DRO on K3 Hammer Cross Cut Fence

I have had this idea kicking around for a fair while and as I have a few days between jobs I thought I would have a go at trying to build a proof of concept and see if it could be done using the cheap DRO's available on Ebay. The big gotcha in all this is the loss of about 90mm on the digital slide as that is the minimum distance that can be set on the OE fence if the factory stops are used. The fence end is only 40mm from the blade but the stop on the flip stop is 90mm. The procedure I used to calibrate is set the CC fence to a measurement and with it locked adjust the whole fence until you get a cut matching the set measurement and set the zero stop on the fence. When that is set cut the length of link rod less the length of the adjuster, put the read head close to the end of the scale and zero the DRO. Then move the DRO to read the same measurement you set on the CC fence and mechanically join them. You can fine tune the DRO measurement using the screw adjuster. This obviously loses some of the read head length but I can't think of another way to do it and 90mm is the minimum that the CC fence can be set to.

This is as I said only a test before buying a long DRO, I did not want to cut the length of cord as this DRO is going on my drill press eventually and similarly I did not cut any fasteners to length either. The DRO scale assembly sits on a length of aluminium flat as shown in the photos. Some hot glue was employed as a temporary fastener on some parts as well. In a permanent installation I would shorten the cord between the scale and the read head to tidy it up. With a DRO on the outrigger CC fence a parallel positioner for ripping on the sliding table can be set up using both fences but not many would have both fences. I bought my saw without an outrigger so it came only with the rear fence and when I bought the outrigger a few years later it too came with a CC fence. I am still thinking about how to put a DRO on the outrigger CC fence to use it as a parallel positioner.

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For some really good videos on Sliders I recommend watching Sam Blasko. He is a Minimax rep in the US and does some really Innovative stuff. His method for squaring the fence to the blade is simply the simpilist and best. YouTube

Steve also does some good video, this one on the F&F Jig YouTube