ByronBlack
Established Member
As some of you know from a previous thread, I was debating as to which guide rail system to invest in. I was looking into either the EZ system from EurekaZone or the Festool. I was recommended Mafell as another consideration, but I wanted to keep my choices simple, and I had more information on the former two.
So, to cut a long story short, and for numerous reasons, I decided to go for the Festool TS55 with guide rail. You can view the thread here: https://www.ukworkshop.co.uk/forums/viewtopic.php?t=11059
I phoned Jaycee Tools (Middlesex) and first spoke to a nice guy called Carl who gave me the latest prices and asnwered some initial questions. I wasn't ready to purchase that day so phoned back the following day after I had more information of what I required for my needs.
I spoke to Andrew who was extremely friendly, and knowledgable about the Festool system, answering all my queries in detail and referring to his own personal experience of using the Festool to build his current 'built-in' wardrobes. This gave me confidence as this is one of the jobs that I intend to use the Festool for.
The service was so good that I actually ended up spending LESS money that I was prepared too, basically I was going to purchase the angle guide, an 800mm rail and few other bits and bobs. But after speaking to Andrew, I realised I probably didn't require these just yet, so I kept my order to just the TS55 and an extra 1.4 rail with connection bars.
So, onto the tool itself. It arrived early wednesday morning, very well packed and completely un-damaged, which was a good start.
I continued on to unpack the item, careful not to damage anything on the way, here's what the tool looks like in its very nice Systainer case:
and the inside:
and the rails:
My first impression as I opened the systainer case and took out the saw was that it was extremely smart, well enginnered and nicely balanced, because of this it felt very light and easy to handle. It's smaller than I thought, which for me is good.
Some photo's of the tool itself:
The finish of the saw is exceptional, all the casting is smooth and accurate, the plastic parts are solid with no wobble. All the green-bits do something, so it's easy to know where and how to adjust the saw. I worked it out within about 30 seconds without the need of an instruction book, it really is a well thought out and easy to use saw.
From this point onwards I just tested the saw on the rail, tested the connection bars and familiarised myself with the instructions, here are few more pics.
And some pics of the rails joined using the connection bars:
There are two tips that were given to me about joining the rails. The first being that not to overtighting the screws as they can push and distort the rail, they only need to be tightened using light finger pressure. The other tip is that to ensure a good accurate cut along the length is to join the two rails together and cut the rubber strip with the saw, not to do 1 at a time as this is where some in-accuracy can come in.
Also i've found that if you take your time in lining up the connection bars, you can get an excellent and square join. I find it easier to lock down the top bar first, and then the one that goes underneath. You can feel a very slight bump as you run the saw over the join, but this really is very very slight and does not alter the path of the saw in anyway. I'll be testing some cuts using these joined rails later and will report back, but so far it seems pretty spot on with the connection.
On the weekend, I will use the machine to make some initial cuts and will provide some 'in use' pictures and comments, although most people have covered the performance of the machine already, I wanted to use this review to comment on the buying and support service that comes wiht a tool of this premium.
One last thing which proves without a shadow of doubt that Festool are excellent value for money, and that is without me realising, this came with the kit:
The Festool watch comes with a black leather strap, brushed alloy finish to the time-piece and 'Festool' in their trademark green on the face. It's water-resistant and even tracks the day of the month.
Some other really nice features of this timepiece as 12 numbers on the face, with TWO arms, (not just one) 7 holes on the strap to ensure this will fit all range of wrists. It keeps time excellently and efficiently.
In all seriousness, this was a nice little suprise and a welcome one as I don't have a watch to use when working - my other watch is too good to get scratched etc.. and it's a nice touch.
Festool value for money??? Absolutely!!!
So, to cut a long story short, and for numerous reasons, I decided to go for the Festool TS55 with guide rail. You can view the thread here: https://www.ukworkshop.co.uk/forums/viewtopic.php?t=11059
I phoned Jaycee Tools (Middlesex) and first spoke to a nice guy called Carl who gave me the latest prices and asnwered some initial questions. I wasn't ready to purchase that day so phoned back the following day after I had more information of what I required for my needs.
I spoke to Andrew who was extremely friendly, and knowledgable about the Festool system, answering all my queries in detail and referring to his own personal experience of using the Festool to build his current 'built-in' wardrobes. This gave me confidence as this is one of the jobs that I intend to use the Festool for.
The service was so good that I actually ended up spending LESS money that I was prepared too, basically I was going to purchase the angle guide, an 800mm rail and few other bits and bobs. But after speaking to Andrew, I realised I probably didn't require these just yet, so I kept my order to just the TS55 and an extra 1.4 rail with connection bars.
So, onto the tool itself. It arrived early wednesday morning, very well packed and completely un-damaged, which was a good start.
I continued on to unpack the item, careful not to damage anything on the way, here's what the tool looks like in its very nice Systainer case:
and the inside:
and the rails:
My first impression as I opened the systainer case and took out the saw was that it was extremely smart, well enginnered and nicely balanced, because of this it felt very light and easy to handle. It's smaller than I thought, which for me is good.
Some photo's of the tool itself:
The finish of the saw is exceptional, all the casting is smooth and accurate, the plastic parts are solid with no wobble. All the green-bits do something, so it's easy to know where and how to adjust the saw. I worked it out within about 30 seconds without the need of an instruction book, it really is a well thought out and easy to use saw.
From this point onwards I just tested the saw on the rail, tested the connection bars and familiarised myself with the instructions, here are few more pics.
And some pics of the rails joined using the connection bars:
There are two tips that were given to me about joining the rails. The first being that not to overtighting the screws as they can push and distort the rail, they only need to be tightened using light finger pressure. The other tip is that to ensure a good accurate cut along the length is to join the two rails together and cut the rubber strip with the saw, not to do 1 at a time as this is where some in-accuracy can come in.
Also i've found that if you take your time in lining up the connection bars, you can get an excellent and square join. I find it easier to lock down the top bar first, and then the one that goes underneath. You can feel a very slight bump as you run the saw over the join, but this really is very very slight and does not alter the path of the saw in anyway. I'll be testing some cuts using these joined rails later and will report back, but so far it seems pretty spot on with the connection.
On the weekend, I will use the machine to make some initial cuts and will provide some 'in use' pictures and comments, although most people have covered the performance of the machine already, I wanted to use this review to comment on the buying and support service that comes wiht a tool of this premium.
One last thing which proves without a shadow of doubt that Festool are excellent value for money, and that is without me realising, this came with the kit:
The Festool watch comes with a black leather strap, brushed alloy finish to the time-piece and 'Festool' in their trademark green on the face. It's water-resistant and even tracks the day of the month.
Some other really nice features of this timepiece as 12 numbers on the face, with TWO arms, (not just one) 7 holes on the strap to ensure this will fit all range of wrists. It keeps time excellently and efficiently.
In all seriousness, this was a nice little suprise and a welcome one as I don't have a watch to use when working - my other watch is too good to get scratched etc.. and it's a nice touch.
Festool value for money??? Absolutely!!!
