Miter Gauge vs Sled on Table Saw

[cputnam]

Is there a real-world difference in accuracy between a quality miter gauge and a well-tuned sled? If there is a difference in accuracy, is that difference noticeable in the real world? As in, does it impact the quality of the end product without your having to mitigate things with additional operations?

[Joel H.]

Is there a real-world difference in accuracy between a quality miter gauge and a well-tuned sled?  If there is a difference in accuracy, is that difference noticeable in the real world?  As in, does it impact the quality of the end product without your having to mitigate things with additional operations?

I don't know about accuracy, but my sled is much more stable.  I only have the miter gauge that came with my table saw and it isn't as good as the after-market ones.  My sled (with 2 runners) is absolutely solid.  Using the 5-cut method it is right-on over 12" - so it's as accurate as it can be.

Joel

[lincmercguy]

You will not regret building yourself a side. I regret not doing it sooner. I used to use my miter saw and flip wide boards over for a second cut, or use a circular saw and clean up with a router. A sled is faster and better at keeping things in square. I added a t-track and a couple of flip-stops to make it easy to repeat a cut for multiple pieces. I also made mine wide enough to handle cabinet sides.

[R Clark]

I have the factory OEM miter gauge (Sawstop), an Incra 1000SE, and a large cross cut sled.

I'm glad to have all of them; they all have their strengths.

The answer to your question, IMHO, is a resounding, "It depends."

I have an extended fence attached to the factory miter gauge.  I use it exclusively to the right of the blade (saw is left-tilt).  That fence is precut with various bevel angles that I match up to the blade when I need a particular cut.  With the saw powered OFF, if the blade can pass through the precut angle with out binding, then I'm reasonably assured of getting the correct angle. 

My Incra 1000SE is set up for exclusive use on the left side of the blade.  I use it most to get accurate cross cuts on pieces like rails and stiles.  I also use the miter function, though if I'm doing something like a picture frame, getting miters to close up on all four corners is a chore.  The thing about the Incra, though, is that I can cut an infinite number of angles across the range of the miter gauge.

My sled is a pure 90 cross cut sled.  I can clamp fixtures to it easily.  I use it for shaving and nibbling away at mating surfaces when I have to be fussy about precision.  My sled is my go-to device when high accuracy is needed.  I use it to fit drawer fronts, for example.  Since it's wide, it does a good job of supporting the work piece so I can focus on the point where the material meets the blade.

I have a finger joint sled based on a design I saw in Fine Woodworking.  I've used it on a couple of projects now, and it's "da bomb" for that task.  Very repeatable success that I did not get from finger joint jigs clamped to my factory miter gauge.  

My next sled is going to be a 45 degree cross cut sled for accurate miters.

[fredhargis]

If both are quality, well tuned products, I doubt there's any accuracy difference. I agree with Wxman, it's good to have both. I only recently added a crosscut sled, and this was a specialty type (specific to small boxes) and it really works well. But until now I've got along without one....but there are instances when the sled is more handy/easier/whatever in terms of functionality.