Walt Pater
04-29-2006, 9:19 AM
I know there's been a bunch of web space devoted to the whole GCSS debate. I'm posting this because 1)I've recently purchased one of the last Festool TS 65's around, 16 some-odd feet of aluminum track, as well as a shockingly expensive 33 series vacuum which bears a remarkable resemblance to a star wars character; and 2) the project I'm currently on is pretty ambitious (25,000, yes, twenty-five thousand, sqft of property to mill trim for), so anything I purchase pretty much gets stressed-tested right from the get-go by a guy who supports his family (and, apparently, a nasty tool habit) by woodworking.
That said, I'm no Festool zealot. I've had their jigsaw for a while now, and like it strictly in a "it better be the best gosh-darned jigsaw, it set me back $300.00" kind of way. And I've heard the phrase "Well, wait, Festool is a SYSTEM, you see..." enough to choke a horse. I bought the TS 65 and rails to trim the 37 stave-core doors I'm currently making. I opted for the 65 because of its depth of cut, as doors are 1 3/4"- 2 1/4" thick. The pics below, and in the next post, show a few different tasks, mainly stright-line ripping the glued-up stiles with skins. The saw worked pretty well, considering it was going through 1 7/8" poplar, producing rips that were straight, and, once I fiddled with the blade a bit, square to the face. I did a finish pass on the jointer on all the sticks after sawing. The vacuum (I refuse to say "dust extractor," except maybe in front of a client) probably picks up 75% of the sawdust, which is pretty good. One problem I had was that the thick stiles were pretty taxing on the saw, which was plugged into the vac on auto, and the 20 amp breaker kept blowing. I plugged the vac into another line, ran it all the time, and continued to work uninterrupted. I haven't cut sheet goods with it yet, so I don't know if it would trip a breaker while going through 3/4" stock. A picture shows the rip lines mirrored. Pretty good.
Other shots: edge jointing 14 footers for baseboard using three pieces of track. the saw worked really, really well for this- definetly faster than using a jointer. Another shot shows a track in place allowing me to rabbet a hung door in place, using the guide and a router.
That said, I'm no Festool zealot. I've had their jigsaw for a while now, and like it strictly in a "it better be the best gosh-darned jigsaw, it set me back $300.00" kind of way. And I've heard the phrase "Well, wait, Festool is a SYSTEM, you see..." enough to choke a horse. I bought the TS 65 and rails to trim the 37 stave-core doors I'm currently making. I opted for the 65 because of its depth of cut, as doors are 1 3/4"- 2 1/4" thick. The pics below, and in the next post, show a few different tasks, mainly stright-line ripping the glued-up stiles with skins. The saw worked pretty well, considering it was going through 1 7/8" poplar, producing rips that were straight, and, once I fiddled with the blade a bit, square to the face. I did a finish pass on the jointer on all the sticks after sawing. The vacuum (I refuse to say "dust extractor," except maybe in front of a client) probably picks up 75% of the sawdust, which is pretty good. One problem I had was that the thick stiles were pretty taxing on the saw, which was plugged into the vac on auto, and the 20 amp breaker kept blowing. I plugged the vac into another line, ran it all the time, and continued to work uninterrupted. I haven't cut sheet goods with it yet, so I don't know if it would trip a breaker while going through 3/4" stock. A picture shows the rip lines mirrored. Pretty good.
Other shots: edge jointing 14 footers for baseboard using three pieces of track. the saw worked really, really well for this- definetly faster than using a jointer. Another shot shows a track in place allowing me to rabbet a hung door in place, using the guide and a router.