Shopsmith Forums

I continue to be amazed at the stability and accuracy of the Incra 5000 sled (thanks Jack Wilson). Today I was salvaging plywood from my canoe forms. Only the bases were straight. Big pieces of 3/4 ply that it seemed a shame to toss. Sled handled them great and turned them into perfect rectangles. Wish I'd measured before I started but after cutting off the curved parts the resulting panels were as large as 21 x 20.

I'm not sure what the advertised cross cut capacity is but I set up afterwards and think you could get 25 inches. The front of the miter bar has a T-nut so it won't pop out even with most of the bar and sled hanging off the back. For my use I was able to go without any additional support beneath the sled, but as shown in the photos below it is a simple matter to set up a roller stand to give I feed support if you are maxing out the cross cut capacity of the sled. Sorry for the double photo. I posted form my iPhone and I'm not sure what happened.

Algale, thanks, now I know to do with my free HR magnetic dish!!!!

ERLover wrote:Algale, thanks, now I know to do with my free HR magnetic dish!!!!

Yup. Lives there. Holds the chuck just fine. That's a hard drive magnet holding the key and allen wrench.

I agree with you on the 5000. I have had one for about ten years and love it. I ultimately wore out the 1/2" red base and mounted it on 3/4" melamine. It is amazingly accurate for jobs that require accurate repeatability. One item I found useful is to mount it on a traditional style sled with two miter bars instead of the one.
Paul

Al,

Glad you are getting some use out of it. I just never used it after I got my track saw.

Jack

Hi, I know this is an older thread, but just wondering what advantages this might have over making a shop built panel sled, and buying the Miterset for angled work? The price of a Miterset would be led than half the cost of an Incra Miter and sled.

Ed

ecom1 wrote:Hi, I know this is an older thread, but just wondering what advantages this might have over making a shop built panel sled, and buying the Miterset for angled work? The price of a Miterset would be led than half the cost of an Incra Miter and sled.

Ed

Hi Ed,

The biggest difference between this and virtually every home-built panel sleds is the extremely accurate built-in miter gauge which allows cutting panels or other large stock at precise, repeatable angles rather than at just 90 degrees. The fence is also very robust, extendable up to 60" and has an easily adjusted stop.

That said, I think this is an extremely expensive sled if you buy it new (mine was gifted to me by a very generous forum member) and a determined craftsman could probably build a very good and accurate panel sled with most of its functionality for a fraction of the cost.

Best,

Al

Thanks Al. I'm trying to decide which makes the most sense for me, and to define the limitations on both, so I can hopefully avoid buying both For my purposes at this time, I rarely have the need to cut large panels at anything but square, so I struggle with the additional cost of the big sled. My thought was to use the miter set for angles on narrower stock (frames, segments), and on the rare occasion where I need an irregularly cut panel, either use a circ saw and guide, or make a jig using a cut made using the Miterset to set up the angle. If there are more advantages than cutting large panels for the sled vs Miterset, then maybe its worth considering they extra $$ - I haven't used one, so difficult for me to say.

Algale, I don’t even know if you’re still active on this forum, but I hope you’re still actively making sawdust. Just wanted to let you know that this post and these photos, even years later, really helped me out today. I bought a new Incra 5000 for my Mark VII, but they don’t sell the SS variety anymore so I’m having to improvise. Wish me luck!

Still here! Still making sawdust -- although less regularly -- and still using the Incra 5000. Good luck with yours!