Regarding the fine adjustment wheel slipping: If you look in the installation manual for the Big Eye fence, you will find that there is an adjustment you can make to bring the wheel closer to the rail which will give it more traction, thus reducing or eliminating the slippage.
I purchased the harvey 52" 4 hp saw about 4 months ago, wish they would have had the big eye fence system bundled with it at that time, it looks very nice but don't think I will be springing the 1100 for it anytime soon or ever.
@@stlwoodworkingI own the Harvey 4 hp table saw, Harvey alpha 15" band saw and their G700 dust processor, they make great stuff. The one thing I can't stand is how they drastically change the price of everything on their site almost daily. I waited a month or two before purchasing as I was waiting for the price to get to rock bottom. Sometimes the table saw would be 3700 dollars and when I bought it it was 2500, same with the band saw and the dust processor, huge price swings almost daily. I don't understand their pricing model and don't much care for it. :)
Wondering if you are happy with the stock fence? I just ordered a Harvey table saw and they offered to sell me the Big Eye for an additional $845 minus the stock fence. I'm trying to decide if it's really worth the upgrade. Thanks.
@@RossWilliamsDC I have not even opened up the crate yet. I just today finally opened up the dust processor and band saw. I purchased a new house with a pole barn and decided to remodel the pole barn before setting everything up as it was old and needed some work. I am just now starting to get equipment in place, will be unboxing the table saw soon. :)
Always appreciate the sincerity of your content. Waiting to give a genuine review holds value for sure. On a positive note- you can always use a “3rd party rubber band” to replace your “fine adjust” knob when it wears out 🤦♂️
Thanks for the tip about the JessEm stock guides; had that exact question as I’m considering this fence. One question, though, where did you get the rail that the guides are sitting in on your hardwood? Thanks!
thank you! it's becoming increasingly rare to see honest reviews on you tube which are not sponsored by the company. Ive had my Harvey alpha with the stock "master rip" fence for about 3 years. my biggest problem with that fence was that the square tube wasn't flat or straight. i spent a lot of time sanding it down but still need to shim the high low fence to get it straight. do you see any issues like that with the big eye?
I definitely always do honest reviews on anything even if I have a company sending me a tool it is very clear that I will be honest no matter what. No I have had absolutely no issues with the big eye. I am very happy with it everything I stated in the video still holds true.
I have a couple questions and concerns. First it seems to me that the front guide rail design is going to be excellent at catching and collecting dust and debris that will find its way into the bearings. Second, the reason why beisemeyer and the old unifence were so popular were that they removed the rear guide rails from earlier designs that allowed cabinet makers to build tables tight to the saw table. This new design eliminates that advantage and creates a new space for dust and debris to collect. What has been your actual experience?
I do not do cabinets, so I am not sure what you mean on that part but as far as collecting dust and such, yes it does collect there. For me that is not an issue because I like to keep a clean shop, so I never have more than one day without a vacuum touching everything. As far as the tape, not at all. it is very secure and when you do move it to the low it has to be on purpose.
Seems overly complicated. A fence should be simple, stable, and versatile. I’m sick of all these fences with proprietary t slots. I’m sticking with my VSC Tools fence with an 80/20 extrusion. I got some of their linear bearings and was able to make an awesome tenoning jig as well.
Just ordered mine yesterday. I’m coming from the incra system which I really liked but was limited by the 32” cut capacity. Do you find you have enough reach with your stock guides after getting past the high/low fence?
Yes. If you will just use a Half inch max piece of hardwood like I did and use the bolts it works fine. I have cur as thin as 1/2 in and as thick as 2in so far with no issues.
What about jigs that would typically ride on the fence, like a tenon jig or a spline jig (plywood DIY type). Would you be able to make something that would work with this fence?
Yeah for sure. I think with that track that goes all the way down all you would have to do is make that the securing point like I did with the stock guides.
can someone give me a TLDR on the high / low setting? it has me a bit befuddled edit: nevermind, i had to watcht the harvey video 4 times and RTFM to understand. i diddnt realize it was a horizontal shift not vertical