Imminent Purchase - TS55

[Dibs-h]

I've trawled thru the previous posts and have the readies lined up to buy one at the Harrogate show along with 2x1.4m guides. The Orca has been good but it's hardly finesse and time to upgrade.

Those that have bought one - yay or nay? Happy with it or not?

Not really wanting to start a new festool thread - just a case of, go on egg me on, get rid of the 1 or 2 last remaining thoughts of whether or not I should shell out short of 500 smackers for one.

I have stuff to make in the very near future - which will involve breaking down sheet goods and definitely don't want to faffing around with the TS.

 

[Dan Clark]

I've trawled thru the previous posts and have the readies lined up to buy one at the Harrogate show along with 2x1.4m guides. The Orca has been good but it's hardly finesse and time to upgrade.

Those that have bought one - yay or nay? Happy with it or not?

Not really wanting to start a new festool thread - just a case of, go on egg me on, get rid of the 1 or 2 last remaining thoughts of whether or not I should shell out short of 500 smackers for one.

I have stuff to make in the very near future - which will involve breaking down sheet goods and definitely don't want to faffing around with the TS.

Dibs-h,

The TS55 is an excellent saw, especially if you want to break down sheet goods. It's light and fairly powerful for its size. With a guide rail, the cuts are dead straight. Use a fine tooth blade and the green splinter guard, and the cuts are very smooth and chip free. So yes, I have been VERY happy with mine.

That said, there are some issues to consider...

The saw works best with a Festool or Fein vac. Other vacs will work, but good quality vac makes the most the TS55 dust collection.

And you might want to consider getting an MFT too.

OTOH, if you just want to break down sheet goods, many users have a short cutting table or simply throw some foam insullation on the floor, flop the sheet on top, lay out the guide rail, and cut away. The MFT isn't necessary for that, but the vac is still very nice.

Two other tips to consider. First, get a fine-tooth blade for the best cut.

Second, consider getting a different guide rail package. For maximum flexibility, you might want to look getting two different length guide rails. Maybe the "FS 1080/2" or FS 1400/2, plus the "FS 1900/2" guide rails. You'll need (2) "Connector FSV" to connect them together. It's not difficult to connect them, but some people find that a bit fiddly to line them up. (I don't have an issue with that, however.)

If you cut a LOT of sheet goods, you might find that a single FS3000/2 to be a better option.

One other point - if you decide to get an MFT, remember that they come with a guide rail (unless you get the "MFT 1080 Basic").

I hope this helps.

Regards,

Dan.

 

[Dibs-h]

Cheers Dan.

Rails of 2 different lengths - hadn't thought of that. But don't really see myself cutting down anything bigger than sheet stock. Probably get away with a 1400 and a 1080. For the diff in price - was just going to go for 2x1400's. Any bigger and it'll be a hassle storing\transporting it\them.

MFT - ain't really got that far yet, probably go with the rigid foam plan.

Vac - got a cheap SS Karscher and it's worked well so far. Will give it a go and if its lacking, probably retire that to the garage and look to get a Fein\Festool.

With the Harrogate show in a few weeks time, it's either get one now and get them to throw some freebies in and effectively get at least 10% off the best web price or haggle for a discount. Or buy one later for a "normal" price and get annoyed for not having taken advantage of the show price.

 

[Dan Clark]

Dibs-h,

A couple other points...

When figuring out the total length of guide rail required, remember to add about 200-240mm to the long dimension of you sheet goods to determine rail size. You need little room on either end to start and finish your cut.

Also, you might want to see if any package deals are available. On this side of the pond, we can save some money buying a TS55 with a vac or MFT.

Good luck with your decision.

Regards,

Dan.

 

[RogerS]

Dibs-h

2 x 1400 rails gives enough overlap on standard 2400 sheets (just).

Foam sheet on the floor - can't be beaten IMO.

I use the Earlex vacuum (available in Homebase and elsewhere) and that sucks up all (nearly all) the dust.

Blade - I find the standard blade Ok for MDF. For MFC then I'd go with the recommendation for a finer toothed blade (festool recommend one specifically for MFC IIRC)

Get some extra green thingies as if you cut to different depths then you will alter the amount of green thingie in contact with the sheet material which may be an issue re minimising chipout underneath the thingie. However, this 'problem' is marginal with typical depth of cut on sheet material. More so if you're going to cut at the maximum depth and then go back to thin sheet material.

MFT - I converted mine into a router table and never missed its' more normal use.

Festool right-angle attachment for the guide rails is not one of their better designed pieces of kit. I.e. it doesn't work that well.

Your biggest problem will be getting long cuts absolutely parallel. When you've sussed this out then please post and tell the rest of us how you did it :wink:

 

[Newbie_Neil]

Hi Dibs

The TS55 is excellent, but just make sure of the model that you are buying. Have a look at the Festool uk site. IIRC, it's the EBQ you should be looking at. Also have a look at their current promotions.

In terms of dust extraction the Trend (which I think is a Fein) works well.

Cheers,
Neil

 

[druster]

I'm quite interested in this saw, I am going to have to downsize workshops fairly soon, I currently have a scm beam panel saw with scribing blade and do all of my sheet cutting on this, where I am moving to the largest machine i'll be able to manage is a unisaw clone like the excalibur. would a festool bridge the gap effectively between the two, one thing i was worried about was parrallel how do people deal with that apart from accurate marking out? also are they any good for ripping down solid timber? woulf the 75 be the one to go for in this case?
any thoughts much appreciated.
D

 

[Waka]

Dib's

Excellent piece of kit, as Newbie Neil says make sure you get the EBQ.

I also agree that you might want to add a smaller guide rail to your list, I find the 800 very useful for riping down smaller stuff.

Another good buy is the guide railo clamps, these come into their own when ripping down big sheets, if the guide rail is set up correctly and clamped correctly then perfect parallel cuts are experienced.

Allin all a fantastic cutting system that you'll not be diappointed with.

 

[Stu in Tokyo]

I've got one, I have a small shop, well it is not that small, but it is FULL :roll:

Sheet goods and the TS was a huge PITA, so while I admit I cringed a fair bit at the price, (Remember, I'm in Japan) in the end, it has been well worth the money.

I use a smaller shop vac type of vacuum on it, and it gets most of the dust, but I understand that with the right vacuum it gets more than that.

If you are going to be using it to rip a straight line in any solid stock, the ripping blade is a really good thing to have.

Cheers!

 

[cambournepete]

Buy it, you won't regret it.
It works really well and does just what it's supposed to do with no "faffing around".
I've easily done clean cuts in 40mm worktop with no breakout.

 

[Dibs-h]

I was initially thinking of the TS 55 EBQ-Plus-FS GB but after a 110v one - the festool site only lists a 240v unit - and get an extra guide\clamps.

Rog - so for mainly sheet goods, would you say that a pair of 1400's would be ok or go for a 1900 + 1080. I'd personally be more inclined towards 2x1400, purely from the transport\storage perspective. How have others found the guides from a sizing point of view - anyone use a pair of 1400's to cut sheet stock?

 

[ByronBlack]

I've personally got 2 x 1400 rails and join these when I want to cut along the length of an 8ft board, and have never had a real problem with the joined railes, I prefer having the two smaller ones rather than a very long rail, they are easier to store, and I use one on the longside of the MFT which means I can cut an 8x4 on it.

I would definitly get a ripping blade though, the 48 tooth that comes with it is ok, but labours a bit in hardwoods.

I also have the Trend AF extractor, and this works a treat with the festool, I couldn't justify the cost of the their extractor.

 

[RogerS]

dibs-h

If you want to cut down the complete length of a 2400 sheet then 1900 is clearly too short and you will almost certainly see the start of the new cut if you stop, reposition the guide and then finish off.

2 x1400 is what I use. Occasionally it would be useful to have a shorter one (for cutting across 1 600mm wide panel, for example) but 1400 is manageable.

Re handling of the sheets, when they arrive I stack them up against the wall in the order that I want to use them. Finally lean the foam sheet against the lot until time to cut. Then when I want to cut, simply clear a space on the floor (ahem ), drop the foam sheet then lay your first sheet on top.

I never bother with clamps as I find the rubber pad underneath holds well.

 

[Dibs-h]

Nah I didn't mean a 1900 on it's own, I meant a 1900 + 1080 (joined together) - which is a longer than 2x1400, but may offer a bit more versatility.

You ever wished your 2x1400's (joined) were a bit longer when cutting 8x4's or never bothered you.

 

[Dibs-h]

Dibs-h
Blade - I find the standard blade Ok for MDF. For MFC then I'd go with the recommendation for a finer toothed blade (festool recommend one specifically for MFC IIRC)

Get some extra green thingies as if you cut to different depths then you will alter the amount of green thingie in contact with the sheet material which may be an issue re minimising chipout underneath the thingie. However, this 'problem' is marginal with typical depth of cut on sheet material. More so if you're going to cut at the maximum depth and then go back to thin sheet material.

I've looked on their site and they show 2 different 48 teeth blades. Which one?

Green thingies - do you mean the splinterguard?

I'm inclined to get all\most things for it on the show - more inclined to get a discount\freebies that way.

So here's the list

1. TS55-EBQ-plus (including 1x1400 rail plus std blade)
2. extra 1400 guide
3. connectors for guides
4. clamp for guide (x2)
5. extra blade (fine - which one?)
6. spare splinterguard\rubber strips underneath????

Any suggestions?

 

[cambournepete]

I find the standard blade supplied does a good job with MFC - it's what I used to do some cutouts in my kitchen worktop and Ikea kitchen cupboards.

When I bought a new blade I couldn't persuade myself to splash out on the more expensive one - that was just too much...

 

[RogerS]

Nah I didn't mean a 1900 on it's own, I meant a 1900 + 1080 (joined together) - which is a longer than 2x1400, but may offer a bit more versatility.

You ever wished your 2x1400's (joined) were a bit longer when cutting 8x4's or never bothered you.

Never bothered me. But then again I bought the two guide rails and TS55 as a 'pack'. If the 1900 and 1080 were the same price as 2 x 1400 then I'd go for those.

Splinterguards - that's the term.

Will look at which blade it was tonight or tomorrow.

I bought some clamps. Never used them.

 

[ByronBlack]

I never use clamps either, I would save some cash here.

 

[Dan Clark]

I've looked on their site and they show 2 different 48 teeth blades. Which one?

Green thingies - do you mean the splinterguard?
...
So here's the list

1. TS55-EBQ-plus (including 1x1400 rail plus std blade)
2. extra 1400 guide
3. connectors for guides
4. clamp for guide (x2)
5. extra blade (fine - which one?)
6. spare splinterguard\rubber strips underneath????

Any suggestions?

Dibs,

The reason that I suggested the 1900 + 1080 is that 1) you'll get an extra 180mm (which you'll appreciate) and 2) you'll get more flexibility. I have two 1400s that I connect together, but I never use them EXCEPT when connected for cutting sheets. I also have two 1080's (don't ask why) that I use all the time. (Actually, one 1080 gets used and the other just leans against a wall.)

Tip about "green thingies" (Splinter guards) - Get a pack (5 per package, I think) and assign one to each blade. Write the blade part number on each and then toss them in TS55 systainer. Whenever you switch blades, switch splinter guards. When the blade is sharpened, toss the old splinter guard and assign a new splinter guard to that blade. Using this technicque, I always keep my splinter guards perfectly matched to the blades.

Guide rail clamps - If you're not going to get an MFT, I don't think you'll use the clamps for anything. I've NEVER used my clamps for cutting sheet goods. (I use them all the time with my MFT however.)

Below is picture of my "Shop" (Master Bathroom). The subfloor you see is actually two layers. Each layer is composed of cut-down 8X4 plywood cut and trimmed in a specific pattern. Each sheet is separated by 1/8" and never varies by more than 1/32" over the entire 10' X 13' space. ALL of the cuts were made with the TS55 laid on rails with the plywood on top of foam insullation. NO clamps were used to make the cuts!

Regards,

Dan.

 

[Dibs-h]

Dan - many thanks for that, will defintely get a pack of the splinter guards. What about the "tape" on the bottom?

I don't intend on paying for some of the consumables\ancillaries - just a case of knowing what "freebies" I should get them to throw in, if they are reluctant to discount the price. And importantly what not to bother with.

So far it's the,

- saw + 1400 guide,
- 1080 guide - (most seem to suggest that should be the way to go, i.e. 1080 + 1400) + connectors
- Spare splinterguards
- extra blade

Anything else one should think about ?

I've already got some normal systainers and will be getting a few more, but no-one seems able to beat my current supplier @£25 each (no matter which one).