I've been using my tablesaw for a few years now but when it comes time to do a repeat operation that requires a particular size, well that can be a challenge. Once I read about some people using a digital readout on their table saw's, I thought that would help me get that exact same size time-and-again.

Now there are a few different companies that sell these units but in the end, I bought this Wixey digital readout or DRO, because it had some good reviews. And once it's installed I'll let you know if it works good or not.
 

DRO Installation

The first thing you do is join the two sections of aluminum track together using four bolts that go into an oddly shaped nut that slide inside of the track underneath. Then the whole 60" track needs to be fastened to your tablesaw fence support with four universal clamps. I placed the track on my fence support using some baling wire to hold it temporarily (arrows). Then I used some squeeze clamps to hold the track in place.
 

Here's another look at the track, which will also hold the electronics. I'm getting ready to drill and tap some 1/4-28 threads that will hold the track to my fence support, but that's not what the instructions called for. Wixey sent some self-tapping screws along with a drill bit to attach the track with, but I didn't like it because the amount of thread engagement would be minimum compared to what I'm doing. However, not everyone owns or knows how to cut threads in metal so I get why the company uses this method.
 

Here you can see the four bolts that hold the two track sections together along with two of the universal clamps. Depending on the type of tablesaw that you have, you have the option of installing the four universal clamps and the track in one of two ways. But the goal is to make sure the track clears the fence clamp on whatever saw that you have.
 

I used a center-punch to mark my hole locations and then followed that up with a smaller drill (3/32) to make sure I had the exact location. Using a smaller drill first ensures that your drill stays in the center-punch dimple, then you step up to the final size drill. Doing it this way, the larger drill should follow the smaller hole keeping everything in the right spot.
 

Once I had all the holes threaded, it was time to align the track with the fence support, making sure they were parallel to each other. I used a small steel block that I made many years ago that had a nice smooth finish on it for this. Then I used my calipers to measure in a few different spots making sure the track was the same distance from the fence support and then tightened down the four bolts.
 

What you see here is a sensor strip that attaches to the aluminum track. The sensor strip has an adhesive backing which is how it attaches to the aluminum track. Now this sensor strip is what the DRO reads while you're moving your fence, delivering information to the digital readout. 
 

A close-up of the sensor strip. That piece of steel with the four pins is what you align the two strips with when your attaching them. Each sensor strips has two small holes at either end, which fits this alignment gage. Once you have the first strip in place, you place the alignment gage into that strip, then you place the second strip onto this gage and continue to attach your strip.
 

To help make sure everything stayed in alignment, I removed a small amount of adhesive backing at a time. Then I would peel a small amount more and press it into place. Notice the adhesive backing hanging down in the center below. I worked slowly to make sure I had this sensor strip in the right place the first time because that adhesive is very sticky.