Someone talk me out of a Kapex

[Rick Contonio]

So, I'm thinking a new miter saw may be in my future. I have an old 8" Hitachi that has served me well, but I find I'm wanting something larger and more precise. I have no doubt the Kapex is a great saw, but at 2-3 times the cost of a Bosch or DeWalt?

The saw will stay in my shop and be used for furniture and personal items. I won't move it around or use it to make a living.

[Andrew Pitonyak]

Kapex really shines in doing finish quality miter and compound miter cuts; complex molding/millwork installs. It is really liked for on site work because it is easy to move (light). Arguably, you would do things on site!

I like it because it does a pretty good job with dust collection. Most people say that the primary advantages are portability, which you do not need, cut quality, and dust reduction.

I see more people complain about the Bosch gear having little issues (say with accuracy) than Festool people. With Festool you have a 30 day trial period in general, but, if you are thinking about that, try to purchase locally so it is easier to return if you desire.

Finally, I do not see where you live, but if you want to try my Kapex here in Columbus Ohio, let me know.

[Chris Hachet]

No, I will not try to talk you out of a Kapex. Going to be doing the PB and J thing for lunches soon as I love the Festool tools I already have and want more.

[John Goodin]

Get a Bosch glider and take the leftover and put it towards a Domino. There, I talked you out of a Kapex but figured a way for you to spend more money.

[John TenEyck]

+1 on the Bosch. It's big and heavy which is of no consequence to you. It cuts great, which is, and costs way less than a Kapex.

Or, find yourself an old Dewalt or similar RAS and have a saw that can run circles around any miter saw. And you'll spend less than even the Bosch.

John

[Tom M King]

Home Depot has this one in stores for $249 if dollars matter: http://www.homedepot.com/p/DEWALT-15...S779/206541015

[Rich Engelhardt]

I have a .357 magnum.
I can hand load that mini cannon to some pretty nuclear levels (its' a Ruger Blackhawk).

Try as I might though, I'll never make that .357 Magnum a .35 Remington.
Ain't going to happen.

A Kapex is a wonderful tool, but, try as it might, it will never be a radial arm saw.
Ain't going to happen.

Now in another corner of the world - I can go out and buy a Ruger SP101 - another very robust 5 shot pocket gun.
I can load it to some pretty rock em sock em levels & slip it in my coat pocket and have it with me where ever I go.
(assuming all legalities of concealed carry are observed).

Try as it might though, that Marlin 336 Lever action rifle, in .35 Remington ain't going into anyone's pocket!

For the un-gun folks.
The .357 magnum is a handgun cartridge and the .35 Remington is a rifle cartridge.
They both shoot the same sized bullet, but, the rifle bullet travels roughly twice as fast.



Or - run to the store and take a Kapex and pull it out to full extension. Notice that it has some side to side play.....
Granted. not a lot, but, it still has it....

[Andrew Pitonyak]

Try as it might though, that Marlin 336 Lever action rifle, in .35 Remington ain't going into anyone's pocket!

Maybe you just need a larger pocket :-)

[Martin Wasner]

I won't move it around or use it to make a living.

I was just watching a used Omga on IRS Auctions. Too far for me to drive, but it went for about $800 in Massachusetts. If it had been closer I would've snatched it up for that kind of money. Ten times the saw the Kapex could ever hope to be. If you're not going to be moving it, its a much higher quality chop saw. The 12" isn't made anymore which is a bummer, but the last ones were like $3500, that's twice a Kapex in cost, but it's still a better value. I've got one that is used daily in a cabinetshop, it's currently our only cutoff saw, it was made in 1994 and I've had to tinker with some bad contacts in the switch, and replace the drive belt. It's a 200# bulletproof chop saw. I need a couple more and when you're looking for them, they are never for sale it seems. But keep your eyes peeled, they do come up once in a while, even on craigslist.


The Kapex is really nice. But it's not a good value in my book. I don't hold dust collection for a mitresaw as anything all that important to me. Things like a laser have little to no value for me as well. It a shop environment I'm either cutting from a stop or to a mark, and dust collection is taken care of by a hood on the saw so there's negative pressure sucking anything fine back, and bigger chunks that don't make it into the pipe are easily removed with an airhose.



That 8" Hitachi is one of my favorite saws.

[Charles P. Wright]

When I had to replace my Ryobi CMS last year, because my wife chose a 5 1/4" high base molding and I didn't have the height to cut it I looked at the Dewalt 12" and the Kapex. I chose the Dewalt because it had sufficient clearance to cut vertically against the fence; and the Kapex did not.

[Jeff Monson]

I've owned my kapex for a few years. Its a really nice saw......but I would have to say that if time was turned back, I would look hard at the Bosch. I mainly got the kapex for use
with my festool vac, the DC is not bad but its not great either. I love my Festool stuff but the kapex is my least favorite.

[Jebediah Eckert]

I was able to talk myself out of the Kapex. I also do not move it around. There are better things in my shop that I use for accurate miters, and cross cuts. I find I use my Bosch slider for rough lumber, and not much more. When I upgraded my old craftsman chop saw I paid about $300 on CL for a nearly new Bosch slider with a new a Chopmaster blade, leaving me about $1,000 leftover to figure out that dust collection thing. The Kapex definitely excels at dust collection from what I have seen, but it isn't as good as the other Festool offerings as far as DC goes, IMO. You can always build a hood behind the Bosch.

The Bosch glide is nice because it takes up less room off the wall. If you intend to come right off your saw with a finish joint then accuracy is going to be most important to you, and that is different then how I use it. Based on SMC members threads I don't think there are too many that rely on that type of saw for finished cuts.

[Robert Engel]

Dittos on what Jeb ^ said.

That's easy one for me. For twice the cost of a Bosch, is it twice the saw?
That goes for the routers and everything else Festool makes.

I do like the Domino, though. Just can't justify the cost.

[Jim German]

That's easy one for me. For twice the cost of a Bosch, is it twice the saw?
That goes for the routers and everything else Festool makes.

I do like the Domino, though. Just can't justify the cost.

For most of the Festool lineup, yes they're twice the tools.

The Kapex, I just don't see it though. If it were a 12" saw maybe, but its got to many compromises to be worth the premium for me.

[Greg R Bradley]

It is going to be hard to justify a Kapex for personal use. It is going to depend on your requirements and what features that you must have.

I justified mine but that was before the last price increase. I paid $1250, which is really $1000 when you factor in the angle finder and the fact that it is the only saw that doesn't need an expensive blade added for fine work.

Portability and light weight matter to some but not to me for my use.

One major feature that justified it for me was dust collection. It is the best by far, particularly in the amount of dust NOT thrown at the user or in the air. None of the sliders come close but a few non-sliders with large dust ports low and directly behind the blade come fairly close.

Adjustable speed and speed that doesn't change under load were important to me for non-wood cutting. Clearly may not matter at all to most.

Close to the wall was big deal for me. The Bosch Glide is 1"+ deeper fence to wall and much deeper overall when in the 90* normal position. Of course it will also cut wider material. The 10" isn't quite as wide overall but gains nothing fence to wall distance. Several non-sliders beat the Kapex fence to wall distance by 2-3" but some of them require some of that clearance to adjust bevel angle.

Accuracy was important but most good non-sliders will come close or equal the Kapex since they don't have the additional leverage and movement in the slider. An OMGA doesn't slide for a reason.

The C10FSH 10" Japanese Hitachi slider is just as accurate as the Kapex but takes up lots of space and has marginal dust collection. They are about $900 and still need $130 for a blade to match the Kapex standard. Don't think the Chinese C10FSHPS that is $500 is anywhere decent at all.

The Dewalt DW717 is similar to the Hitachi but built in China to a higher standard than Hitachi builds their own cheap version. This saw is discontinued and in some HD for $249. Hard to beat that saw for the money.