Posted: Fri Jul 15, 2011 11:13 am
Two counterpoints:jimsjinx wrote:During the "Bed from Hell" project, I had to make 12 perfect dead nuts accurate tennons to fit my mortises. I tend to cut them first, then pare the holes to fit snug. I have never found a miter guage that was dead on. It, for me, depends on the way one pushes the work THROUGH the cut. I always keep the pressure on the miter guage in the same direction, ie, towards or away from the blade, as I push the material through the cut. I have seen aplenty of guys complain that thier guage,"never cuts straight". While observing them making a cut, I could see them concentrating more on the foreward movement of the work, more than keeping the guage pushed tight in the miter slot, right or left. Then, when you check the cut, it wanders off the intended cut a tiny bit. For a tennon, this could mean a gap at the top or bottom of the assembled joint. I used the Ridgid table saw to cut them, using the incuded miter guage, and the tennons were right on. jimsjinx
Using the V120 you do not need to push the miter right/left to maintain accuracy. The miter bar fits snuggly in the miter track.
The face of the miter is as accurate as I believe is fair to demand of any miter gauge designed for us in wood working. If you need it positioned differently than the preset notches, you can shim it to your owe level of perfection ( I don't think that will be necessary ).
When doing cross cuts that need to be precise (on longer than about 12" pieces) I install a fence onto the miter fence and "CLAMP" the stock being cut. I no longer have the strength in my fingers to hold the stock firm enough to achieve the precise accuracy that you seem to seek.
I cut the mortises first and then cut tenons to fit.
Same when mortising - I use clamps.