I finally got around to mounting a Wixey digital height gauge on my new (old) Delta RC-51 20" planer. The expanded 2:1 analog scale on the RC-51 is the best I have ever seen but I wanted the precision of the Wixey.
Installation of this unit on a movable bed planer is not as straightforward as that on lunchbox or other moving cutterhead planers. My installation might be a bit difficult for some since it involved drilling and tapping six holes to mount the parts, however, it was still a fairly simple installation. Basically I drilled and tapped holes and used machine bolts/screws to attach a length of 1" X 1" steel angle to the bed, to attach the mounting bracket to the angle, and to attach a small bracket I fabricated that anchors the readout to the frame. I really like Wixey's new angled readout which is much easier to see and read. The only unavoidable down-sides to this installation are that it sticks out from the front and above the top of the planer, and limits the thickness of cut to 6" which should not be a problem.
Here are some pics:
Installation of this unit on a movable bed planer is not as straightforward as that on lunchbox or other moving cutterhead planers. My installation might be a bit difficult for some since it involved drilling and tapping six holes to mount the parts, however, it was still a fairly simple installation. Basically I drilled and tapped holes and used machine bolts/screws to attach a length of 1" X 1" steel angle to the bed, to attach the mounting bracket to the angle, and to attach a small bracket I fabricated that anchors the readout to the frame. I really like Wixey's new angled readout which is much easier to see and read. The only unavoidable down-sides to this installation are that it sticks out from the front and above the top of the planer, and limits the thickness of cut to 6" which should not be a problem.
Here are some pics:
