Festool TS55 or TS75?

[punkrockdad]

Apart from the obvious depth of cut are there any other pro's and cons?

I'll mostly be using it on veneered board and birch ply so a clean cut is important.

The boards will be 8x4's so whats the best guide lengths to get?

 

[inventor]

The TS55 will cut a 47mm chunk of timber while sitting on the guide rail - as in a 2 by four. I have a TS55 with two 1400 mm guide rails, and that works well for 8*4 sheets. I certainly haven't found that I yearned for the bigger saw. Actually, if I only had the big one, I think I'd yearn for the little one!

One thing I am getting worried about is the accuracy of joining the two guide rails together. They're getting scruffier as I'm getting fussier, currently 0.7 mm out in the middle of an 8 foot cut. I've thought about buying a big rail but it'll be a pain to store and keep safe. Maybe I'll take a file to the ends of the rails I have.

 

[engineer one]

inventor had you adjusted the fixing screws, since i do't have one i am not sure, but i have talked to the reps, and they claim you can make up for the movement by adjusting the fixing screws in the join.

another trick i was shown was to join the lengths together and loosely, then adjust them against the factory edge of the sheet, which tends to be pretty accurate, unless you have dropped it :? :twisted:
then tighten the fixings in this position.

hope this helps

as for the size, like you i tend to think that whilst big is sometimes better, there is a case for checking what you intend to do, and how often.
i have a mafell ksp 40 and that allows cutting 40mm worktops on its rail.

paul :wink:

 

[Dan Clark]

Apart from the obvious depth of cut are there any other pro's and cons?

I'll mostly be using it on veneered board and birch ply so a clean cut is important.

The boards will be 8x4's so whats the best guide lengths to get?

If you are cutting sheet goods of say 38mm or less (1.5"), the TS55 is the saw to get. It's lighter than a TS75 and takes up less space. The TS75 is a very nice saw, but the TS55 is the better saw for sheet goods.

I have a TS55 plus several shorter guide rails and have cut lots of 1-3/4" Microllam using the TS55 on a guide rail. It's like plywood on steroids. Using the standard blade (#487377), it did a very nice job.

If you will be cutting a LOT of 4ft X 8ft sheet goods, a 2700 or 3000mm guide rail would be a very good investment. I connect my shorter ones together and it works well, but it takes a minute or two to line them up with a 4' straight edge. I.e., it would be nice to just grab a rail, line 'er up, cut. (Maybe next year.)

For the last two weeks I've been cutting a lot Hemlock and Fir 2X4's with the fine tooth blade (#491952). Glass smooth cuts and not a hint of burning.

I'm using an Incra "Guarenteed Square" that I purchased from Woodcraft here in Washington State, US (http://www.woodcraft.com/family.aspx?familyid=4133) to line up the guide rail. If the board is straight, the cuts are essentially perfect. I.e., the Incra square is guarenteed accurate to .001 inch. When the board is straight, the guide rail attached to MFT will give you a cut that is close to the Incra acccuracy. Pretty amazing, IMO.

As part of my bathroom remodel, I had to rip up the entire subfloor down to the joists. Then I laid down a layer of 3\4" plywood and then a layer of 3\8" plywood. The gaps between the plywood had to be about 1\8" and the layers had to be staggered so that no seams lined up. A pic of the floor is below. After all the plywood was laid down the AVERAGE difference in the gap was less than 1/32" and essentially perfectly square.

My method for cutting the plywood? I threw two pieces of 2' X 8' foam insullation on the floor, flopped the plywood on top, laid the connected Festool guide rails on top, and cut with TS55.

To say that I'm happy with my Festool tools would be a massive understatement. On a daily basis, they solve my problems and save me work.

About my shop... One of the things that I truly love about the Festool system is that you can take your "shop" to the work. Currently my "shop" is my master bathroom. Below is a pic of my bathroom with the Festool "Table Saw" and Dust Collector right where I need them.

Sorry for being long winded.

Regards,

Dan.

Bathroom Floor:

My Shop:

 

[inventor]

inventor had you adjusted the fixing screws, since i do't have one i am not sure, but i have talked to the reps, and they claim you can make up for the movement by adjusting the fixing screws in the join.

another trick i was shown was to join the lengths together and loosely, then adjust them against the factory edge of the sheet...

Yes, it's possible to adjust the fit. But, I want the fit to be right every time, without fiddling. That's the whole point of guide rails.

 

[Keith Smith]

Inventor have you got the later version of the rails that take two connector bars? I just tighen the one underneath flip the rail over and tighten the second while the rails are up against a straight edge. Only takes a minute and beats having long rails cluttering the place.

 

[engineer one]

inventor we would all like adjustable things to be perfect fits every time, but it ain't possible, wear will always cause the need to adjust even if only slightly.

i personally think you are being too picky, but then we all wish for the impossible. :lol:

paul :wink:

 

[inventor]

Picky? Moi??

Actually, (and calm down all the Festool fans), I think the Festool guide rail design is poor. The ends are just straight, meaning that any little ding on them upsets the alignment. I think they'd be better with two bumps to define the fit, drawn tight by a screw in between. But, I'm sure Festool would prefer me to buy a long rail!

 

[LyNx]

I agree, i can never trust just butting two guide rail together for a true straight edge. I always butt a longer straight edge behind the rails to make sure, beats the point of using the rails really.

 

[punkrockdad]

Well, i've gone and done it...

ts75, a table saw attachment (cms) and a 3000mm, 1400mm guides.

And a twitching wallet...

Should all be waiting for me when I return from our raiding party north of the border. Isle of Skye here we come

 

[Roy Clarke]

Dan, slightly off topic, but what type of plywood is your small bench made from, and roughly how much does a sheet cost in your neck of the woods.

 

[Andy Pullen]

Looks like shuttering ply to me.

 

[Roy Clarke]

Ah, but then you're from Kettering, Dan is from the USA. They can have all sorts of things we can't get.

 

[Andy Pullen]

Well i bet a 'buck' it's sheathing ply. :lol:

 

[Trumpet]

inventor we would all like adjustable things to be perfect fits every time, but it ain't possible, wear will always cause the need to adjust even if only slightly.

i personally think you are being too picky, but then we all wish for the impossible. :lol:

paul :wink:

I don't think the design/tolerances are right for the connectors.

They are a fairly loose fit and far too short, putting far too much strain on the ends of each guide rail leading to flaring at the ends of the guide rail connector tracks over time - which is where a lot of the inaccuracies come from. I reckon this would be easily fixed by say doubling the length of the connector bars so that movement within the track would be very much reduced and spread the support over a longer length and more importantly take the strain from the end sections. Additional grub screws along the extra length would also mean that each grub screw need to only provide about half the friction to stop the bars from sliding out - no temptation to overtighten them.

If you could join shorter sections without any additional hassle of aligning sections accurately every time I wonder how many 3m long guiderails Festool would sell? :wink:

 

[Dan Clark]

Dan, slightly off topic, but what type of plywood is your small bench made from, and roughly how much does a sheet cost in your neck of the woods.

Roy,

I made that from some scrap BCX Fir plywood that I had left over. I think it was about $38 for a 4'X8' 3/4" sheet: http://store.dunnlum.com/builderwire20/ ... temid=3092

It's from Dunn Lumber, which isn't far from you. Just pop over to the nearest airport with flights to Seattle, USA. When you exit the airport just take I405 north for about 20 miles to Highway 520. Go east on 520 about 3 miles to 148th Ave and exit south. Take the first right, go about 1/2 mile and it's on your left. Not a bad commute!

Regards,

Dan.

p.s., yep, we have all the good stuff over here. For example, we were the first to get the Festool Kapex and the Festool CMS was here first. Uhhhh, wait a minute... I think I'm a bit confused. It must have been something else. I probably drank too many Bud Lights! 8)

 

[Roy Clarke]

Thanks Dan, I've just ordered some Douglas ply, as it's the nearest I can find so far. Equivalent to $64 a sheet with tax So I can't afford a Kapex anyway.

Andy, please send money asap. 8)

 

[Andy Pullen]

Roy, you should be sending the money, it's fir ply, otherwise known as sheathing or shuttering ply. Look at how thick the layers are in the link you provide. Buy yourself a couple of sheets of nice birch ply if you want some good stuff and don't be misled by apparently dramatic grain.
Andy

 

[Dan Clark]

Andy,

It's just fir plywood but a bit higher grade than typical sheathing ply - CDX. This stuff at $31 for a 4X8 sheet:
http://store.dunnlum.com/builderwire20/ ... temid=2157. The work stool is just a cobbled-together stool that I put together quickly.

If I was building a shop cabinet or stand, I'd probably use Baltic Birch (aka Russian Birch). This stuff is about $52 for a 5' X 5' X 18mm sheet: http://store.dunnlum.com/builderwire20/ ... temid=3036. I suspect that you folks can get it cheaper.

Regards,

Dan.

 

[Roy Clarke]

Roy, you should be sending the money, it's fir ply, otherwise known as sheathing or shuttering ply. Look at how thick the layers are in the link you provide. Buy yourself a couple of sheets of nice birch ply if you want some good stuff and don't be misled by apparently dramatic grain.
Andy

It's just fir plywood but a bit higher grade than typical sheathing ply........

OK Andy, you know I've won, (now what to spend it on, mmm....)

I have ordered some ply (loads in my opinion, some AA and the rest BB (whatever that means) The birch ply is Latvian which is supposedly better than Finnish. I've also ordered some spruce ply which the suppliers told me is better quality than sheathing ply.

Dan, Price for the 18mm Latvian birch here is around $105 inc tax for 8x4 sheet, so you win again. We pay through the nose here.