That is indeed a solution to the problem that I have resorted to but why should I have to do 2-3x the work when i have forked out a ton on a specialist tool? My point is that manufacturers are relying on gimmicks to sell their products in the form of thin kerf blades.. thinner blades= Quicker cuts = bad cuts = slower progress & expensive mistakes.
That is a fix in part though it can still result in stepped cuts. Not good enough for glue-up. I begrudge spending a ton and still having to do 2-3 times the work using a blade that is supposedly more efficient. Thinner blade= faster cut= worse cut= expensive mistakes + more passes/slower progress.
I have always thought tracksaws were aimed at sheet goods and more specifically at man made rather than real wood. As you say MDF is not your thing and so maybe dare I say it the wrong tool for the job, a decent table saw would make that an easy task. I can see exactly where you are coming from when you say about the blade deflecting, it is following the path of least resistance and is just the same with a jig saw on thicker stock and bandsaws when setup wrong. And no you can’t be the only carpenter/joiner that doesn’t exclusively use MDF, if that was the case what a sad state of affairs for woodworking.
My workshop is too small for a panel saw unfortunately. I have no problem with blade deflection on my table saw. I just wish it was easier to source thicker guage blades for the mt55. I feel like it’s an easy problem to fix but every blade manufacturer I have bought from has succumbed to the thinner is better gimmick.
Must be a good market in cutting MDF , more users than is good for the game so they cater for the masses which is a shame.
The problem is the guage of the steel rather than tooth kerf. Anything under 1.8mm is problematic in hardwood.
....I would imagine anyone using a blade that is that thin is going to see deflection of some sort, especially when rip cutting real timber, (edit) no matter whether it's a tracksaw or a table saw...I have used these after using the supplied mafell blades and they are even more problematic for my use cases.
Yep, it’s frustrating. Plate should be at least 1.8mm imoI've just had a look and it seems Mafell do a 24 tooth blade and an 18 tooth blade, which in theory would be suitable for rip cutting solid timber.....
But the plate thickness is only 1.2mm...
I’ve not tried festool blades as the Mafell has some elegant design features that might not be compatible with a different size blade but I might have to just to get a decent cut and maintain an accurate splinter strip cut line. Kind of wish I’d just bought the ts55 now. One of the main reasons I bought the mafell was the supposedly powerful motor but then they supply blades that only make sense on an underpowered cordless machine.
Were the worktops glued together? You’re not going to notice 1/2mm deflection unless you glue two pieces together or require a dead accurate cut line for matching cabinet parts. 1/2mm either way can mean a 1mm gap and 1degree off bevel can mean an open mitre when it comes to glue-up.
I’ve had huge drift with some of these thin kerfed blades. Try running a huge pile of 2x4 through a table saw with a thin kerfed blade! The blade can drift 1/4” when heats up.
