Another track saw option

[LelandCrooks]

Ian, did you put in the 'big' order of Festool stuff to become an authorized dealer? I am still wanting parallel guides if you have some.

No, sorry. I couldn't get enough interest drummed up to get anywhere near my first order amount.

Also, the terms and conditions are so tight and the margins so thin (on the track saw) that I didn't go for it. Of everything I sell, Festool would have been the most expensive and lowest margin item! Not worth it for me.

No money in tools. None. From the bottom to the top priced stuff.

[Harley]

No money in tools. None. From the bottom to the top priced stuff.

All the money made in tools is from shipping them to countries other than the USA ( like here for instance )where they hike the prices up to where they like. Decent tools that is.

[hifibob]

I too just joined the Festool fun as well and also returned the Grizzly saw after immediately noticing the wobble.. Def love the accuracy of it that's for sure but I don't ever think it will replace my panel and table saws..

[40 Hz]

Woot recently had the Scheppach plunge saw on sale with two 25" tracks for only $119. The price was so good that I figured it was worth the gamble and bought one for myself and one for my father. As far as I can tell, the Scheppach, WoodStar, and Grizzly are the same saw, with just different track lengths and accessories.

I am not a professional woodworked and can't justify the FesTools cost, and was looking for something at a more reasonable price. I see that some builders in this thread had problems with bent tracks and wobble on these models, but I had none of that. As far as I an concerned, I got a great deal.

I didn't really "need" this saw, but I am really glad I got it. I have two table saws, a couple of saw sleds, and lots of jigs that already, and they do everything I need. When contemplating new tool purchases I always look for things that will boost speed or accuracy, and this saw does both of those for me. I have had a regular router for 25 years, but when I finally bought a plunge router I couldn't believe the amount of options and convenience I afforded me. I am getting the same feeling from this saw.

[Rick Lee]

Wish I had seen that deal! I have to be reasonable too and that's one I wouldn't have passed up.

[Ian Westwood]

So uhhh, my Festool TS-55 saw just went up in smoke!!

I felt like it was loosing power. Then it stopped. Then went backwards a little bit. Then burning smell.

The dealer is being really good about it though. They are shipping me their demo saw while mine is away for repair. Should be with me tomorrow.

[fastslappy]

Ian ,
can you update us on that Festool ? now that you had it for some months now ?
It's going on wish list for Christmas as projects are off till next spring ATM
I really like my Festool DF 500Q Dominio Takes joinery to a whole new place

[Ian Westwood]

Ian ,can you update us on that Festool ? now that you had it for some months now ?

Well, I really like it. It took me aaaagggees to justify the cost but during my first build it felt a little bit like I was cheating!

I have a 106 inch guide rail. Accuracy is awesome. I can rip 8 x 4 feet sheets without feeling like I'm about to have an accident (I have hardly used my table saw since the arrival of the track saw)... and if I mess a cut up slightly I can easily take 1/32" off one end of an 8 feet sheet no problem. Like I have said before, I have to keep my pencils way sharper!!

Everything is calibrated in mm so you have to convert on the fly.

Dust collection is amazing. I use a Home depot shop vac with no problems (although I have to turn it on & off manually - but I can live with that for $600). I had to wrap some tape around the saws outlet to make it fit right.

The splinter guard works really well.... and in many situations you don't even need it. It cuts really clean but you can only use the splinter guard for 90 degree cuts. I have often forgotten to put the splinter guard back on after an angle cut... but have never been pissed at the quality as a result. It does really well.

Angle cuts are a pleasure to do. There is no guess work. They made it so all you have to do is line up the guide rail with your pencil marks and no matter what angle you choose the pencil marks are always aced. This was quite the revelation.

A neighbor came round recently and had me trim an inch off a couple off doors. He was really surprised how clean the cuts were.

One thing it is really good at is plunging. I have really got my access panels dialed in. Another thing it excels at is trimming panel 7 of a T60. I now laugh in the face of this risky cut!!

The blades cost something like $70 which is steep... but they are pretty good blades to be fair.... and they can be sharpened 3 times. So the dealer tells me. I'm yet to figure that out.

I have the Parallel Guide Extension Set which works really well for repetitive cuts.... but the design is kind of retarded in some ways and brilliant in others... The "cam" clamps that set the stops are kind of shitty. I had to adjust one of them with sand paper to make it lock right. Now it's OK. It is difficult to use for 1/2" material... (too thin) and as a result the guides can wonder during a cut. I have a system down now to deal with this short coming and all is well. There are various YouTube videos of various solutions out there.

The max width that the guides can deal with is 650mm or just over 25.5 inches. This means you can repeatedly cut 4 x 8 sheets down the middle perfectly but for 5 x 5 you have to use your trusty pencil and take your time if you want to cut down the middle

It has "ample" power. I pretty much always run it at full speed and it can bog down a little on 45 degree cuts on 1/2 inch Baltic birch. If you run it at slower speeds it maintains better.

I find it makes better cuts if you get on with it. The only time it burns an edge is if you hesitate or let it sit still, or go too slow. The riving knife works really well and is (on the quiet) an engineering marvel.

Mine has always sounded kind of rough. It is loud... (I always use hearing protection) but the dealer mentioned this when he delivered it... personally... to my house!! I'd be interested if other people think theirs sound rough in any way?

I was bummed today when it broke - but they have a 3 year warranty and the dealer is shipping their demo saw to me tomorrow while mine is being repaired.

That's service! I guess you get what you pay for.

When the Grizzly saw was dead on arrival (guide rail unusable) I had to prove yourself and argue... There were 3 days of phone tagging... speaking to multiple people who didn't know anything about my case... I ended up posting a YouTube video before I got any kind of service. And even then I ended up loosing some shipping $$ on the shitty grizzly saw.

When my Festool went wrong, the first thing "the guy who took my original order did" was to ship a demo tool to me over night. Then he gave me options on how they could fix it.

Frankly; fuck the Grizzly guys. They are doing it wrong. I hope they read this.

[fastslappy]

I'm in ! I will get this saw before I start anymore builds & I have 5 speakers & 2 THT to do .
I was wondering about the plunge , looks like you got it down , as I have a Rockwell VersaCut I was using for plunging the openings for the horns ,it's just NOT precise as you can't see exactly where it's gonna hit & has a nasty kickback if not at 90 degree right when you start down ,Fubaring the material as well. i had to under cut & then router everything square P I A
THANX for the follow-up

Hey you can order a Bosch hose that fits all the Festool openings & then it fits a standard reducer for a shopvac on the other end
a link for Ya !
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0000A ... UTF8&psc=1

makes it so you don't have that thick hose at the saw I use one on my Fesstool Domino Big savings

Again ThanX
Mike

[67baja]

Mine has always sounded kind of rough. It is loud... (I always use hearing protection) but the dealer mentioned this when he delivered it... personally... to my house!! I'd be interested if other people think theirs sound rough in any way?

Yes, my Festool also sounds a bit "rough" or "gravelly", but I thought it was just my saw since I bought it used.

Ian, so do you recommend the parallel guide set? I have been debating buying one for the last year, but have not pulled the trigger.

[Ian Westwood]

Yes, my Festool also sounds a bit "rough" or "gravelly"

That's a perfect way to describe the sound... like there is sand in the bearings

I guess this is normal then

do you recommend the parallel guide set? I have been debating buying one for the last year, but have not pulled the trigger.

<inhales through teeth> Very difficult to call. I suppose it depends on how much you might use them.

They do a good job but like all things Festool they are eye warteringly expensive...

Festool could do with changing the design a bit (IMHO) ... so you can deal with thinner material without employing work arounds. For our 1/2 inch BB sheets they are not a silver bullet, You still have to concentrate to keep the guide from moving unless you have figured out how to make it sit flat. I screw batons onto my bench to raise the work piece and use clamps on the stops to prevent them from falling off. It really is a retarded piece of design work. Its like they got 90% of the way there and then stopped considering how people are actually going to use them. Shame on you Festool!

I saw one dude on youtube had screwed little aluminum triangles to his stops to stop them falling off the work piece. I think this is the best solution I have seen to date... using clamps is a bit ghetto.

3/4 inch (ish and above) material? No problem. Works perfectly.

It is great to see all your panels line up perfectly during a build. They take a while to set up each time but you get the time back as soon as you actually start cutting multiple sheets.

As I mentioned above, the max supported width is 650 mm which is circa 25.5 inches... if you are cutting 26 inch panels for a 27 inch wide T60 you can still use them OK, but you have to use a ruler to set the stops. The scale stops at 650 mm but you can still go another 3/4 inch or so.

If you do go for it - I'd go all in and also get the extensions that allow you to cut thinner material. These are awkward to use but once you figure them out they do a great job of keeping things accurately repetitive.

In summary? Yes I do recommend them... I'm glad I have them... but they are not essential. And you can get a lot of other tools for the money.

[fastslappy]

TS 55 or TS 75 any draw backs on the bigger unit ? it's not much more in cost
I did notice that it's not able to get real close to a wall on the bigger unit
the big one has more power but a lower top speed

[Ian Westwood]

TS 55 or TS 75 any draw backs on the bigger unit ? it's not much more in cost
I did notice that it's not able to get real close to a wall on the bigger unit
the big one has more power but a lower top speed

I have no personal experience with the 75 but I have read some people saying on various forums they regret getting the bigger one because they can only just handle the extra weight with one hand.

[fastslappy]

yes ,
I was thinking that as well when I seen the weight differences ,I'd guess that the trick of a track saw is the ease at which you can do cuts fast , simple , minimal effort & set-up. the only real advantage would be the added thickness on the 75 that it would cut . but building speaker cabinets that's not needed at all
but size & weight make for it being unwieldy with control issues , that added bulk would not be a good thing on thin stock .
a case of bigger is not always better
Wow watching the vids on angle &/or bevel cut looks awesome , that's my biggest headache to do right the 1st time .

[Ian Westwood]

You might be interested in this post!

Save a little bit of money if you don't mind reconditioned / used tools.