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adjustment isn't horrible but it is really easy to accidentally knock it out of alignment if you bump into it with something heavy. The legs flex pretty easily, so if you have an uneven floor like me, bumping the legs can move the foot onto a high/low spot without you realizing it. This is mainly an issue with the table structure itself. The fence is really easy to adjust if needed (or if you take it off and want to put it back on later). Overall I'm happy with it. It isn't nearly as nice as a proper European slider, but it is much more affordable and still great for breaking down sheet goods. I find myself using it to crosscut lumber to size more often than using my miter saw now. You can mount the table in several different configurations front to back in relation to the side of the table to give different clearances for the table. I started off with the fence at the back side of the table (towards the back of the blade) with the table all the way forward for maximum cut capacity, but I found that to be less than ideal for everything besides sheet goods. I now use the fence on the front of the table so it feels more like a crosscut sled, and I find this works best for me. I still have enough room to cut across a full sheet of plywood in this configuration. Overall I like it and would purchase again.

This is exactly what I was hoping to hear, I appreciate the time you took to reply! I really need a better way of consistently and accurately breaking down sheet goods, by myself. I think, short of getting a euro slider or CNC down the road, this is my best option for now. Does the slider attach to the TS rails at all, or is it just bolted to the cast iron table top? I plan to switch out my stock fence to the Harvey Big Eye but that will mean different rails.

So this is actually an interesting question. The table frame only bolts into the cast iron saw table itself, BUT it can interfere with even the stock rail. According to Sawstop's installation instructions (www.sawstop.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/10/Manual_Large_Sliding_Table.pdf, page 13), you need to cut the rail on ICS models ONLY if it extends past the left extension wing (if you are installing the table with the wing attached). It turns out that this information is not correct. There is a weird, large tab that sticks out of the right underside on the sliding table frame that collided with the rail when trying to install the frame, even though my rail did not extend past the wing (I guess at some point, earlier models had even longer rails, but mine is from January 2023). This tab has a hole in it, and looks like it should be used to fasten something. I ended up cutting about 2 inches off of the end of my rail in order to provide clearance for this weird tab piece. Turns out, that tab doesn't do anything at all! It would have been easier to just cut the tab off of the sliding table frame and not mess with my rail in the first place. I believe that Sawstop just reused most of the sliding table design from when they bought out the company that made the Excalibur sliding table, so maybe this tab did something on the original model. After a while in this configuration, I ended up removing the left cast iron wing on my saw to get the sliding table as close to the blade as possible anyway. So this meant that I had to cut even more off of my rail to accommodate the sliding table frame (probably ended up taking around 10 inches or so off in total). Back to your question: If you want to mount the sliding table with the left wing attached, then you should be totally fine with custom rails as long as they don't stick out past the wing + you cut off that useless tab on the sliding table frame if it hits your rail. If you want to remove the wing to get the slider closer to the blade, then you will likely need to cut off some amount of your new rail.

@@LongNeckWoodworking Thank you for all of this! It's very helpful. I'm thinking about how I use my saw in general and how I'd like to be able to use it ideally. I have a pro cabinet from SawStop as well, set up with an Incra fence system and crosscut sled. After using the Incra stuff for a while now I have a better feel for what I want my ICS to do. I build cabinets and furniture so the slider will primarily help me with breaking down sheet goods, and supporting heavy timber. My thought is to keep the left wing attached and also get the new SawStop miter gauge which looks fantastic, and use the miter gauge for smaller crosscutting, in which case the left wing will be helpful. Did you have any issues breaking down plywood when you had your left wing installed or was it mostly helpful to get the slider fence closer to the blade for crosscutting lumber?

I didn't have major issues, but the more cast iron there is between the blade and sliding table, the more friction there is/opportunity for the sheet to slide around. This was mainly an issue with the fence in the back position, as my sheets could get stuck on the cast iron while the sliding table continued to move forward. I found that the coating on the sliding table was a lot more slippery than the cast iron. The table isn't deep enough to support the entire sheet/provide any clamping surface (other than something you can mount in the fence), so it wasn't an ideal situation. It was also difficult to reach over the sheet and try to hold it tight against the fence, while the table is moving forward away from you (hope that makes sense). I think if you had the fence in the front position, like I do now, then it wouldn't be a problem at all to keep the wing attached. The fence on the slider is long enough to push all the way to the blade, even with the wing attached.

ehehehe

I find that the euro guard feels safer overall because it's always covering the cutter head, unless you are jointing tall pieces/edge jointing. If your hand slips forward while pushing heavy pieces, you will smack the fixed guard and it will stop your hand. With a pork chop guard, it would be possible for your hand to push it out of the way and get into the danger zone. The only downside I've found is that it can be tricky to get consistent pressure during the full pass, as you have to take your hand/push block off of the wood as you transition over the euro guard and into the outfeed side.

Good question. Rubio Monocoat is a modified linseed oil that only absorbs a small amount into the grain, performing a molecular bond rather than a film layer. Since only a small amount gets absorbed, the remaining liquid will easily get pushed around with a scraper until it can find raw open grain. By spreading first with a hard scraper, you minimize wasted oil. If you were to use a rag initially, much of the oil would get soaked up into the rag and be wasted. The white scotchbrite pad is good for further pushing the oil into the grain, and it doesn't wick up much oil, but it still doesn't spread quite as well as a scraper does. Rubio Monocoat is an expensive product, so always try to minimize waste as much as possible. A clean rag, however, is necessary for wiping off the remaining residue after the oil has time to sit. Being a linseed oil, it can spontaneously combust as it cures inside dirty rags, so always spread out used rags onto a non-flammable surface to dry when you are done.

indeed. A little goes a long way