MRDucks2
Member
Since I am in the process of remodeling a house for us to move into and installing some DIY cabinets (Klear Vue from Menards) I bought the Kreg XL Straight Edge Guide.
XL means you have enough pieces to cut 8' instead of just 4'. I have two extruded aluminum guides at my other house I have had for years. While they have met the purpose, they are two 4' + pieces and thin enough you have to be wary of where the edge is.
The aluminum guides on the Kreg unit are much thicker (3/8") and will provide a solid edge for saws or routers. The XL kit come with two 28" and two 24" rails so I like that they can be pieced together for a length convenient to work with.
The clamping mechanism it fixed on one end and moveable on the other. Both pieces are spring loaded and you simply hold the middle of the free clamp and pull the handle, moving the entire clamp towards you to tighten. To remove, you hold the board and pull the handle, releasing the clamp.
It also has two plastic rods you can set for the saw base plate to blade distance for a quick reference. You push them slightly back before beginning your cut to prevent inadvertently cutting into them, but they have stops to immediately set a cut line reference for the next cut.
I think I paid about $90 for the XL set at Menards, the 4' set was about half that.
The cut line guides are handy, but think of them like you do bushings. They will get you close but you should still measure to verify.
Because the clamping mechanism is spring loaded on both ends, they feel a little wonky to me. It doesn't take much strength to engage them, but if you lean into it a little, they engage better. When locked, however, however, they do not necessarily lock square to the board on both ends sometimes moving a little. Maybe it is my not doing it quite right. It is easy to correct by lightly tapping the rail on the end to shift a sixteenth if needed, but not sure if this is a good thing or not.
In the end, they are better than my old, long thin ones. They set up quickly and are easy to adjust. I'm would probably buy them again but feel they are a better value in the $65-$75 range vs $90. Perhaps there are knock offs at a better price point, but any shortcuts would render them to sloppy to use without auxiliary clamps, in my opinion.
I like them, but expect there are better options likely at a higher price. Still cheaper than a plunge saw.
Hopefully helpful to someone.
XL means you have enough pieces to cut 8' instead of just 4'. I have two extruded aluminum guides at my other house I have had for years. While they have met the purpose, they are two 4' + pieces and thin enough you have to be wary of where the edge is.
The aluminum guides on the Kreg unit are much thicker (3/8") and will provide a solid edge for saws or routers. The XL kit come with two 28" and two 24" rails so I like that they can be pieced together for a length convenient to work with.
The clamping mechanism it fixed on one end and moveable on the other. Both pieces are spring loaded and you simply hold the middle of the free clamp and pull the handle, moving the entire clamp towards you to tighten. To remove, you hold the board and pull the handle, releasing the clamp.
It also has two plastic rods you can set for the saw base plate to blade distance for a quick reference. You push them slightly back before beginning your cut to prevent inadvertently cutting into them, but they have stops to immediately set a cut line reference for the next cut.
I think I paid about $90 for the XL set at Menards, the 4' set was about half that.
The cut line guides are handy, but think of them like you do bushings. They will get you close but you should still measure to verify.
Because the clamping mechanism is spring loaded on both ends, they feel a little wonky to me. It doesn't take much strength to engage them, but if you lean into it a little, they engage better. When locked, however, however, they do not necessarily lock square to the board on both ends sometimes moving a little. Maybe it is my not doing it quite right. It is easy to correct by lightly tapping the rail on the end to shift a sixteenth if needed, but not sure if this is a good thing or not.
In the end, they are better than my old, long thin ones. They set up quickly and are easy to adjust. I'm would probably buy them again but feel they are a better value in the $65-$75 range vs $90. Perhaps there are knock offs at a better price point, but any shortcuts would render them to sloppy to use without auxiliary clamps, in my opinion.
I like them, but expect there are better options likely at a higher price. Still cheaper than a plunge saw.
Hopefully helpful to someone.
