ATF 55 E track saw stopped working

[Spinning Wheel]

Hi all,
    My searching through the forums has shown that diagnosing problems over the Internet is tough, but given the cost of repair I thought I would try anyway just to see if anyone has some ideas. I've been the owner of an ATF 55 (the older version of the track saw) for about 14-15 years now and it's served me well up until a week ago. When I pull the trigger, I am getting the green light but the motor is not starting. There is a brief flicker of the red light when the trigger is pulled before the green light comes on but I think that may have been normal when it was working.
    Looking around I have found two possible culprits. Festool's own troubleshooting guide suggests the brushes are worn and the tool is locking itself down for safety, and others have had problems with the electronic speed control. Since I am well past warranty, I pulled the brushes and they look like they have plenty of meat on them, certainly compared to the photos on Festool's guide. I've owned the saw for a long time but am not a heavy user by any stretch. I blasted them clean with some compressed air, worked the springs a bit and replaced them with no luck. I don't know how to test for the speed controller issue.
    So, before I incur the expense of shipping this thing off (and also the risk that they don't have parts to fix a model that's at least two generations old) I thought I would ask if anyone has any ideas I would try to diagnose/fix the issue. Thanks for any help! -Dan

 

[peter halle]

Welcome to the FOG!  I would suggest that you contact Festool USA in your case next week and ask to talk to the service department.  As you said it might not be practical to service a saw of that age, but my guess is that it could be repaired and that the guys in the Service Department would get a kick out of servicing a tool of that age.

Peter

 

[AlexThePalex]

I don't know how to test for the speed controller issue.

I am not familiar with your particular model the ATF 55, but with most Festools I have repaired you could take out the electronics module and simply bypass it. This way you can test if the electronics module is the culprit or that the problem lies down later in the chain.

But a new module is expensive and a replacement might not even be available for your model anymore.

 

[xedos]

EKAT say no more ATF55 controllers available.    Brushes still seem to be in stock.

 

[Spinning Wheel]

I don't know how to test for the speed controller issue.

I am not familiar with your particular model the ATF 55, but with most Festools I have repaired you could take out the electronics module and simply bypass it. This way you can test if the electronics module is the culprit or that the problem lies down later in the chain.

But a new module is expensive and a replacement might not even be available for your model anymore.

Well I spoke to Festool and as mentioned, no parts available for the ATF 55 anymore. Kind of disappointing given that I bought Festool as opposed to a cheaper brand hoping it would be the only saw I’d ever have to buy.

Any tips on how to bypass the speed control module?

 

[Michael Kellough]

I don't know how to test for the speed controller issue.

I am not familiar with your particular model the ATF 55, but with most Festools I have repaired you could take out the electronics module and simply bypass it. This way you can test if the electronics module is the culprit or that the problem lies down later in the chain.

But a new module is expensive and a replacement might not even be available for your model anymore.

Well I spoke to Festool and as mentioned, no parts available for the ATF 55 anymore. Kind of disappointing given that I bought Festool as opposed to a cheaper brand hoping it would be the only saw Id ever have to buy.

Any tips on how to bypass the speed control module?

I bought expensive Hans Grohe plumbing fixtures for the same reason (and I liked the appearance). Was reassured to go ahead and pay the high price because they offered a “lifetime warranty”. When I needed a new cartridge I found out the “lifetime” was not my lifetime but the lifetime of the model number plus ten years (obsolete stock holding time). Since the model I bought was revised two years after I bought it the actual warranty amounted to 12 years. Sounds like Festool’s policy is similar.

 

[Michael Kellough]

I’d take Alex’s advice and try bypassing the speed control. It isn’t useful for cutting wood anyway.

 

[AlexThePalex]

Well I spoke to Festool and as mentioned, no parts available for the ATF 55 anymore. Kind of disappointing given that I bought Festool as opposed to a cheaper brand hoping it would be the only saw I’d ever have to buy.

Any tips on how to bypass the speed control module?

The ATF55 is a really old model by now, I think it was discontinued around 20 years ago. Back then Festool offered replacement parts and support for up to 7 years after they stopped production, now it's 10. I don't think that's incredibly unfair, you can't expect anyone to keep on supporting old tools forever.

As for bypassing the module, you simply take it out, see where the wires go in and out, and connect them through. You can connect mains power straight to the brushes, with the switch in between. As I'm from Europe I wouldn't have to worry about polarity, but with American plugs and wires that might be different, make sure you get that right to US code. Once you've tested it, make sure everything's properly insulated, preferably with heat shrink tubing.

 

[Michael Kellough]

It’s not that old Alex. I bought mine in 2002 (or 3) and the TS version wasn’t offered for sale (here anyway) for at least 2 more years. If I remember correctly.

 

[AlexThePalex]

It’s not that old Alex. I bought mine in 2002 (or 3) and the TS version wasn’t offered for sale (here anyway) for at least 2 more years. If I remember correctly.

Well, it doesn't matter what the exact year was, all I know is, the TS55 came to market somewhere in the early 2000's. So the ATF55 is definitely more than 10 years out of production.

What's the production year of your saw? My ATF 65 died in 2014 or 2015, not sure anymore, but I believe it was produced in '98. My current TS55 is from 2007.

 

[ScotF]

Call a company like MM Tool parts and see if they have it in stock. I checked and they still list it as being available and a shared part with the OF2000 router (also discontinued) but maybe less than 10 years ago. Worth a check. Part is less $65.00 and part number 488372 according to the site and diagram.

 

[Spinning Wheel]

It’s not that old Alex. I bought mine in 2002 (or 3) and the TS version wasn’t offered for sale (here anyway) for at least 2 more years. If I remember correctly.

Well, it doesn't matter what the exact year was, all I know is, the TS55 came to market somewhere in the early 2000's. So the ATF55 is definitely more than 10 years out of production.

What's the production year of your saw? My ATF 65 died in 2014 or 2015, not sure anymore, but I believe it was produced in '98. My current TS55 is from 2007.

My AFT 55 was purchased in early 2005, and I don’t recall seeing the successor for at least a year or two after that. I’m not expecting them to keep parts around forever but wear items like brushes and a key component like a speed controller board seem reasonable to have on hard for a while.

I inherited some Craftsman power tools from my father that are older than me and still running today. I knew I would never be able to do that with any of the products from the standard brands today so I sought out the best I could buy.

 

[xedos]

What's considered reasonable ?

7 years by German law, 14 since you purchased; and I'll wager the build date on you saw was well before 05' .  I'll look later at my back catalogs to verify , but TS55 was surely available in 05' stateside. Meaning, ATF was "old stock" at that point.

How many computer boards for 05' vintage tools do you think you can order from Dewalt, Milwaukee or Makita ?  It stinks that a controller is not available, but brushes ( and some other parts) are.  Also consider that Festo probably didn't make that controller to begin with.