Festool Circular Saw TS 55 and guide

[jason lambert]

see my quick review here

http://forcemachinery.com/forum/viewforum.php?id=7

It is awsome changed my life.... Yes it is expensive but as you said it is cheaper than a pannel saw, takes a heck of alot less room, portable, better dust collection and more versitile. With all that in mind how is it expensive?

Using one rale and moving it works but you will want to get a 8' fale if you use it alot. But one rale will get you started.

[Greg Funk]

I recently picked up the TS55 and CT22 and two 1400 guides. I haven't had any problem using the two guides connected together. I think they end up pretty straight but I have not bothered to check as I usually run the pieces through the tablesaw anyway. I mostly use the single 1400 guide.

Greg

[Rick Christopherson]

If you want to see some previews of the saw, the unreleased US manual is at http://festool.home.att.net/public/TS_55_EQ_US.pdf.

I don't know why this manual is still unreleased, but it does not appear on the Festool USA website yet. This website is mine, and is where I put documents before Festool releases them.

As for guide rails, I prefer to have dedicated rails for the size cut I need. I have the 55, 105, and most recently picked up the shorter 32. The 105 is really nice to have, but it can be a problem to store unless you have a garage shop with taller ceilings.

[Jamie Buxton]

I have had no problems joining two rails, I leave a small space between the two rails, about a 1/16" and use a straight edge to get them perfect.

Yup, I used a straightedge to set them up. However, I found that in normal shop handling, the set screws slip a bit, and the joined guide is no longer straight. Mind you, I want the joined guide to be as straight as one guide. As I see it, the problem is that the 50" short guide is a long lever, and a whack on it puts a big load on the set screws. The only thing holding the set screws in position is friction, and they slip. Heck, before I gave up on it, I had those screws tightened down so hard that the bulge was quite visible on the back side of the extrusion.

[John Lucas]

And seeing as its my Daughters birthday....

perfect excuse to post a pic.

Per

UNCLE!!! Per, she is beautiful and not like her father, thank ...."

[Don Bullock]

...Per, she is beautiful and not like her father, thank ...."

John I was thinking the same thing.

Oh, as for the Festool saw and vac, I'm convinced now that I need them. As soon as my depleated tool budget will allow (or sooner), I plan on buying them.

[Todd Jensen]

Well, I just used my 55 tonight for the first time. I couldn't spring for the Festool vac, so just used a rubber plumbing adapter to hook up my 2" shop vac hose, and I was off and running. The cuts were VERY smooth - it was like my Forrest blade tracking on a laser line. I'm very impressed and looking forward to ripping down sheets tomorrow for my current built-in project. As much as the special Festool vac would have been nice, the shop vac worked excellent. This tool winds up smooth, cuts smooth, feels good - solid and steady - when cutting, and most importantly, produces results. Will it turn you into a hot carpenter? - probably not, so I won't bother posting pics of me. But Pers, don't let that stop you from posting more.

(insert appropriately polite compliment here) ... and Happy Birthday.

Bottom Line: I love a few tools - my Hitachi dual slide with Forrest blade, my bunny planes, Stabila digital level/angle finder, and now, they're all going to be jealous - this saw and guide system is truly an effective and efficient way to rip down sheets. Also, I'm using 2 55" guides together, and after trying to leave a little space between them to leave room for alignment, my initial thoughts are that it may be better to just fasten them tight.

[Jason White]

Buy the Festool. After awhile, you'll find your table saw is collecting dust from lack of use. Then you can sell it and buy the CT22 vacuum!

TP

Whew! This is one expensive saw. I am looking for good way to handle sheet stock without going to an more expensive panel saw. Saw this one at the local Wood Craft and have been salivating ever since.

Anyone like to comment? Owners maybe? One specific question I have is concerning the length of guide rails. It comes with a 55" rail that will cross cut ply sheets well, but what about when I need to make a lengthwise cut? They have a longer 105" fence, but that is over $200! You can also get another 55" fence with an extension adapter for less than half of that. Is that extension method still as good?

[Aaron Beaver]

Do you guys just lay the sheets of ply on foam or something to make the cuts with the Saw & guides?

[Jamie Buxton]

Do you guys just lay the sheets of ply on foam or something to make the cuts with the Saw & guides?

A big sheet of foam works, but is expensive and takes storage space. I make up expendable caps for my sawhorses. They're U-shaped in cross-section. The legs of the U only need be long enough to capture the device on the top of the sawhorse. I glue 'em up out of whatever plywood is in the scrap pile. I cut through them until they get completely chowdered up, and then make another set. Unlike the sheet of foam, they're free, and take little room to store.

[jason lambert]

for ply wood sheets I just lie them on top of 2 or 3 2x4 or scrap wood set the depth and cut. For smaller pieces I use my MFT table but you could use a simple table made with MDF you just set the depth so you don't cut through the table. The saw is that accurate depth wise.

[Eric Gustafson]

I gotta thank you guys for all the great talk on the Festool. I've been quiet, but soaking up every post. I also have read all the pros and cons between the Festool and the EZ-Smart Guide elsewhere on the website. While laying down the cash for the Festool will be a big ouch to my swedish penny-pinching nature, but in the long run, it looks like the best way to go.
I saw how the Festool was constructed at the local WoodCraft and was impressed by the solid feel in the guide. The EZ is tempting because of its price, but Bob Nazro's reveiw stated that its accuracy is somewhat dependent upon the user's technique to maintain consistant track in the guides.
As I pingpong between the two systems, the pros of the Festool outweigh the EZ, for me anyway.

[Joe Spear]

I use two shorter guides, and they line up perfect every time with no problem.

For a cutting surface I made a tic-tac-toe shaped thing out of cedar 2x2's. Two long ones (6' or longer if you want) and three short ones (4'). Arrange them in a grid pattern. Lay the long pieces parallel about 3 feet apart and lay the short pieces across them, one about one foot from each end and one in the middle. Then drill through the intersections. Countersink for bolts, washers, and nuts.

You end up with something that looks like a ladder, with the long rails on top of the short rails. Put in on a tabletop. Put your sheet on top of the grid. If you want to cut your sheet the long way, have the long rails on top so that when you cut, they support the sheet, and the blade doesn't reach down as far as the short crossrails. If you want to cut width-wise, flip it over so that the cut will pass between the crossrails and not reach down as far as the long rails.

It helps to clamp the ends of the lower rails to the table so it doesn't slide around. Two clamps are usually enough. You just have to be careful to place the cutline of you sheet so that the saw doesn't cut into any of the top rails that are supporting the sheet. When you are finished, the whole thing just folds up scissors-like so you can stand it in a corner.

Sacrificial tabletops, horses, and rigid insulation boards work also, but this thing seems more like a tool.