INCRA Miter1000/HD Miter Gauge

This thing is great. Love the weight and the construction. Fit my miter slot perfectly after adjusting. Haven’t used it a lot yet but getting ready to cut about 100 pieces at different angles I’m sure it will do great.

By way of introduction I am a fairly serious woodworker and have been for 40 years or so. Projects range from furniture, home finishing, cabinetry and several mixed hardwood rocking horses and art pieces. I am not extravagant with purchasing tools but I do pay more for quality when it makes sense. This usually pays back in the long run.This past year I helped my wife select a few items that "might" end up being a Christmas gift. Among them were this INCRA 1000HD & the Kreg KMS series gauges. I was comfortable with both and, in fact, bought the Kreg for our son-in-law a few years ago. Santa ended up putting the INCRA on his sled and I couldn't be happier. I knew from research and others testimonials that it would be a pretty high quality product. I certainly was not disappointed. All of the machining and finishing is first rate. The set-up instructions are pretty good and the finished product seems to deliver good, accurate cuts. I believe the most impressive thing about the INCRA 1000HD is the apparent thought that went into design and use of this tool. The slots in the extrusions are deliberate and some fill more than one purpose. The hardware package gets you going, and then they threw in a few parts for future upgrades or repairs.An example of their accommodation for upgrade is the ability to add a wooden or MDF face plate. The manual suggests addition of such a fence to reduce tear-out. But on an adjustable-length miter fence I was reluctant to use one because it would be time consuming to put it on and then take it off to allow length adjustment of the basic fence. However, they provide plate nuts, screws, washers and a basic dimensioned drawing making fabrication and installation of the face plate easy; and thanks to the overall design of the fence it is very easy to put on and take off. - a minute or so. They also provide extra slot bushings to accommodate various widths of table saw slots, or to be used as spares. And they provide all of the Allen wrenches and a Torx-type screwdriver needed to set the fence up and install/remove the face plate mentioned above (I drilled a hole in the handle of this screwdriver, added a length of leather shoelace and hung in on my saw for easy access). They even provide an extra length of the plastic ruler scale strip used to make adjustments in case the ones they installed are damaged.Expect set-up to take some time - a couple of hours. First you fit the bar to the slot in your table saw using three sets of built in bushings and an Allen wrench. This can take some time to get good, smooth travel without wiggle. Squaring the fence to your blade is straight forward but a little fiddly. But the end product is a miter gage that should require very little, if any, readjustment in the future.Disadvantages - Can't think of any. I also can't believe I went this long with the old stock miter gauges. This is more than head and shoulders above those.

The INCRA Miter1000/HD Miter Gauge box was well packed inside the standard Amazon box with plenty of packing material, and arrived in pristine condition. One thing that immediately struck me was the attention to detail that was taken with regards to ensuring that all pieces arrived undamaged and unscratched. Even the threads on the large black knob had a little cardboard sleeve to protect the threads in transit.Inspection of the components revealed that all parts were present and accounted for. Indeed, INCRA even includes extra expansion mechanisms and instructions for T-tracks or miter gauge slots slightly wider or narrower than the standard 3/4". Bravo, INCRA.I arrayed all of the parts in preparation for assembly. Initial impressions of the INCRA Miter1000/HD Miter Gauge is that it is BEEFY. This is a solidly-made, precise, well-engineered product that leaves little to be desired in terms of heft. INCRA has included hardware and instructions to build and attach a 3/4" sacrificial fence (note people's answer to my "Ask a Question", above, was instrumental in my decision to purchase this product). The instructions explain how to attach the sacrificial fence, as well as how to adjust the ShopStop so that it functions fully.The full-color glossy instructions (and a couple of good quality photocopied pages included with the INCRA Miter1000/HD Miter Gauge were very easy to follow and comprehensive. The INCRA Miter1000/HD Miter Gauge was very easy to assemble and adjust to the particulars of my Bosch 4100-09 table saw.The INCRA Miter1000/HD Miter Gauge fits perfectly in the T-track of my Bosch 4100-09 10-Inch Worksite Table Saw with Gravity-Rise Stand. A few minor adjustments of the integral expansion mechanisms removed what little side-to-side play there was.Once the INCRA Miter1000/HD Miter Gauge was assembled and in place on my table saw I proceeded to square it up. Surprisingly, every angle tested dead-on square.When I was placing my order for my INCRA Miter1000/HD Miter Gauge I was certain I would have to also order some UHMW tape to ensure that the INCRA Miter1000/HD Miter Gauge slid easily across my table saw. Imagine my pleasant surprise when I turned over the fence only to find that INCRA had already added a strip of UHMW tape to the bottom.Placing the the INCRA Miter1000/HD Miter Gauge back into the table saw, I tested the action. The whole assembly glided with ease with no sticking or side-to-side play.Comparing the INCRA Miter1000/HD Miter Gauge to the Bosch 4100-09 miter gauge, the Bosch miter gauge might as well be two sticks that are Scotch-taped together. The accuracy and precision of the INCRA Miter1000/HD Miter Gauge is leaps and bounds beyond the Bosch miter gauge. I was apprehensive to even try cross cuts with the Bosch miter gauge, but now I have supreme confidence in the trueness of the cut and my safety while using the INCRA Miter1000/HD Miter Gauge.INCRA stands out as an excellent example of superb American engineering. I am unable to give this product 10 stars, so the standard 5 stars will have to do.Thank you, INCRA. Keep engineering quality products.