# Has Anybody Tried To Marry A Wixey To An Incra



## Jerry Bowen (Jun 25, 2011)

I'm wondering if anybody has installed a Wixey Table Saw Reat Out to an Incra TS LS system.

One of my friends on the forum added the Wixey WR700 to his saw and just loves it, but he does not have an Incra LS TS positioner on his saw, so the installation was pretty straight forward for him. Besides that, he is a natural at such things and can understand directions and sketches very well, which is one my weaknesses. 

There does not seem to be any information about doing the installation of the Wixey on the Incra rails on the web so I'm asking for help here on the forum.

Now the first thing one would ask is why in the world would I want the digital read out when the Incra is so very very good as is. Well, the reason, in my case anyway is that the read out is so easy for me to read compared to having to use a magnifier to read the scale on the Incra due to my vision issue. I'm sorry that I keep bringing this vision issue up on the forum. I will try to keep it to a minimum for the sake of those that read my posts and threads from now on.


Jerry B.

J


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## TwoSkies57 (Feb 23, 2009)

Jerry..

I do not think you'd have much trouble mounting the rails for the Wixey as long as the brackets are compatible with the Incra rails. I checked the Wixey site trying to find specifics on the brackets and came up empty. If the factory brackets are not compatible, I'm certain you could easily fabricate ones that would work without much effort. The readout uses a magnet to mount to the fence. So if the factory mounting hardware from Wixey is not compatible, you should easily fabricate one that would work. 

A email into Wixey should answer all of your questions regarding brackets. Surprisingly, they do not provide a phone number??? 

[email protected]

Given your vision issues, this surely would be one sweet setup!!!!!


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## Jerry Bowen (Jun 25, 2011)

TwoSkies57 said:


> Jerry..
> 
> I do not think you'd have much trouble mounting the rails for the Wixey as long as the brackets are compatible with the Incra rails. I checked the Wixey site trying to find specifics on the brackets and came up empty. If the factory brackets are not compatible, I'm certain you could easily fabricate ones that would work without much effort. The readout uses a magnet to mount to the fence. So if the factory mounting hardware from Wixey is not compatible, you should easily fabricate one that would work.
> 
> ...



I'm still piddeling around with how I'm going to install the Wixey rail to the Incra rail and it's looking promising. See photos of what I have discovered. I think all I need now is finding out how to secure one rail to the other so the the Wixey rail will stay in it's position and not slide in the slot on the Incra rail. That should be fairly simple to do. Then it will just be a matter of attaching the DRO part to the end of the fence, that should not be very hard to do either.

Mr. Wixey has implied that he would like photos of such an installation as so far he had not gotten any. Few people would think about adding the Wixey to the LS system, few people have problems seeing the cursor and scale on the Incra I guess.

More updates will be forth coming. See these first photos.

Jerry B.


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## TwoSkies57 (Feb 23, 2009)

Exactly what I was thinking Jerry.. This should be doable...


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## Jerry Bowen (Jun 25, 2011)

TwoSkies57 said:


> Exactly what I was thinking Jerry.. This should be doable...


I'm a tad at a disadvantage in the print on the directions is to small for me to read, so I'm relying on my tendency to experiment, a good riddle for now, but I'll get help from my friend Dick Willis who encouraged me to have a look at the the Wixey, Dick knows everything and just loves to be of help, much like yourself Bill.

I did scan the directions into the computer and can blow them up, but I'm not good at understanding pictures and directions for some reason.

Jerry


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## TwoSkies57 (Feb 23, 2009)

At some point my ole Craftsman saw is gonna have to be replaced. She's just wearing out. My saw is the exact saw you have Jerry, but i suspect mine gets used a good bit more 
When the time comes for a replacement, a INCRA is definitely part of the costing out of the purchase. Along with a Wixey readout. 
My saw sits in my shop in such a way that were a Incra LS installed, I'd be running around my entire shop every time I wanted to make an adjustment. I could make the adjustment easy enough, but I could not read the positioner without having to run around the place. The Wixey will give me the accuracy I like, right up front.


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## jw2170 (Jan 24, 2008)

_



Has Anybody Tried To Marry A Wixey To An Incra

Click to expand...

_This may be legal in TN.....just kidding.

Jerry, some of your posts really make us sit back and think.....

I would just use digital calipers for the initial set up and then rely on the repeatability of the Incra for additional cuts.......


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## Willway (Aug 16, 2012)

I hate to say it but..... my setup was surely not* straight forward* It was actually a real b****! We had to fabricate our own brackets twice. The first time we were to close to the bottom of the locking lever. So it was back to Lowe's for more aluminum angle, and then we got her done. 

I don't know how we ever made accurate cuts without it. There are no test cuts any more, that thing is just dead on every time...............................................I LOVE THAT THING!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Dick


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## Jerry Bowen (Jun 25, 2011)

Willway said:


> I hate to say it but..... my setup was surely not* straight forward* It was actually a real b****! We had to fabricate our own brackets twice. The first time we were to close to the bottom of the locking lever. So it was back to Lowe's for more aluminum angle, and then we got her done.
> 
> I don't know how we ever made accurate cuts without it. There are no test cuts any more, that thing is just dead on every time...............................................I LOVE THAT THING!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
> 
> Dick



I started from the "GET GO" with the Incra TS LS system so just sort of took the accuracy of the system for granted I suppose. Never had try to use a saw without it. The issue of having to pick up a 10X loupe to read the scale and the cursor is a PITA and when Dick told me about the Wixey it sure sounded like a good idea, but the installation of the darn thing has about caused me to bunch the entire concept. 

Dick is extremely good at doing what he said that he and his son had to do in order to install DRO on his saw. I'm not good at such things, not my cup of tea so to speak, and I'm about to ash can the whole idea for that reason, but I'll probably cool down in a day or two and come back to it. 

Sure wish that the Incra cursor and the scale were easier for me to see. I sure do hate to keep bringing up this vision issue in so many of my posts, but it is the fly in the ointment for me, man wouldn't I be a whiz without it, that along with having the mechanical ability of most of the other members of this forum,
I'd be so arrogant that nobody could stand me, so, I guess that the issue keeps me humble maybe.

Jerry B.


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## TwoSkies57 (Feb 23, 2009)

Where there is a will, there is a way Jerry!

I was laying in bed last night thinking about this. Although perhaps not a practical solution to the problem, but something to consider. Mounting of the Wixey to the positioner itself?
You would be limited to the length of the positioner itself, but how often do you make rips wider then that?


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## Jerry Bowen (Jun 25, 2011)

TwoSkies57 said:


> Where there is a will, there is a way Jerry!
> 
> I was laying in bed last night thinking about this. Although perhaps not a practical solution to the problem, but something to consider. Mounting of the Wixey to the positioner itself?
> You would be limited to the length of the positioner itself, but how often do you make rips wider then that?


Bill,
Your thought is exactly why I see no reason to have the maximum distance between the blade and the fence to be imited to the length of only 30", but I'm still chewing on it.

Jerry


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## CharleyL (Feb 28, 2009)

Jerry,

I added the Wixey DRO to my Delta Unisaw with a 50" Unifence way back when Wixey first offered the DRO for the table saws. Wixey sells extension pieces, so you can make the DRO operate for the full width of your saw's table top if you want to. You can even cut them off if the last piece is too long, but be careful not to try to join a cut end to the rest of the track. Only cut off the piece that is too long. 

To put the DRO rails on the aluminum rail extrusion of my Unifence. I actually installed the Wixey extrusions upside down and spaced them below the Unifence extrusion using 3" long pieces of 1/2" square steel tubing. These pieces of tubing were drilled in 3 places for 10-24 bolts and attached at right angles to the underside of the aluminum fence rail every 16". I drilled and tapped holes in the bottom of the fence rail to mount them. They stick out from the rail enough to allow the Wixey extrusions to clear the front casting of the Unifence when the extrusions are attached (upside down) to the 1/2" square pipe. Since the Unifence front casting is aluminum, I cut end pieces from the Wixey supplied magnetic target (steel strip) and attached them to both sides of the Unifence casting so the Wixey DRO could magnetically attach on either side of the Unifence casting. I performed all of the mounting operations of the Wixey extrusions BEFORE applying the green PCB strips in the extrusions so as not to damage them during the installation. These got installed right side up in the upside down extrusions. I bought an additional DRO extrusion and PCB from Wixey so the Wixey DRO can be used anywhere along the front of my Unisaw and 50" Unifence extension table. 

You likely don't have an installation problem anything like the one that I had, but I'm convinced that it can still be done. You will quite likely need to fabricate some kind of brackets to mount the Wixey extrusions like I did so they and the DRO module will clear the moving portions of your fence, but it can be done. You really won't need a digital fence like the Incra when you have the DRO attached to your saw. Did you keep your old table saw fence? Maybe removing the Incra fence and replacing it with the older fence and the Wixey DRO would be the better choice if the older fence worked well. I've been very happy with the Wixey DRO on my Unisaw. I can set it to a dimension, make a cut, move away from that setting and then return the fence to the same setting using the DRO and repeat the cut with an accuracy of a few thousandths of an inch between the cuts. That's way better than most woodworking requires. The only thing that I don't like about the Wixey table saw DRO is that it requires batteries, but they last for months, so this isn't so bad. 

Charley


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## Jerry Bowen (Jun 25, 2011)

Due to not feeling well for several days I didn't get back to the project of installing the Wixey on the TS with the Incra LS. Got back to it yesterday and almost have it the way I want it. Due to the fact that the way my saw is set up, I only have about 30" to the right of the blade as I said earlier in this thread. Consequently only one of the the two rails that come with the Wixey is going to be used on my set up. 

Two brackets were installed on the bottom of the front Incra rail that permitted the Wixey rail to be positioned on the outside edge of the Incra rail. After the installation of the rail I wanted to test the set up. It was getting late so I have installed the strap that links the Incra fence to the DRO unit so I just "jury rigged" it to make a test run. I calibrated the two systems and found, to my delight, that they work together perfectly. One test was to set the fence at three inches using the Incra cursor and scale then and only then did I look at the DOR, it read 3.000. 

Now I need to properly install the link between the fence and the Wixey read out. The plan is such. There is a piece of metal that comes with the Wixey that is about six inches long, one inch wide and perhaps an eighth inch thick, it is soft and relatively easy to bend. The plan is to bend a 90 degree angle at one end of the this piece of metal. The bend should be about two inches from one end of this piece of metal. This two inch part will be attached to the bottom of the fence with two supplied screws. The position of the part being installed is that its' edge, the 1/8" thick part will point at 90 degrees to the rail so that the wide flat part of the piece will contact the magnet on the side of the Wixey so that the unit can be pushed and/or pulled due to the magnet along the rail.

After the part is installed, I'll send some photos in case anybody would like to add or marry a Wixey DRO to their Incra TS LS. 

Remember the only possible purpose for this marriage is due to my vision issue. The Incra does not need any help, it is an absolutely top drawer tool just as it is as anybody familiar with it already is well aware of.

If a person does not have a good system already on their saw, I recommend having a serious look at the Wixey WR700 DRO unit.

Jerry


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## Jerry Bowen (Jun 25, 2011)

*Photos*

Here are the photos of the final installation of the Wixey.


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## CharleyL (Feb 28, 2009)

It looks good Jerry. 

The only thing that I would have done differently would be to bend that strip that Wixey supplied for magnetically attaching the DRO to the fence into a U shape and attached the center of the U to your fence positioned like an upside down U. If done right, you can have the ability to position the DRO on either side of the fence. I did this for my Unifence so that I can use the DRO with the fence located on either side of the Unifence casting. It would sometimes be under my work if I didn't do this. I'm not really familiar with your fence, so this may or may not work for you.

Charley


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## Jerry Bowen (Jun 25, 2011)

CharleyL said:


> It looks good Jerry.
> 
> The only thing that I would have done differently would be to bend that strip that Wixey supplied for magnetically attaching the DRO to the fence into a U shape and attached the center of the U to your fence positioned like an upside down U. If done right, you can have the ability to position the DRO on either side of the fence. I did this for my Unifence so that I can use the DRO with the fence located on either side of the Unifence casting. It would sometimes be under my work if I didn't do this. I'm not really familiar with your fence, so this may or may not work for you.
> 
> Charley


Actually I think that the way I did the installation is the only way that I could maximize the travel between the blade and far right position of the fence with only one of the two rails way my only option. I never need the fence to be set to the left of the blade as the Incra will not allow it. Thanks for the positive comment though.

Jerry B.


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## Jerry Bowen (Jun 25, 2011)

The early photos of the Wixey rail setting in the slot on the side of the Incra rail should be ignored. The rail was ultimately installed using the supplied brackets. These bracket were attached to the bottom of the Incra rail just to be be clear.

When calibrated, the Wixey DRO reads exactly the same as the scale on the Incra LS system.

Jerry


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## TwoSkies57 (Feb 23, 2009)

were gonna make a wood worker out of you yet Jerry 

good job on working thru this. Simple and straight forward. This ought to catch Mr. Wixey's eye!!


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