INCRA 1000HD
Miter Gauge Reviews and Advice
A miter gauge is an essential tablesaw accessory which lets you make safe, accurate crosscuts on boards and small panels. It’s also essential for making accurate joinery cuts like 45 degree miters when making a picture frame.
Unfortunately, the miter gauges supplied with most new tablesaws are usually very basic items that fail in three main areas – they have play in the miter-slot fit that can’t be adjusted, a head that’s hard to read and set, and a fence that’s too short and not sturdy enough to support your work. All these faults combine to produce inaccurate cuts.
Luckily there are a number of high-quality aftermarket miter gauges that address these issues. We looked at six fully equipped gauges and tested them for accuracy, ease of adjustment, quality of cut and value for money . The miter gauges tested are the Incra 1000 HD, Incra 1000 SE, Incra 3000 SE, Kreg KMS7102, Osborne EB-3 and Woodhaven 4911K.
Best Value Miter Gauge - Kreg KMS7102
Review: Kreg KMS7102 Miter Gauge
Kreg KMS7102 Miter Gauge Review
- Easy-to-use head quickly registers common angles via a brass pin
- Nylon adjustment screws keep the gauge tracking well in the miter slot.
- Vernier scale allows adjustments down to 1/10 degree
- All aluminum construction
- Curved stop's small contact area with the fence allows angled work to slide behind the fence.
Best Overall Miter Gauge - Incra 3000 SE
Review: Incra 3000 SE Miter Gauge
Incra 3000 SE Miter Gauge Review
- Secondary scale with detents at half a degree, which gives 364 laser cut positive V-stops in 1/2° increments allowing for incredibly precise setups
- Incra's patented GlideLOCK Miter Bar with 8 expansion points for a perfect 'no-slop' fit in the miter slot
- Dual flip fence stops with micro-adjust facility for accurate repeatable cuts
- Heavy-duty telescoping fence from 27" to 49" (the longest on the market) supports long workpieces
- Interlocking grooves in the fence and stop to ensure even the sharp edge of mitered work will not push behind the stop
- The downside of the extra degree of adjustment is that it takes longer to adjust
More Top-Quality Miter Gauges To Consider
Review: Incra 1000 HD Miter Gauge
Incra 1000 HD Miter Gauge Review
- 180 positive stops for pin-point accuracy at every degree (with special stops at +/-22.5°), plus a micro-adjustable vernier scale for fine-tuning to 1/10°
- Interlocking grooves in the fence and stop to ensure even the sharp edge of mitered work will not push behind the stop
- Incra's patented GlideLOCK Miter Bar with 8 expansion points for a perfect 'no-slop' fit in the miter slot
- Telescoping IncraLOCK fence expands from 18" to 31" and features a T-slot for adding a zero clearance sub-fence
- Nothing we could find
Review: Incra 1000 SE Miter Gauge
Incra 1000 SE Miter Gauge Review
- Precision angle indexing teeth are laser cut in solid steel to lock in 41 positive angle stops in 5° increments over a full 180° range, with special stops at 22-1/2° and 67-1/2°
- Incra's patented GlideLOCK Miter Bar with 6 expansion points for a perfect 'no-slop' fit in the miter slot
- Sturdy Special Edition Incra-Lock™ fence telescopes from 18" to a full 31" length
- Flip Shop Stop has patented saw tooth rack system that instantly controls the length of your cut. Dual flip arms, equipped with three sliding stop rods, operate independently or in tandem for one, two or three simultaneious stop positioner setups. Made of solid aluminum with hardened anodized surface
- Lacks the ease of fine adjustment, down to individual degree (although stainless steel vernier cursor delivers an incredible 1/10° resolution between fixed steps)
Review: Osborne EB-3 Miter Gauge
Osborne EB-3 Miter Gauge Review
- Index on the telescoping arm allows you to set specific angles with 20 preset/auto-locating settings: one at each 5° increment and at 22 1/2°
- Three expansion slots in the guide bar provide a perfect fit with your table saw and adjustments are made from the top side for ease of fitting
- New telescopic fence that offers support and repeat-ability up to 42'' from the blade
- If you want to add an auxiliary sacrificial fence you have to drill through the aluminum extrusion fence
Review: Woodhaven 4911K Miter Gauge
Woodhaven 4911K Miter Gauge Review
- Head has a vernier scale for setting angles down to 1/10º and a screw-in brass detent pin giving precise stops at 0, 10, 15, 22-1/2, 30, 45, 60, and 90º
- The fence includes as standard a pre-made sacrificial fence, a micro-adjust flip-stop, and a standard flip-stop
- Precision machined nickel plated steel miter bar has five adjustable nylon set screws for a perfect fit in the miter slot (also supplied with a spare set)
- Extremely solid construction
- Screw-in brass detent pin slows down adjustments (but you're only talking seconds)
What makes a Great Miter Gauge?
A miter gauge has three main parts that must work well together to ensure accuracy: a bar, a head, and a fence. The bar must slide in the slot without play, the head should offer a means of setting the gauge easily and accurately to a desired angle, and the fence should support the material firmly and provide a mounting place for stops or a rule.
Miter Bar
The miter bar keeps the gauge on track—if the miter bar that guides the gauge doesn’t fit in the tablesaw’s miter slot, any pressure placed on the gauge while cutting will throw it out of line with the sawblade. This gives you inaccurate angles and joints that fit poorly. To remedy this, most gauges feature a way to adjust the fit of the bar so that it slides smoothly in the track. A gauge that can’t be adjusted will make imprecise cuts.
Miter Gauge Head
The head ensures accurate angles—the head is the heart of the gauge, the key to accurate square or angled cuts. The scale must be precise and easy to read. Positive stops, or detents, at common angles are a plus. Adjustments should be quick and easy to make, while solid enough to avoid being bumped from a setting in use. Because the head is where you hold the gauge as you push stock through the blade, it should also have a handle that is comfortable and easy to grasp.
Miter Gauge Fence
A sturdy fence that’s versatile—fences are a necessary component of a quality aftermarket gauge, both for safety and for increased accuracy and repeatability. Fences support the stock during the cut, so they should be solid and not slippery, to ensure the stock doesn’t drift. Some gauges have telescoping fences that support a longer piece beyond the table’s edge. The fence also should be easy to adjust, since its position is ever-changing in relation to the blade as different angles are set. All the gauges tested have extruded aluminum fences, a big plus because they allow you to mount an adjustable flip-stop.
The flipstop is useful for repeat cutting and minimizing drift, and it can be flipped out of the way when not needed. The stop should be solid and fit the fence face tightly so it works even on pointed, angled board ends. A micro-adjustable stop is a plus because it enables you to fine-tune the setup. Another desirable feature is a rule mounted to the fence to locate the stop precisely.
Video: Incra Miter Gauges
Incra make some of the best, feature-loaded miter gauges on the market.
Video: Tuning Your Miter Gauge
Once you’ve bought a high-quality miter gauge, the key to cutting accurate miters is to set it up properly in the first place. Here’s how:
The miter gauge used in the video is the Incra 1000 HD
Recommended Resources
