Looking at a miter saw

[khaos]

So I was watching a demo of the festool kapex compound miter. Now I understand that festool means bring money, alot of it. And there will be no festool blaspheme tolerated by the toolirati... But this saw was looking pretty nice.

I mean it boasts some extraordinary features:
variable speed miter saw. 1400-3400 rpm, 1600 watt, 13 amp motor, 10” blade, cutting capacity at 90° of 12” x 3-1/2”, and at 45° the capacity is 8-7/16” x 3-7/16”. Miter 50° left and 60° right,47° left and right swing and twist knob allows you to finely dial in the compound angle.

dual lasers outline the actual kerf.

angle transfer tool makes it simple to measure, calculate and cut bisected angles, and it's included as standard equipment.

But when I saw that it cost as much as a contractors SawStop table saw $1400 I was so turned off. It seems like it's 6-700 too much.

I am reminded of when I was a Lincoln mechanic and you could get, in price order, craftsman, matco, mac and snap-on. Are the matco tools better than craftsman? I would say a yes by a little and priced accordingly. Are the Mac tools better than craftsman and matco. My experience showed they really were. And by a noticeable jump price followed of course. Then are the Snap-On tools better than all the rest? My experience showed they were not they were %15-%30 more than MAC!! And no better.

Is it a fine tool? No doubt, it is. But, is it good enough to justify the cost? My gut tells me that festool is the snap-on of woodworking. Just high priced because a religious following will pay.

Question: Who is the MAC of woodworking tools?

Thanks for indulging this mild rant.

[gc3]

http://www.ctdsaw.com/

https://www.omgainc.com/productfamily.php?cid=2

either of these for full production shops

we using different ones in the shop, Makita, Hitachi and Milwaukee all 12" sliders plus a fourth...a CTD and that is the one that everybody wants to use...

[khaos]

Thanks for the heads up. I will have to look into the CTD.

[Bob Eustace]

Agree a 100% Joe! Have mine next to an old faithfull Makita and I continually reach for the Makita as it feels like a comfy old jumper. All the controls on the Kapex drive me nuts as some are hidden away and definitely not the bleeding obvious. Clamping on the Festool is dreadful as there arent enough access points and that plastic thing doesnt inspire confidence (I love my pinkies!) in Australia it costs $1800.00 - ouch! I got it as it was the best in class for not dpreading dust everywhere and it does do a reasonable job BUT it still really needs a canopy as well. The trenching adjustment is buried and you cant see the setting. This is a breeze on the Makita. And yes one dare not say anything like any of this stuff on a Festool forum for fear of death!

[Ernie Balch]

I don't know what is wrong with Festool sales people.

I was just about to purchase a Kapex miter saw and a festool domino. Last week Festool came in and pulled all the product from our local lumber company. Festool claimed that something was sold at a discount and that cannot be tolerated.

Now I will have to take a day off work and drive more than 100 miles just to see a Festool product.

The good news is that I can buy heavily discounted competing brands at any number of locations close by.

[gerryv]

We use mostly Festool and so have been tempted by the Kapex but we really like the Bosch GCM12SD 12" Dual-Bevel Glide Miter Saw. The action is silky smooth and has less lateral flex than any of the others we tried. Another big plus for us is it saves about a foot of floor space because it can sit right against the wall, not having slide rods. Its build quality is excellent and the T4B wheeled stand is really well designed and made. The Festool definitely captures dust better but that's about it. The Bosch is not cheap but a lot less than Festool for sure.

[khaos]

The Bosch was on my to check out list for sure. They make some good stuff. And I need to look at Makita again. I may have discounted the brand unfairly.

[gene]

I have 2 10" Makita slide miter saws that I have been using for the last 20 years or so. I trimmed out a house with 3 5/8 crown today and it still cuts great. I have got my moneys worth time and time again. it may tear up tomorrow but right now I would buy another no questions asked

[khaos]

Well, I will have to check some of these out. I appreciate the real world experience you all share with me.

There will be no shopping today. Currently we are paralyzed under a 6-9" blanket of snow. lol. The truth is south east VA is not equipped or budgeted to deal with snow. Since our normal is <2" and gone by noon the next day. I lived in Kenosha, Wisconsin. They knew how to deal with snow. Two car, two snow machine garages. Snowmobile paths everywhere. But they get predictable snowfall. And its damn cold.

Think I just segwayed like an old dude... ruh roh :eek:

[jlholu]

i also purchased the Bosch GCM12SD 12" Dual-Bevel Glide Miter Saw. I've been extremely satisfied with it's performance and if I had any negative comment it would be with the dust collection.

[jlholu]

i also purchased the Bosch GCM12SD 12" Dual-Bevel Glide Miter Saw. I've been extremely satisfied with it's performance and if I had any negative comment it would be with the dust collection.

[rcnewcomb]

Another vote for the Makita slide miter saw.

[kern]

The Woodworks forum last spring had a big discussion on compound sliding miter saws. The consensus was check out the 12" Milwaukee. Among other features their dust collecting bag works great. I see at the Sioux Falls Stan Houston tool show today is they are now $100 higher than last spring. Kern

[knight_toolworks]

my brother complains about the kapex saw I can't remember what but it has it's problems for such a expensive saw. I have the 10" bosch and it works well but it is so loud for a belt driven saw and the belt heats up with hard use. I really liked my 10" makita but the fence was so wimpy a kickback bent it and you need a replacement.

[kevin]

I did a informal review remember I'am a heavy user the Bosh 12 inch can't cut 5 inch high baseboard vertical which is a huge thing for us because we do a lot of returns .I hate cutting bevel i feel more in control vertical its all about the feel

Festool used there domino felt it was overrated rather have 3 saws for there one one
The sad thing my 14 year old stand can't be bet the new stands suck

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZpxL_rdpoxg

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RBgiWqgh3ts