Model R4511 or have never seen one, the stock fence is a T-square type - sort of a mini-Biesemeyer configuration, very loosely speaking. This configuration is somewhat similar to the Delta T-2, which a number of folks have purchased to replace the stock fence on this saw. It has a square tube front rail, bolted to a formed steel angle which is screwed to the front of the granite table top. For ease of shipping, the front rail is split in two pieces, with a plastic coupler fitting between the two halves. Like the Biesemeyer, the fence body straddles the rail and a cam lock mechanism pulls the body against the steel tube rail. This mechanism seems to lock the fence position quite well. The fence itself is a 2" square steel tube, which has a "hook" fitting on the rear end that catches underneath the rear angle rail.

There have been quite a number of folks who have found the original rip fence on the Model R4511 to meet their needs and expectations very well. And of course there have been a fair number of folks who have had difficulties with the fence - issues related to the two piece front rail, alignment front to back, excessive height off the table, etc. I didn't have any major issues with the fence except the excessive height off the table, altho I think the 2" square tube is too small to be useful for a lot of ripping applications on thicker/longer stock. In addition, I could not get used to the debris-catching space between the front rail tube and the rail support angle - it seemed like I was always losing a pencil in that space and it was always full of sawdust!

My biggest problem with the original fence was a historical one! I had been using a Delta Unifence for the last 20 years or so, and I just couldn't get comfortable using a difference fence. In addition to the "perceived deficiencies" mentioned above, I missed some of the features of the Unifence - especially the unique feature of the Unifence which allows the fence extrusion to be retracted to a position in front of the blade so it can be used as a stop block for uniform length cross cuts.

The Delta Unifence I purchased for use on the Model R4511 had a 30" rail, allowing a maximum cut of 30" to the right of the blade and 9" to the left. The total length of the front rail was about 60". Unfortunately, since I purchased the one for this project, it seems like the Unifence is either no longer made or is in very short supply. I suspect that since Delta bought Biesemeyer, they would rather sell only the Bies. - which is indeed an excellent fence, as many of you can probably attest.

The Unifence is a three-piece rip fence - an extruded aluminum front rail, a machined cast aluminum body, and an extruded "L"-shaped aluminum fence. The fence body is supported by the front rail, and a nylon tipped "foot" that rests on the table top - there is no attachment to the rear rail. A steel bar running in a tee slot in the front of the rail is cam locked to the face of rail to lock the fence position. The fence extrusion can be positioned on either side of the fence body, allowing left-of-blade cutting.

The fence extrusion can be mounted to the body in two ways. To accommodate this feature, two index lines are provided on the clear plastic scale cursor, with an icon to show which one applies -therefore, it is possible to read the wrong cursor line if one isn't paying attention…... :-( DAMHIKT...........!!The following photo shows the fence extrusion in the Low Fence Mode, (my favorite) providing a 1/2" high fence surface and allowing space for hand holding the workpiece without obstruction from the higher part of the fence.

This view shows the fence positioned in the High Fence Mode providing a 3 1/2" fence face.

The addition of an After Market Auxiliary Fence extrusion allows the use of feather boards or other hold down devices. However, the use of such devices does require the fence extrusion to be clamped down to the table or rear rail, which is easily accomplished.

Mounting of the Unifence proved to be challenging. The Unifence was designed to be attached to the front face of a cast iron table, which typically has a flange around the edges of the table. Bolts with heads inside the flange and nuts inside integral tee slots in the back face of the fence extrusion are used to secure the fence to the table. However, the Model R4511 has a solid granite table with no edge flanges. So I had to dream up an alternate mounting method.

This installation required the mounting of a new steel rail support angle to the front edge of the table, using the original hole pattern, which I transferred from the original fence rail - the cheapo transfer punch set from Harbor Freight worked like a champ for this application. I used 1/8" x 2" x 2" angle stock from Home Depot. In retrospect, I wish I had used 3/16" or even 1/4" thick stock, which would have made it more rigid. The thinner stock is adequate, however - sometimes bigger is better! In addition, I replaced the stock rear fence support angle with a 1/8" x 1 1/2" x 1 1/2" steel angle I had lying around the shop to provide support for a right hand table extension to fill the space between the fence rails outboard of the granite table.

To accommodate the radius between the rail angle legs, I fabricated a maple filler. The filler was attached to the rail extrusion with 1/4" machine screws and either speed nuts and hex nuts. The speed nuts were used to accommodate the large upper tee slot, which was designed for 3/8" hex nuts in a normal installation. I didn't have room for the large heads of 3/8" FH machine screws in the face of the filler.

This view shows the rail support angle, filler, and rail extrusion installed on the front of the granite table. Note that there is no channel between the table and the fence rail to collect debris - or lose pencils….

The Unifence rail extrusion was attached with 1/4" machine screws tapped into the bottom surface of the fence rail, as shown in this view. Altho the fence rail extending beyond the edge of the right hand granite table extension was unsupported, it is so rigid as to not pose a problem.

Since installing the Unifence, I have felt much more at home using the saw-kinda like putting on an old pair of slippers…........

Well, that's about it for this chapter. Stay tuned, there is lots more to come….....................

Click to expand...

paulnwa said:

Upgraded Rip Fence

For those who don't have the Ridgid Model R4511 or have never seen one, the stock fence is a T-square type - sort of a mini-Biesemeyer configuration, very loosely speaking. This configuration is somewhat similar to the Delta T-2, which a number of folks have purchased to replace the stock fence on this saw. It has a square tube front rail, bolted to a formed steel angle which is screwed to the front of the granite table top. For ease of shipping, the front rail is split in two pieces, with a plastic coupler fitting between the two halves. Like the Biesemeyer, the fence body straddles the rail and a cam lock mechanism pulls the body against the steel tube rail. This mechanism seems to lock the fence position quite well. The fence itself is a 2" square steel tube, which has a "hook" fitting on the rear end that catches underneath the rear angle rail.

There have been quite a number of folks who have found the original rip fence on the Model R4511 to meet their needs and expectations very well. And of course there have been a fair number of folks who have had difficulties with the fence - issues related to the two piece front rail, alignment front to back, excessive height off the table, etc. I didn't have any major issues with the fence except the excessive height off the table, altho I think the 2" square tube is too small to be useful for a lot of ripping applications on thicker/longer stock. In addition, I could not get used to the debris-catching space between the front rail tube and the rail support angle - it seemed like I was always losing a pencil in that space and it was always full of sawdust!

My biggest problem with the original fence was a historical one! I had been using a Delta Unifence for the last 20 years or so, and I just couldn't get comfortable using a difference fence. In addition to the "perceived deficiencies" mentioned above, I missed some of the features of the Unifence - especially the unique feature of the Unifence which allows the fence extrusion to be retracted to a position in front of the blade so it can be used as a stop block for uniform length cross cuts.

The Delta Unifence I purchased for use on the Model R4511 had a 30" rail, allowing a maximum cut of 30" to the right of the blade and 9" to the left. The total length of the front rail was about 60". Unfortunately, since I purchased the one for this project, it seems like the Unifence is either no longer made or is in very short supply. I suspect that since Delta bought Biesemeyer, they would rather sell only the Bies. - which is indeed an excellent fence, as many of you can probably attest.

The Unifence is a three-piece rip fence - an extruded aluminum front rail, a machined cast aluminum body, and an extruded "L"-shaped aluminum fence. The fence body is supported by the front rail, and a nylon tipped "foot" that rests on the table top - there is no attachment to the rear rail. A steel bar running in a tee slot in the front of the rail is cam locked to the face of rail to lock the fence position. The fence extrusion can be positioned on either side of the fence body, allowing left-of-blade cutting.

The fence extrusion can be mounted to the body in two ways. To accommodate this feature, two index lines are provided on the clear plastic scale cursor, with an icon to show which one applies -therefore, it is possible to read the wrong cursor line if one isn't paying attention…... :-( DAMHIKT...........!!The following photo shows the fence extrusion in the Low Fence Mode, (my favorite) providing a 1/2" high fence surface and allowing space for hand holding the workpiece without obstruction from the higher part of the fence.

This view shows the fence positioned in the High Fence Mode providing a 3 1/2" fence face.

The addition of an After Market Auxiliary Fence extrusion allows the use of feather boards or other hold down devices. However, the use of such devices does require the fence extrusion to be clamped down to the table or rear rail, which is easily accomplished.

Mounting of the Unifence proved to be challenging. The Unifence was designed to be attached to the front face of a cast iron table, which typically has a flange around the edges of the table. Bolts with heads inside the flange and nuts inside integral tee slots in the back face of the fence extrusion are used to secure the fence to the table. However, the Model R4511 has a solid granite table with no edge flanges. So I had to dream up an alternate mounting method.

This installation required the mounting of a new steel rail support angle to the front edge of the table, using the original hole pattern, which I transferred from the original fence rail - the cheapo transfer punch set from Harbor Freight worked like a champ for this application. I used 1/8" x 2" x 2" angle stock from Home Depot. In retrospect, I wish I had used 3/16" or even 1/4" thick stock, which would have made it more rigid. The thinner stock is adequate, however - sometimes bigger is better! In addition, I replaced the stock rear fence support angle with a 1/8" x 1 1/2" x 1 1/2" steel angle I had lying around the shop to provide support for a right hand table extension to fill the space between the fence rails outboard of the granite table.

To accommodate the radius between the rail angle legs, I fabricated a maple filler. The filler was attached to the rail extrusion with 1/4" machine screws and either speed nuts and hex nuts. The speed nuts were used to accommodate the large upper tee slot, which was designed for 3/8" hex nuts in a normal installation. I didn't have room for the large heads of 3/8" FH machine screws in the face of the filler.

This view shows the rail support angle, filler, and rail extrusion installed on the front of the granite table. Note that there is no channel between the table and the fence rail to collect debris - or lose pencils….

The Unifence rail extrusion was attached with 1/4" machine screws tapped into the bottom surface of the fence rail, as shown in this view. Altho the fence rail extending beyond the edge of the right hand granite table extension was unsupported, it is so rigid as to not pose a problem.

Since installing the Unifence, I have felt much more at home using the saw-kinda like putting on an old pair of slippers…........

Well, that's about it for this chapter. Stay tuned, there is lots more to come….....................

Click to expand...

paulnwa said:

Upgraded Rip Fence

For those who don't have the Ridgid Model R4511 or have never seen one, the stock fence is a T-square type - sort of a mini-Biesemeyer configuration, very loosely speaking. This configuration is somewhat similar to the Delta T-2, which a number of folks have purchased to replace the stock fence on this saw. It has a square tube front rail, bolted to a formed steel angle which is screwed to the front of the granite table top. For ease of shipping, the front rail is split in two pieces, with a plastic coupler fitting between the two halves. Like the Biesemeyer, the fence body straddles the rail and a cam lock mechanism pulls the body against the steel tube rail. This mechanism seems to lock the fence position quite well. The fence itself is a 2" square steel tube, which has a "hook" fitting on the rear end that catches underneath the rear angle rail.

There have been quite a number of folks who have found the original rip fence on the Model R4511 to meet their needs and expectations very well. And of course there have been a fair number of folks who have had difficulties with the fence - issues related to the two piece front rail, alignment front to back, excessive height off the table, etc. I didn't have any major issues with the fence except the excessive height off the table, altho I think the 2" square tube is too small to be useful for a lot of ripping applications on thicker/longer stock. In addition, I could not get used to the debris-catching space between the front rail tube and the rail support angle - it seemed like I was always losing a pencil in that space and it was always full of sawdust!

My biggest problem with the original fence was a historical one! I had been using a Delta Unifence for the last 20 years or so, and I just couldn't get comfortable using a difference fence. In addition to the "perceived deficiencies" mentioned above, I missed some of the features of the Unifence - especially the unique feature of the Unifence which allows the fence extrusion to be retracted to a position in front of the blade so it can be used as a stop block for uniform length cross cuts.

The Delta Unifence I purchased for use on the Model R4511 had a 30" rail, allowing a maximum cut of 30" to the right of the blade and 9" to the left. The total length of the front rail was about 60". Unfortunately, since I purchased the one for this project, it seems like the Unifence is either no longer made or is in very short supply. I suspect that since Delta bought Biesemeyer, they would rather sell only the Bies. - which is indeed an excellent fence, as many of you can probably attest.

The Unifence is a three-piece rip fence - an extruded aluminum front rail, a machined cast aluminum body, and an extruded "L"-shaped aluminum fence. The fence body is supported by the front rail, and a nylon tipped "foot" that rests on the table top - there is no attachment to the rear rail. A steel bar running in a tee slot in the front of the rail is cam locked to the face of rail to lock the fence position. The fence extrusion can be positioned on either side of the fence body, allowing left-of-blade cutting.

The fence extrusion can be mounted to the body in two ways. To accommodate this feature, two index lines are provided on the clear plastic scale cursor, with an icon to show which one applies -therefore, it is possible to read the wrong cursor line if one isn't paying attention…... :-( DAMHIKT...........!!The following photo shows the fence extrusion in the Low Fence Mode, (my favorite) providing a 1/2" high fence surface and allowing space for hand holding the workpiece without obstruction from the higher part of the fence.

This view shows the fence positioned in the High Fence Mode providing a 3 1/2" fence face.

The addition of an After Market Auxiliary Fence extrusion allows the use of feather boards or other hold down devices. However, the use of such devices does require the fence extrusion to be clamped down to the table or rear rail, which is easily accomplished.

Mounting of the Unifence proved to be challenging. The Unifence was designed to be attached to the front face of a cast iron table, which typically has a flange around the edges of the table. Bolts with heads inside the flange and nuts inside integral tee slots in the back face of the fence extrusion are used to secure the fence to the table. However, the Model R4511 has a solid granite table with no edge flanges. So I had to dream up an alternate mounting method.

This installation required the mounting of a new steel rail support angle to the front edge of the table, using the original hole pattern, which I transferred from the original fence rail - the cheapo transfer punch set from Harbor Freight worked like a champ for this application. I used 1/8" x 2" x 2" angle stock from Home Depot. In retrospect, I wish I had used 3/16" or even 1/4" thick stock, which would have made it more rigid. The thinner stock is adequate, however - sometimes bigger is better! In addition, I replaced the stock rear fence support angle with a 1/8" x 1 1/2" x 1 1/2" steel angle I had lying around the shop to provide support for a right hand table extension to fill the space between the fence rails outboard of the granite table.

To accommodate the radius between the rail angle legs, I fabricated a maple filler. The filler was attached to the rail extrusion with 1/4" machine screws and either speed nuts and hex nuts. The speed nuts were used to accommodate the large upper tee slot, which was designed for 3/8" hex nuts in a normal installation. I didn't have room for the large heads of 3/8" FH machine screws in the face of the filler.

This view shows the rail support angle, filler, and rail extrusion installed on the front of the granite table. Note that there is no channel between the table and the fence rail to collect debris - or lose pencils….

The Unifence rail extrusion was attached with 1/4" machine screws tapped into the bottom surface of the fence rail, as shown in this view. Altho the fence rail extending beyond the edge of the right hand granite table extension was unsupported, it is so rigid as to not pose a problem.

Since installing the Unifence, I have felt much more at home using the saw-kinda like putting on an old pair of slippers…........

Well, that's about it for this chapter. Stay tuned, there is lots more to come….....................

Click to expand...

paulnwa said:

Upgraded Rip Fence

For those who don't have the Ridgid Model R4511 or have never seen one, the stock fence is a T-square type - sort of a mini-Biesemeyer configuration, very loosely speaking. This configuration is somewhat similar to the Delta T-2, which a number of folks have purchased to replace the stock fence on this saw. It has a square tube front rail, bolted to a formed steel angle which is screwed to the front of the granite table top. For ease of shipping, the front rail is split in two pieces, with a plastic coupler fitting between the two halves. Like the Biesemeyer, the fence body straddles the rail and a cam lock mechanism pulls the body against the steel tube rail. This mechanism seems to lock the fence position quite well. The fence itself is a 2" square steel tube, which has a "hook" fitting on the rear end that catches underneath the rear angle rail.

There have been quite a number of folks who have found the original rip fence on the Model R4511 to meet their needs and expectations very well. And of course there have been a fair number of folks who have had difficulties with the fence - issues related to the two piece front rail, alignment front to back, excessive height off the table, etc. I didn't have any major issues with the fence except the excessive height off the table, altho I think the 2" square tube is too small to be useful for a lot of ripping applications on thicker/longer stock. In addition, I could not get used to the debris-catching space between the front rail tube and the rail support angle - it seemed like I was always losing a pencil in that space and it was always full of sawdust!

My biggest problem with the original fence was a historical one! I had been using a Delta Unifence for the last 20 years or so, and I just couldn't get comfortable using a difference fence. In addition to the "perceived deficiencies" mentioned above, I missed some of the features of the Unifence - especially the unique feature of the Unifence which allows the fence extrusion to be retracted to a position in front of the blade so it can be used as a stop block for uniform length cross cuts.

The Delta Unifence I purchased for use on the Model R4511 had a 30" rail, allowing a maximum cut of 30" to the right of the blade and 9" to the left. The total length of the front rail was about 60". Unfortunately, since I purchased the one for this project, it seems like the Unifence is either no longer made or is in very short supply. I suspect that since Delta bought Biesemeyer, they would rather sell only the Bies. - which is indeed an excellent fence, as many of you can probably attest.

The Unifence is a three-piece rip fence - an extruded aluminum front rail, a machined cast aluminum body, and an extruded "L"-shaped aluminum fence. The fence body is supported by the front rail, and a nylon tipped "foot" that rests on the table top - there is no attachment to the rear rail. A steel bar running in a tee slot in the front of the rail is cam locked to the face of rail to lock the fence position. The fence extrusion can be positioned on either side of the fence body, allowing left-of-blade cutting.

The fence extrusion can be mounted to the body in two ways. To accommodate this feature, two index lines are provided on the clear plastic scale cursor, with an icon to show which one applies -therefore, it is possible to read the wrong cursor line if one isn't paying attention…... :-( DAMHIKT...........!!The following photo shows the fence extrusion in the Low Fence Mode, (my favorite) providing a 1/2" high fence surface and allowing space for hand holding the workpiece without obstruction from the higher part of the fence.

This view shows the fence positioned in the High Fence Mode providing a 3 1/2" fence face.

The addition of an After Market Auxiliary Fence extrusion allows the use of feather boards or other hold down devices. However, the use of such devices does require the fence extrusion to be clamped down to the table or rear rail, which is easily accomplished.

Mounting of the Unifence proved to be challenging. The Unifence was designed to be attached to the front face of a cast iron table, which typically has a flange around the edges of the table. Bolts with heads inside the flange and nuts inside integral tee slots in the back face of the fence extrusion are used to secure the fence to the table. However, the Model R4511 has a solid granite table with no edge flanges. So I had to dream up an alternate mounting method.

This installation required the mounting of a new steel rail support angle to the front edge of the table, using the original hole pattern, which I transferred from the original fence rail - the cheapo transfer punch set from Harbor Freight worked like a champ for this application. I used 1/8" x 2" x 2" angle stock from Home Depot. In retrospect, I wish I had used 3/16" or even 1/4" thick stock, which would have made it more rigid. The thinner stock is adequate, however - sometimes bigger is better! In addition, I replaced the stock rear fence support angle with a 1/8" x 1 1/2" x 1 1/2" steel angle I had lying around the shop to provide support for a right hand table extension to fill the space between the fence rails outboard of the granite table.

To accommodate the radius between the rail angle legs, I fabricated a maple filler. The filler was attached to the rail extrusion with 1/4" machine screws and either speed nuts and hex nuts. The speed nuts were used to accommodate the large upper tee slot, which was designed for 3/8" hex nuts in a normal installation. I didn't have room for the large heads of 3/8" FH machine screws in the face of the filler.

This view shows the rail support angle, filler, and rail extrusion installed on the front of the granite table. Note that there is no channel between the table and the fence rail to collect debris - or lose pencils….

The Unifence rail extrusion was attached with 1/4" machine screws tapped into the bottom surface of the fence rail, as shown in this view. Altho the fence rail extending beyond the edge of the right hand granite table extension was unsupported, it is so rigid as to not pose a problem.

Since installing the Unifence, I have felt much more at home using the saw-kinda like putting on an old pair of slippers…........

Well, that's about it for this chapter. Stay tuned, there is lots more to come….....................

Click to expand...

paulnwa said:

Upgraded Rip Fence

For those who don't have the Ridgid Model R4511 or have never seen one, the stock fence is a T-square type - sort of a mini-Biesemeyer configuration, very loosely speaking. This configuration is somewhat similar to the Delta T-2, which a number of folks have purchased to replace the stock fence on this saw. It has a square tube front rail, bolted to a formed steel angle which is screwed to the front of the granite table top. For ease of shipping, the front rail is split in two pieces, with a plastic coupler fitting between the two halves. Like the Biesemeyer, the fence body straddles the rail and a cam lock mechanism pulls the body against the steel tube rail. This mechanism seems to lock the fence position quite well. The fence itself is a 2" square steel tube, which has a "hook" fitting on the rear end that catches underneath the rear angle rail.

There have been quite a number of folks who have found the original rip fence on the Model R4511 to meet their needs and expectations very well. And of course there have been a fair number of folks who have had difficulties with the fence - issues related to the two piece front rail, alignment front to back, excessive height off the table, etc. I didn't have any major issues with the fence except the excessive height off the table, altho I think the 2" square tube is too small to be useful for a lot of ripping applications on thicker/longer stock. In addition, I could not get used to the debris-catching space between the front rail tube and the rail support angle - it seemed like I was always losing a pencil in that space and it was always full of sawdust!

My biggest problem with the original fence was a historical one! I had been using a Delta Unifence for the last 20 years or so, and I just couldn't get comfortable using a difference fence. In addition to the "perceived deficiencies" mentioned above, I missed some of the features of the Unifence - especially the unique feature of the Unifence which allows the fence extrusion to be retracted to a position in front of the blade so it can be used as a stop block for uniform length cross cuts.

The Delta Unifence I purchased for use on the Model R4511 had a 30" rail, allowing a maximum cut of 30" to the right of the blade and 9" to the left. The total length of the front rail was about 60". Unfortunately, since I purchased the one for this project, it seems like the Unifence is either no longer made or is in very short supply. I suspect that since Delta bought Biesemeyer, they would rather sell only the Bies. - which is indeed an excellent fence, as many of you can probably attest.

The Unifence is a three-piece rip fence - an extruded aluminum front rail, a machined cast aluminum body, and an extruded "L"-shaped aluminum fence. The fence body is supported by the front rail, and a nylon tipped "foot" that rests on the table top - there is no attachment to the rear rail. A steel bar running in a tee slot in the front of the rail is cam locked to the face of rail to lock the fence position. The fence extrusion can be positioned on either side of the fence body, allowing left-of-blade cutting.

The fence extrusion can be mounted to the body in two ways. To accommodate this feature, two index lines are provided on the clear plastic scale cursor, with an icon to show which one applies -therefore, it is possible to read the wrong cursor line if one isn't paying attention…... :-( DAMHIKT...........!!The following photo shows the fence extrusion in the Low Fence Mode, (my favorite) providing a 1/2" high fence surface and allowing space for hand holding the workpiece without obstruction from the higher part of the fence.

This view shows the fence positioned in the High Fence Mode providing a 3 1/2" fence face.

The addition of an After Market Auxiliary Fence extrusion allows the use of feather boards or other hold down devices. However, the use of such devices does require the fence extrusion to be clamped down to the table or rear rail, which is easily accomplished.

Mounting of the Unifence proved to be challenging. The Unifence was designed to be attached to the front face of a cast iron table, which typically has a flange around the edges of the table. Bolts with heads inside the flange and nuts inside integral tee slots in the back face of the fence extrusion are used to secure the fence to the table. However, the Model R4511 has a solid granite table with no edge flanges. So I had to dream up an alternate mounting method.

This installation required the mounting of a new steel rail support angle to the front edge of the table, using the original hole pattern, which I transferred from the original fence rail - the cheapo transfer punch set from Harbor Freight worked like a champ for this application. I used 1/8" x 2" x 2" angle stock from Home Depot. In retrospect, I wish I had used 3/16" or even 1/4" thick stock, which would have made it more rigid. The thinner stock is adequate, however - sometimes bigger is better! In addition, I replaced the stock rear fence support angle with a 1/8" x 1 1/2" x 1 1/2" steel angle I had lying around the shop to provide support for a right hand table extension to fill the space between the fence rails outboard of the granite table.

To accommodate the radius between the rail angle legs, I fabricated a maple filler. The filler was attached to the rail extrusion with 1/4" machine screws and either speed nuts and hex nuts. The speed nuts were used to accommodate the large upper tee slot, which was designed for 3/8" hex nuts in a normal installation. I didn't have room for the large heads of 3/8" FH machine screws in the face of the filler.

This view shows the rail support angle, filler, and rail extrusion installed on the front of the granite table. Note that there is no channel between the table and the fence rail to collect debris - or lose pencils….

The Unifence rail extrusion was attached with 1/4" machine screws tapped into the bottom surface of the fence rail, as shown in this view. Altho the fence rail extending beyond the edge of the right hand granite table extension was unsupported, it is so rigid as to not pose a problem.

Since installing the Unifence, I have felt much more at home using the saw-kinda like putting on an old pair of slippers…........

Well, that's about it for this chapter. Stay tuned, there is lots more to come….....................

Click to expand...

paulnwa said:

Upgraded Rip Fence

For those who don't have the Ridgid Model R4511 or have never seen one, the stock fence is a T-square type - sort of a mini-Biesemeyer configuration, very loosely speaking. This configuration is somewhat similar to the Delta T-2, which a number of folks have purchased to replace the stock fence on this saw. It has a square tube front rail, bolted to a formed steel angle which is screwed to the front of the granite table top. For ease of shipping, the front rail is split in two pieces, with a plastic coupler fitting between the two halves. Like the Biesemeyer, the fence body straddles the rail and a cam lock mechanism pulls the body against the steel tube rail. This mechanism seems to lock the fence position quite well. The fence itself is a 2" square steel tube, which has a "hook" fitting on the rear end that catches underneath the rear angle rail.

There have been quite a number of folks who have found the original rip fence on the Model R4511 to meet their needs and expectations very well. And of course there have been a fair number of folks who have had difficulties with the fence - issues related to the two piece front rail, alignment front to back, excessive height off the table, etc. I didn't have any major issues with the fence except the excessive height off the table, altho I think the 2" square tube is too small to be useful for a lot of ripping applications on thicker/longer stock. In addition, I could not get used to the debris-catching space between the front rail tube and the rail support angle - it seemed like I was always losing a pencil in that space and it was always full of sawdust!

My biggest problem with the original fence was a historical one! I had been using a Delta Unifence for the last 20 years or so, and I just couldn't get comfortable using a difference fence. In addition to the "perceived deficiencies" mentioned above, I missed some of the features of the Unifence - especially the unique feature of the Unifence which allows the fence extrusion to be retracted to a position in front of the blade so it can be used as a stop block for uniform length cross cuts.

The Delta Unifence I purchased for use on the Model R4511 had a 30" rail, allowing a maximum cut of 30" to the right of the blade and 9" to the left. The total length of the front rail was about 60". Unfortunately, since I purchased the one for this project, it seems like the Unifence is either no longer made or is in very short supply. I suspect that since Delta bought Biesemeyer, they would rather sell only the Bies. - which is indeed an excellent fence, as many of you can probably attest.

The Unifence is a three-piece rip fence - an extruded aluminum front rail, a machined cast aluminum body, and an extruded "L"-shaped aluminum fence. The fence body is supported by the front rail, and a nylon tipped "foot" that rests on the table top - there is no attachment to the rear rail. A steel bar running in a tee slot in the front of the rail is cam locked to the face of rail to lock the fence position. The fence extrusion can be positioned on either side of the fence body, allowing left-of-blade cutting.

The fence extrusion can be mounted to the body in two ways. To accommodate this feature, two index lines are provided on the clear plastic scale cursor, with an icon to show which one applies -therefore, it is possible to read the wrong cursor line if one isn't paying attention…... :-( DAMHIKT...........!!The following photo shows the fence extrusion in the Low Fence Mode, (my favorite) providing a 1/2" high fence surface and allowing space for hand holding the workpiece without obstruction from the higher part of the fence.

This view shows the fence positioned in the High Fence Mode providing a 3 1/2" fence face.

The addition of an After Market Auxiliary Fence extrusion allows the use of feather boards or other hold down devices. However, the use of such devices does require the fence extrusion to be clamped down to the table or rear rail, which is easily accomplished.

Mounting of the Unifence proved to be challenging. The Unifence was designed to be attached to the front face of a cast iron table, which typically has a flange around the edges of the table. Bolts with heads inside the flange and nuts inside integral tee slots in the back face of the fence extrusion are used to secure the fence to the table. However, the Model R4511 has a solid granite table with no edge flanges. So I had to dream up an alternate mounting method.

This installation required the mounting of a new steel rail support angle to the front edge of the table, using the original hole pattern, which I transferred from the original fence rail - the cheapo transfer punch set from Harbor Freight worked like a champ for this application. I used 1/8" x 2" x 2" angle stock from Home Depot. In retrospect, I wish I had used 3/16" or even 1/4" thick stock, which would have made it more rigid. The thinner stock is adequate, however - sometimes bigger is better! In addition, I replaced the stock rear fence support angle with a 1/8" x 1 1/2" x 1 1/2" steel angle I had lying around the shop to provide support for a right hand table extension to fill the space between the fence rails outboard of the granite table.

To accommodate the radius between the rail angle legs, I fabricated a maple filler. The filler was attached to the rail extrusion with 1/4" machine screws and either speed nuts and hex nuts. The speed nuts were used to accommodate the large upper tee slot, which was designed for 3/8" hex nuts in a normal installation. I didn't have room for the large heads of 3/8" FH machine screws in the face of the filler.

This view shows the rail support angle, filler, and rail extrusion installed on the front of the granite table. Note that there is no channel between the table and the fence rail to collect debris - or lose pencils….

The Unifence rail extrusion was attached with 1/4" machine screws tapped into the bottom surface of the fence rail, as shown in this view. Altho the fence rail extending beyond the edge of the right hand granite table extension was unsupported, it is so rigid as to not pose a problem.

Since installing the Unifence, I have felt much more at home using the saw-kinda like putting on an old pair of slippers…........

Well, that's about it for this chapter. Stay tuned, there is lots more to come….....................

Click to expand...

paulnwa said:

Upgraded Rip Fence

For those who don't have the Ridgid Model R4511 or have never seen one, the stock fence is a T-square type - sort of a mini-Biesemeyer configuration, very loosely speaking. This configuration is somewhat similar to the Delta T-2, which a number of folks have purchased to replace the stock fence on this saw. It has a square tube front rail, bolted to a formed steel angle which is screwed to the front of the granite table top. For ease of shipping, the front rail is split in two pieces, with a plastic coupler fitting between the two halves. Like the Biesemeyer, the fence body straddles the rail and a cam lock mechanism pulls the body against the steel tube rail. This mechanism seems to lock the fence position quite well. The fence itself is a 2" square steel tube, which has a "hook" fitting on the rear end that catches underneath the rear angle rail.

There have been quite a number of folks who have found the original rip fence on the Model R4511 to meet their needs and expectations very well. And of course there have been a fair number of folks who have had difficulties with the fence - issues related to the two piece front rail, alignment front to back, excessive height off the table, etc. I didn't have any major issues with the fence except the excessive height off the table, altho I think the 2" square tube is too small to be useful for a lot of ripping applications on thicker/longer stock. In addition, I could not get used to the debris-catching space between the front rail tube and the rail support angle - it seemed like I was always losing a pencil in that space and it was always full of sawdust!

My biggest problem with the original fence was a historical one! I had been using a Delta Unifence for the last 20 years or so, and I just couldn't get comfortable using a difference fence. In addition to the "perceived deficiencies" mentioned above, I missed some of the features of the Unifence - especially the unique feature of the Unifence which allows the fence extrusion to be retracted to a position in front of the blade so it can be used as a stop block for uniform length cross cuts.

The Delta Unifence I purchased for use on the Model R4511 had a 30" rail, allowing a maximum cut of 30" to the right of the blade and 9" to the left. The total length of the front rail was about 60". Unfortunately, since I purchased the one for this project, it seems like the Unifence is either no longer made or is in very short supply. I suspect that since Delta bought Biesemeyer, they would rather sell only the Bies. - which is indeed an excellent fence, as many of you can probably attest.

The Unifence is a three-piece rip fence - an extruded aluminum front rail, a machined cast aluminum body, and an extruded "L"-shaped aluminum fence. The fence body is supported by the front rail, and a nylon tipped "foot" that rests on the table top - there is no attachment to the rear rail. A steel bar running in a tee slot in the front of the rail is cam locked to the face of rail to lock the fence position. The fence extrusion can be positioned on either side of the fence body, allowing left-of-blade cutting.

The fence extrusion can be mounted to the body in two ways. To accommodate this feature, two index lines are provided on the clear plastic scale cursor, with an icon to show which one applies -therefore, it is possible to read the wrong cursor line if one isn't paying attention…... :-( DAMHIKT...........!!The following photo shows the fence extrusion in the Low Fence Mode, (my favorite) providing a 1/2" high fence surface and allowing space for hand holding the workpiece without obstruction from the higher part of the fence.

This view shows the fence positioned in the High Fence Mode providing a 3 1/2" fence face.

The addition of an After Market Auxiliary Fence extrusion allows the use of feather boards or other hold down devices. However, the use of such devices does require the fence extrusion to be clamped down to the table or rear rail, which is easily accomplished.

Mounting of the Unifence proved to be challenging. The Unifence was designed to be attached to the front face of a cast iron table, which typically has a flange around the edges of the table. Bolts with heads inside the flange and nuts inside integral tee slots in the back face of the fence extrusion are used to secure the fence to the table. However, the Model R4511 has a solid granite table with no edge flanges. So I had to dream up an alternate mounting method.

This installation required the mounting of a new steel rail support angle to the front edge of the table, using the original hole pattern, which I transferred from the original fence rail - the cheapo transfer punch set from Harbor Freight worked like a champ for this application. I used 1/8" x 2" x 2" angle stock from Home Depot. In retrospect, I wish I had used 3/16" or even 1/4" thick stock, which would have made it more rigid. The thinner stock is adequate, however - sometimes bigger is better! In addition, I replaced the stock rear fence support angle with a 1/8" x 1 1/2" x 1 1/2" steel angle I had lying around the shop to provide support for a right hand table extension to fill the space between the fence rails outboard of the granite table.

To accommodate the radius between the rail angle legs, I fabricated a maple filler. The filler was attached to the rail extrusion with 1/4" machine screws and either speed nuts and hex nuts. The speed nuts were used to accommodate the large upper tee slot, which was designed for 3/8" hex nuts in a normal installation. I didn't have room for the large heads of 3/8" FH machine screws in the face of the filler.

This view shows the rail support angle, filler, and rail extrusion installed on the front of the granite table. Note that there is no channel between the table and the fence rail to collect debris - or lose pencils….

The Unifence rail extrusion was attached with 1/4" machine screws tapped into the bottom surface of the fence rail, as shown in this view. Altho the fence rail extending beyond the edge of the right hand granite table extension was unsupported, it is so rigid as to not pose a problem.

Since installing the Unifence, I have felt much more at home using the saw-kinda like putting on an old pair of slippers…........

Well, that's about it for this chapter. Stay tuned, there is lots more to come….....................

Click to expand...

paulnwa said:

Upgraded Rip Fence

For those who don't have the Ridgid Model R4511 or have never seen one, the stock fence is a T-square type - sort of a mini-Biesemeyer configuration, very loosely speaking. This configuration is somewhat similar to the Delta T-2, which a number of folks have purchased to replace the stock fence on this saw. It has a square tube front rail, bolted to a formed steel angle which is screwed to the front of the granite table top. For ease of shipping, the front rail is split in two pieces, with a plastic coupler fitting between the two halves. Like the Biesemeyer, the fence body straddles the rail and a cam lock mechanism pulls the body against the steel tube rail. This mechanism seems to lock the fence position quite well. The fence itself is a 2" square steel tube, which has a "hook" fitting on the rear end that catches underneath the rear angle rail.

There have been quite a number of folks who have found the original rip fence on the Model R4511 to meet their needs and expectations very well. And of course there have been a fair number of folks who have had difficulties with the fence - issues related to the two piece front rail, alignment front to back, excessive height off the table, etc. I didn't have any major issues with the fence except the excessive height off the table, altho I think the 2" square tube is too small to be useful for a lot of ripping applications on thicker/longer stock. In addition, I could not get used to the debris-catching space between the front rail tube and the rail support angle - it seemed like I was always losing a pencil in that space and it was always full of sawdust!

My biggest problem with the original fence was a historical one! I had been using a Delta Unifence for the last 20 years or so, and I just couldn't get comfortable using a difference fence. In addition to the "perceived deficiencies" mentioned above, I missed some of the features of the Unifence - especially the unique feature of the Unifence which allows the fence extrusion to be retracted to a position in front of the blade so it can be used as a stop block for uniform length cross cuts.

The Delta Unifence I purchased for use on the Model R4511 had a 30" rail, allowing a maximum cut of 30" to the right of the blade and 9" to the left. The total length of the front rail was about 60". Unfortunately, since I purchased the one for this project, it seems like the Unifence is either no longer made or is in very short supply. I suspect that since Delta bought Biesemeyer, they would rather sell only the Bies. - which is indeed an excellent fence, as many of you can probably attest.

The Unifence is a three-piece rip fence - an extruded aluminum front rail, a machined cast aluminum body, and an extruded "L"-shaped aluminum fence. The fence body is supported by the front rail, and a nylon tipped "foot" that rests on the table top - there is no attachment to the rear rail. A steel bar running in a tee slot in the front of the rail is cam locked to the face of rail to lock the fence position. The fence extrusion can be positioned on either side of the fence body, allowing left-of-blade cutting.

The fence extrusion can be mounted to the body in two ways. To accommodate this feature, two index lines are provided on the clear plastic scale cursor, with an icon to show which one applies -therefore, it is possible to read the wrong cursor line if one isn't paying attention…... :-( DAMHIKT...........!!The following photo shows the fence extrusion in the Low Fence Mode, (my favorite) providing a 1/2" high fence surface and allowing space for hand holding the workpiece without obstruction from the higher part of the fence.

This view shows the fence positioned in the High Fence Mode providing a 3 1/2" fence face.

The addition of an After Market Auxiliary Fence extrusion allows the use of feather boards or other hold down devices. However, the use of such devices does require the fence extrusion to be clamped down to the table or rear rail, which is easily accomplished.

Mounting of the Unifence proved to be challenging. The Unifence was designed to be attached to the front face of a cast iron table, which typically has a flange around the edges of the table. Bolts with heads inside the flange and nuts inside integral tee slots in the back face of the fence extrusion are used to secure the fence to the table. However, the Model R4511 has a solid granite table with no edge flanges. So I had to dream up an alternate mounting method.

This installation required the mounting of a new steel rail support angle to the front edge of the table, using the original hole pattern, which I transferred from the original fence rail - the cheapo transfer punch set from Harbor Freight worked like a champ for this application. I used 1/8" x 2" x 2" angle stock from Home Depot. In retrospect, I wish I had used 3/16" or even 1/4" thick stock, which would have made it more rigid. The thinner stock is adequate, however - sometimes bigger is better! In addition, I replaced the stock rear fence support angle with a 1/8" x 1 1/2" x 1 1/2" steel angle I had lying around the shop to provide support for a right hand table extension to fill the space between the fence rails outboard of the granite table.

To accommodate the radius between the rail angle legs, I fabricated a maple filler. The filler was attached to the rail extrusion with 1/4" machine screws and either speed nuts and hex nuts. The speed nuts were used to accommodate the large upper tee slot, which was designed for 3/8" hex nuts in a normal installation. I didn't have room for the large heads of 3/8" FH machine screws in the face of the filler.

This view shows the rail support angle, filler, and rail extrusion installed on the front of the granite table. Note that there is no channel between the table and the fence rail to collect debris - or lose pencils….

The Unifence rail extrusion was attached with 1/4" machine screws tapped into the bottom surface of the fence rail, as shown in this view. Altho the fence rail extending beyond the edge of the right hand granite table extension was unsupported, it is so rigid as to not pose a problem.

Since installing the Unifence, I have felt much more at home using the saw-kinda like putting on an old pair of slippers…........

Well, that's about it for this chapter. Stay tuned, there is lots more to come….....................

Click to expand...

paulnwa said:

Upgraded Rip Fence

For those who don't have the Ridgid Model R4511 or have never seen one, the stock fence is a T-square type - sort of a mini-Biesemeyer configuration, very loosely speaking. This configuration is somewhat similar to the Delta T-2, which a number of folks have purchased to replace the stock fence on this saw. It has a square tube front rail, bolted to a formed steel angle which is screwed to the front of the granite table top. For ease of shipping, the front rail is split in two pieces, with a plastic coupler fitting between the two halves. Like the Biesemeyer, the fence body straddles the rail and a cam lock mechanism pulls the body against the steel tube rail. This mechanism seems to lock the fence position quite well. The fence itself is a 2" square steel tube, which has a "hook" fitting on the rear end that catches underneath the rear angle rail.

There have been quite a number of folks who have found the original rip fence on the Model R4511 to meet their needs and expectations very well. And of course there have been a fair number of folks who have had difficulties with the fence - issues related to the two piece front rail, alignment front to back, excessive height off the table, etc. I didn't have any major issues with the fence except the excessive height off the table, altho I think the 2" square tube is too small to be useful for a lot of ripping applications on thicker/longer stock. In addition, I could not get used to the debris-catching space between the front rail tube and the rail support angle - it seemed like I was always losing a pencil in that space and it was always full of sawdust!

My biggest problem with the original fence was a historical one! I had been using a Delta Unifence for the last 20 years or so, and I just couldn't get comfortable using a difference fence. In addition to the "perceived deficiencies" mentioned above, I missed some of the features of the Unifence - especially the unique feature of the Unifence which allows the fence extrusion to be retracted to a position in front of the blade so it can be used as a stop block for uniform length cross cuts.

The Delta Unifence I purchased for use on the Model R4511 had a 30" rail, allowing a maximum cut of 30" to the right of the blade and 9" to the left. The total length of the front rail was about 60". Unfortunately, since I purchased the one for this project, it seems like the Unifence is either no longer made or is in very short supply. I suspect that since Delta bought Biesemeyer, they would rather sell only the Bies. - which is indeed an excellent fence, as many of you can probably attest.

The Unifence is a three-piece rip fence - an extruded aluminum front rail, a machined cast aluminum body, and an extruded "L"-shaped aluminum fence. The fence body is supported by the front rail, and a nylon tipped "foot" that rests on the table top - there is no attachment to the rear rail. A steel bar running in a tee slot in the front of the rail is cam locked to the face of rail to lock the fence position. The fence extrusion can be positioned on either side of the fence body, allowing left-of-blade cutting.

The fence extrusion can be mounted to the body in two ways. To accommodate this feature, two index lines are provided on the clear plastic scale cursor, with an icon to show which one applies -therefore, it is possible to read the wrong cursor line if one isn't paying attention…... :-( DAMHIKT...........!!The following photo shows the fence extrusion in the Low Fence Mode, (my favorite) providing a 1/2" high fence surface and allowing space for hand holding the workpiece without obstruction from the higher part of the fence.

This view shows the fence positioned in the High Fence Mode providing a 3 1/2" fence face.

The addition of an After Market Auxiliary Fence extrusion allows the use of feather boards or other hold down devices. However, the use of such devices does require the fence extrusion to be clamped down to the table or rear rail, which is easily accomplished.

Mounting of the Unifence proved to be challenging. The Unifence was designed to be attached to the front face of a cast iron table, which typically has a flange around the edges of the table. Bolts with heads inside the flange and nuts inside integral tee slots in the back face of the fence extrusion are used to secure the fence to the table. However, the Model R4511 has a solid granite table with no edge flanges. So I had to dream up an alternate mounting method.

This installation required the mounting of a new steel rail support angle to the front edge of the table, using the original hole pattern, which I transferred from the original fence rail - the cheapo transfer punch set from Harbor Freight worked like a champ for this application. I used 1/8" x 2" x 2" angle stock from Home Depot. In retrospect, I wish I had used 3/16" or even 1/4" thick stock, which would have made it more rigid. The thinner stock is adequate, however - sometimes bigger is better! In addition, I replaced the stock rear fence support angle with a 1/8" x 1 1/2" x 1 1/2" steel angle I had lying around the shop to provide support for a right hand table extension to fill the space between the fence rails outboard of the granite table.

To accommodate the radius between the rail angle legs, I fabricated a maple filler. The filler was attached to the rail extrusion with 1/4" machine screws and either speed nuts and hex nuts. The speed nuts were used to accommodate the large upper tee slot, which was designed for 3/8" hex nuts in a normal installation. I didn't have room for the large heads of 3/8" FH machine screws in the face of the filler.

This view shows the rail support angle, filler, and rail extrusion installed on the front of the granite table. Note that there is no channel between the table and the fence rail to collect debris - or lose pencils….

The Unifence rail extrusion was attached with 1/4" machine screws tapped into the bottom surface of the fence rail, as shown in this view. Altho the fence rail extending beyond the edge of the right hand granite table extension was unsupported, it is so rigid as to not pose a problem.

Since installing the Unifence, I have felt much more at home using the saw-kinda like putting on an old pair of slippers…........

Well, that's about it for this chapter. Stay tuned, there is lots more to come….....................

Click to expand...

paulnwa said:

Rear Outfeed Table

One of the useful additions to a table saw is a Rear Outfeed Table. In my old shop I made a folding rear outfeed table for my General 350 cabinet saw that was something like 24" deep and 48" wide. Altho it worked well, it took up a lot of space (which I had available in that shop), but it made a great assembly table.

However, in my new small, narrow, shop, I had to rethink a design suitable for the space I had available. I knew a folding design probably wouldn't work because I didn't have room to move the saw out from the wall and still get around behind it to fold/unfold such a design. So I opted for a fixed table design.

Since the new Delta Unifence I installed on my Model R4511 hangs out over the back of the granite saw table about 12 inches, I decided to use this space for the Rear Outfeed Table. I was willing to give away a little width space in the shop for the convenience of the outfeed table. It is surprising how useful such a narrow table can be in supporting most of the normal rip cuts I do for my projects. The saw can be rotated away from the wall for longer cuts and those that require an auxiliary outfeed stand. Also the space under this table works well for my back mounted DC duct and flex hose.

This short, simple, outfeed table is 13" deep x 20" wide and constructed of Baltic Birch plywood with a laminate top. The miter gage clearance slots extend clear to the back of the table - I have found that blind ended slots tend to collect debris and are hard to clean. You sharp-eyed folks will notice that the table tilts down slightly at the back. That was intentional and can be corrected by adjustment screws which I have not yet installed in the back mounting. So far I haven't found the tilt to be a problem. The front edge of the outfeed table is slightly below the saw table so that pieces don't catch coming off the saw.

The Rear Outfeed Table is bolted to the back of the saw table and is supported by a gusseted bracket. Any adjustment screws could be threaded into the spreader bar between the gussets. The spreader bar just rests against the back panel of the saw cabinet.

I know this hasn't been a very exciting chapter in this blog, but I included it as part of the photo documentation of this project. The next section should prove to be more interesting…..........Stay tuned!

Click to expand...

paulnwa said:

Rear Outfeed Table

One of the useful additions to a table saw is a Rear Outfeed Table. In my old shop I made a folding rear outfeed table for my General 350 cabinet saw that was something like 24" deep and 48" wide. Altho it worked well, it took up a lot of space (which I had available in that shop), but it made a great assembly table.

However, in my new small, narrow, shop, I had to rethink a design suitable for the space I had available. I knew a folding design probably wouldn't work because I didn't have room to move the saw out from the wall and still get around behind it to fold/unfold such a design. So I opted for a fixed table design.

Since the new Delta Unifence I installed on my Model R4511 hangs out over the back of the granite saw table about 12 inches, I decided to use this space for the Rear Outfeed Table. I was willing to give away a little width space in the shop for the convenience of the outfeed table. It is surprising how useful such a narrow table can be in supporting most of the normal rip cuts I do for my projects. The saw can be rotated away from the wall for longer cuts and those that require an auxiliary outfeed stand. Also the space under this table works well for my back mounted DC duct and flex hose.

This short, simple, outfeed table is 13" deep x 20" wide and constructed of Baltic Birch plywood with a laminate top. The miter gage clearance slots extend clear to the back of the table - I have found that blind ended slots tend to collect debris and are hard to clean. You sharp-eyed folks will notice that the table tilts down slightly at the back. That was intentional and can be corrected by adjustment screws which I have not yet installed in the back mounting. So far I haven't found the tilt to be a problem. The front edge of the outfeed table is slightly below the saw table so that pieces don't catch coming off the saw.

The Rear Outfeed Table is bolted to the back of the saw table and is supported by a gusseted bracket. Any adjustment screws could be threaded into the spreader bar between the gussets. The spreader bar just rests against the back panel of the saw cabinet.

I know this hasn't been a very exciting chapter in this blog, but I included it as part of the photo documentation of this project. The next section should prove to be more interesting…..........Stay tuned!

Click to expand...