Jessem Master Slide Modification

[mike66 [OP]]

So having recently acquired one of the coveted Jessem Master Slides and now installed on my GI contractor saw, first I will say how much I love this thing and makes cross cutting so much easier. It is indeed very accurate . The one problem I am having (not sure if it’s me or a design issue on the fence) is a bit of tear out on each cut because of the metal fence not being tight to the blade and the material not supported on both sides of the blade. My first question, Am I doing something wrong? If not, of the many users of this out there, has anybody added an auxiliary fence to the stock fence to make a zero clearance cut (I would have to modify the stop block as well I guess)? Anybody see any problems with this. Looking for ideas to make it better. Thanks in advance.
Mike

[Randy in Calgary]

I did it. It works. The Tee tracks make it easy to attach. The stop block can be reconfigured to accommodate an extra 3/4” thickness.
I need to replace mine actually because I accidentally cut off the zero clearance extension when I had the blade raised all the way up.

[Roy in Thunder Bay]

In situations where I wished to avoid tear out, I used scrap pieces of 1/4” plywood as a backer to the piece being cut, this was not fixed to the fence but was a bit shorter than the cut dimension such that it did not butt to the stop. Numerous cuts could be made with one backer, moving it forward slightly with each cut. Roy

[Randy in Calgary]

In situations where I wished to avoid tear out, I used scrap pieces of 1/4” plywood as a backer to the piece being cut, this was not fixed to the fence but was a bit shorter than the cut dimension such that it did not butt to the stop. Numerous cuts could be made with one backer, moving it forward slightly with each cut. Roy

Indeed. That’s what I have been doing while procrastinating about replacing my sacrificial fence

[Randy in Calgary]

OK your post got me off my a$$.

[mike66 [OP]]

Thanks Randy and Roy. That is exactly what I was looking for. Didn’t realize you could adjust the stop block and that was my biggest concern.

Mike

[Brian @ Muir]

If you get a lot of tear out check your blade for sharpness. A backer is a good idea.

Brian