Bosch Track Saw Coming to Canada/US (Mafell Made)

[Michael Kellough]

If the cursor doesn’t come close to the mark it’s not much help. In the UK version shown in the video above the point of the cursor touches the mm marks. Also, why are the increments on the US version so far apart?

 

[RKA]

Rail squares fit, and the rail can be fitted to the mft using the supplied hardware - with a couple of very basic modifications. Angle fences also fit...so, everything but parallel guides. Though there is a company in the UK about to release pg's that fit the Mafell/Bosch rails.

The bigger problem is that the saw base is wider than rail. Hence, you can't use rail dogs for rail positioning - the saw will bump into the dogs.

Well, I think you just need a slightly longer rail to keep the dogs away from the saw base, no?  Their standard rail is 1600mm.  You do need a little extra worktop as well for the dog placement. 

 

[Tom the Remodeler]

[member=2018]fshanno[/member]

Like the MT-55, the Bosch saw will work with F-tracks as well as Festool FS tracks, so it will still work with existing parallel guides, MFT, etc....

I have an MT-55 in my shop and primarily use the F-tracks (superior track ecosystem, in my experience), but I keep a handful of Festool FS tracks around for the odd situation where they're more useful. The MFT mounting system is VERY easily modified to accept F-tracks.

 

[Cheese]

The bigger problem is that the saw base is wider than rail. Hence, you can't use rail dogs for rail positioning - the saw will bump into the dogs.

Good eyeball Svar...and so is the Mafell corded & cordless MT 55. I guess they were never designed to be used with dogs.  [sad]

 

[Tom the Remodeler]

As a side note, I'm noting that a lot of folks are lamenting that the F-tracks may not be dog-friendly. As Svar points out, an easy way around this is to simply use a larger table surface to accommodate dogs, or:
-- use adjustable-height dogs that just match the track height without interfering with the saw base
-- Use the Ruwi 27065 stopshttps://www.sautershop.de/positionsanschlag-fuer-fuehrungsschiene-ru-27065?c=15531

In my mind, the F-tracks are far superior to the FS tracks because:
-- The F-tracks are much smaller, and it is very easy to transport 8 tracks in a single track bag
-- The guide strip is much more stout, is easy to replace, and since it rides in an extruded channel, there's no risk of glue melting in a hot trailer
-- The track connector is self-aligning and very strong, and you don't have to worry about checking for alignment every time to bump the assembly. Interestingly, Metabo's new tracks seem to integrate the general FS track form factor with the F-track connector.
-- Vacuum clamping
-- MFT hardware is easily adapted to work with F-tracks

My larger issue with using the dog holes to guide your track is now your MFT/home made work top suddenly becomes a dedicated cutting surface, and any imperfections in the holes will result in issues using the holes for precision cutting. Also, you are relying on your grid layout being perfect. Everybody has a different work flow and I appreciate that many users just focus on cutting, but since I use my table for everything from cutting, sanding, painting, finishing, glue-ups, and all sorts of other tasks that invariably get "gunk" in the holes, I've learned to not be precious about my work tops and simply treat them as a consumable that gets replaced a few times a year. I bought the DominoFix MFT boring jig and can now VERY quickly crank out multiple MFT tops out of Baltic Birch and have been very happy with the results.

After exploring endless other ways of doing things, I've come full circle and learned to appreciate Festool's method of using the 20mm grid for clamping, and using their other hardware for cutting. I have one "bridge" left stock, and have modified another to accommodate my F-tracks. Just my $0.02......

 

[rvieceli]

[member=48572]Shane Holland[/member] will the Festool saws work on the Bosch tracks?

Thanks

Ron

 

[Shane Holland]

[member=48572]Shane Holland[/member] will the Festool saws work on the Bosch tracks?

[member=3192]rvieceli[/member]

Ron, no, the Festool saw will not work on the Bosch rails.

However, you can use the Bosch saw with Festool, Triton and Makita rails.

 

[cperren]

[member=48572]Shane Holland[/member]

I believe the question is will the Festool saw work on the BOSCH track ...  Which is different although important as will the Bosch saw work with Festool track. 

 

[Michael Kellough]

[member=48572]Shane Holland[/member] will the Festool saws work on the Bosch tracks?

Thanks

Ron

Shane misread the question, no the Festool saw can’t be used on the Maffell/Bosch track. You can remove the black plastic filler on the bottom of the Maffell/Bosch and run those saws on the Festool/Makita track.

 

[Shane Holland]

Doh, sorry about misreading the question!  [embarassed]

As Michael said, no, you cannot use other brand track saws, including Festool, on the Bosch/Mafell tracks. Only Bosch and Mafell saws will work with these rails.

 

[Tom the Remodeler]

Doh, sorry about misreading the question!  [embarassed]

As Michael said, no, you cannot use other brand track saws, including Festool, on the Bosch/Mafell tracks. Only Bosch and Mafell saws will work with these rails.

Some Metabo saws will work on the Mafell/Bosch F-tracks as well.

 

[Svar]

[member=48572]Shane Holland[/member] will the Festool saws work on the Bosch tracks?
Thanks
Ron

You need to look at this thread:http://festoolownersgroup.com/festool-tools-accessories/festool-ts55-vs-bosch-gkt55/30/
Particularly read reply #39 by heiko1974.
There are few cross compatibility pitfalls.

 

[DeformedTree]

Complete with dual metric/imperial scales.  [big grin]

Shane

That saw is an perfect example of why tools should never have dual scales, that's completely awful.  I have deep issue with what Festool did, but at least they didn't go dual scale.

I don't see the issue, do you get confused?

As Michael Kellough said.  The cursor doesn't reach the mm scale, and the inch scale is barely a scale. You are going to get criss crossed with it.

It's the same mess as anything dual, like tape measures, combo ones are completely useless.  The rule you want is on the wrong side, or your eyes latch on a mark from the opposite scale you intended.

 

[ChuckM]

When I use a dual tape, I usually use it for conversion, so I don't need a calculator or google.

I understand the increments and the cursor being away from the marks problems, but unless you use the track saw to cut dados or tenon shoulders, what are some of the potential problems if the cut is off by 1/32" or 0.5mm in depth? I have had only limited experience with using a track saw, and they were all through cuts.

 

[Svar]

It's the same mess as anything dual, like tape measures, combo ones are completely useless.  The rule you want is on the wrong side, or your eyes latch on a mark from the opposite scale you intended.

To each his own. I use dual tape and scales all the time. Does not bother me at all.

 

[Cheese]

As Michael Kellough said.  The cursor doesn't reach the mm scale, and the inch scale is barely a scale. You are going to get criss crossed with it.

It's the same mess as anything dual, like tape measures, combo ones are completely useless.  The rule you want is on the wrong side, or your eyes latch on a mark from the opposite scale you intended.

As Michael and DeformedTree both said, what the heck is that measurement? It’s less than 1 1/2” and somewhere between 37 & 38 mm. So what dimension is that?

37 mm = 1.457”
38 mm = 1.496”
1 29/64” = 1.453
1 31/64” = 1.484”

So what dimension is it? Maybe they’ve introduced the tenths scale into the conversation which will certainly allow for some spirited discussion.

Big thumbs down on that offering.

 

[ChuckM]

Snip.
To each his own. I use dual tape and scales all the time. Does not bother me at all.

On the few occasions that I used the dual tape for their imperial and metric scales for measurement (not conversion) purposes, it caused no issues for me.

Does anyone have an application example where the current design of the dual scale (wide increments, etc.) on the Bosch would cause a problem in cutting or setting the saw?

 

[Cheese]

I understand the increments and the cursor being away from the marks problems, but unless you use the track saw to cut dados or tenon shoulders, what are some of the potential problems if the cut is off by 1/32" or 0.5mm in depth?

I have an HKC and I needed to cut some dados with it. I set it at the proper imperial height scale, cut the dados, tried to assemble the structure and nothing fit.

Long story short, 45 minutes later I realized that while the HKC has imperial markings, the detents are in metric.

 

[Svar]

I understand the increments and the cursor being away from the marks problems, but unless you use the track saw to cut dados or tenon shoulders, what are some of the potential problems if the cut is off by 1/32" or 0.5mm in depth?

I have an HKC and I needed to cut some dados with it. I set it at the proper imperial height scale, cut the dados, tried to assemble the structure and nothing fit.
Long story short, 45 minutes later I realized that while the HKC has imperial markings, the detents are in metric.

That scale (TS) is inaccurate anyway, off by 1-2 mm in the middle. To be accurate markings have to be non-linear (sin function actually), wider at the beginning narrower at the end. This is the first thing I noticed when I bought the saw. Same flop with other brands.

 

[Cheese]

Long story short, 45 minutes later I realized that while the HKC has imperial markings, the detents are in metric.

Maybe I’m just a dreamer, but wouldn’t it be nice if Festool just stated up front that while the scale markings are imperial, the positioning detents are metric.

Who’d have thunk in this day & age a little bit of honesty would become a breath of fresh air?