Cordless Carvex PSC420 (and accessory kit!) Review and Demo (561 633)

[PaulMarcel]

Festool USA was nice enough to bundle up a cordless Carvex PSC420 and accessory kit for me to play with for the past month, give them feedback, and do a review.

Currently, the corded Carvex PSC420 is scheduled for North American release on September 1, 2013.  The cordless model does not yet have an announced date.

In this review, I'll demo the saw on a number of cuts and materials.  In the discussion about the tool, I'll discuss this particular model as well as the differences between it and its corded and D-handle cousins.  Also point out any notable difference between it and the Trion, which isn't being discontinued; the Carvex just grows the jigsaw line.

Even if you are not interested in the Carvex, I think I put together some interesting animations to demonstrate how a pendulum jigsaw works and its benefits for certain material.

I posted it on my blog here.  There are more photos there as well as a comment section for you to finish the unfinished joke in the video

It's 28 minutes; sorry, I go into details... it's a problem.  However, if you just want to see the demo, that's right up front, first 5 minutes.



Wish to thank Festool USA for the chance to take it for a pre-release spin.  When they said "for feedback", they meant it.  I had long email threads back and forth with the product manager who even forwarded some questions to Germany.  Sadly, they sent the answers back by email instead of printing them and shipping them here in a BS-105 kit...

Also, I am traveling and mostly off-line this Thursday and Friday; if you post a question or want a clarification on those days, I'll get to it on Saturday.

 

[Kev]

That was a full on review!

Thanks.

I love mine [smile]

 

[mike68au]

Brilliant review Paul... many thanks.  Even though i've had mine now for a month or so it was really informative, especially about setting the blades correctly. 

One thing with my Carvex is i have already had to have both trigger switches replaced.  The right was jamming first after about 2 weeks and then the left did the same.  Both were replaced under warranty so hopefully it doesn't happen again.
I'll definitely be watching how they perform over the next few weeks.

 

[CarolinaNomad]

Another Fantastic review!

 

[harry_mc]

Nice review Paul!  Thanks!!

 

[josephgewing]

I know battery life will be variable depending on the workload but can you give us some range of  how long the saw will operate on a charge?

Thanks, Joe

 

[copcarcollector]

Excellent video and information. THANKS MUCH PAUL!

 

[jonny round boy]

I know battery life will be variable depending on the workload but can you give us some range of  how long the saw will operate on a charge?

Thanks, Joe

JMB did a video of this, with the different batteries. I think it's this one

 

[cgmojoco]

Great review

Thanks for pointing out that the dust collection fitting won't work with the angled base.

Assuming it will be same with cord models.

I know jigs dust collection isn't spectacular to begin with...still a bit surprising they didn't build in a workaround...

Christopher

 

[richk]

any observations about the quality of the cuts?

RichK

 

[peter halle]

Thanks for pointing out that the dust collection fitting won't work with the angled base.

Assuming it will be same with cord models.

Christopher

Your assumption is correct.

Peter

 

[josephgewing]

Thanks for the link to the battery comparison and run time.  Much longer cutting ability than I usually need.

Joe

 

[PaulMarcel]

Thanks, guys!  And thanks for the link to JMB's demo, JRB.

For the battery life, it was like Joseph said: it would last longer than I normally need it.  If I was using it for flooring, which I have done with the Trion a number of times, I'd have to recharge along the way.

So the demos you saw were the second set I recorded because clumsy me bumped a focus setting on a camera.  When I first got the Carvex, I charged the one battery.  I used it around the shop experimenting, breaking down new stock to store, etc.  Then I did the first set of demos cross cutting 1", 2" and 3" Oak boards that were 8" wide.  Then did rip cuts 24" on 1", 2", and 3/4 of the 3" board before it ran hot.  The 2" and 3" boards were definitely loading it.  Again the battery stopped because the Carvex detected it was too hot from the load.  It still had a charge.  So because I botched all that video footage, I was running short on time to redo them all.  For the second run, I'd do a number of cuts then put it in the charger to top it off.

For Rich, the first videos had closeups of each cut; the two closeups in this video were from that first run.  I'd say they are no better or worse than the Trion cuts.  I should use the rest of this stock to make cuts at all 4 oscillation settings and stack the images so you can see them better in a raking light.  I'll plan on doing that when I get back in 10 days.

The one thing I had an issue with was cutting on the guiderail.  I was using the 75/4 FSG blade that states it can cut to 2 1/8".  But if you watch the blade when cutting the 1" Oak, the blade pulls up into the kerf.  I'd get 8" of straight perpendicular cuts before the blade started to bend away inside the kerf.  It was frustrating.  Then I noticed how the blade goes into the kerf.  Switched to the 105/4 FSG blade that always pokes through the bottom.  Then the cuts were perpendicular and clean.

The key, to me, to getting a perpendicular cut on thick stock is to start with pendulum setting 0 when first engaging the stock so it cuts a straight vertical line.  With other pendulum settings, you could see how pushing the blade into the stock could start it out crooked.  Once the teeth are buried in a kerf, you can advance to setting 1 to go further. Once the blade is completely in the stock, you can flip it up to 2 or 3.  You can make those pendulum setting changes on the fly as you cut.

I also noticed that on the thicker stock, if you pushed for the cut and never backed off a bit, it seemed that the gullets would load with dust/chips.  Once that happened, the cut would slow.  On the demo video cutting 2" and 3" stock, I was trying that theory out backing off the cut every 2-3" and you can see a good load of chips fall out each time.  With a guided cut, backing off won't make a bad saw mark.  Freehand, it would.  For freehand, use pendulum setting 3 so it tips the blade back enough to give the gullets a chance to empty.

Most of the above was figured out looking at the video after recording.  When I do the cuts for showing the smoothness of the cuts mentioned earlier, I'll plan on recording it to get a better look at the difference the pendulum setting makes on these thick hardwoods.

Okay, gotta pack.. plane leaves in 5 hours!  [crying]

 

[johninthecamper]

Lars and I did a demo this morning, all old news except for the carvex.that saw is pretty impressive

 

[cgmojoco]

The more I think about it the more I'm turned off by the angled base; sorry to focus on the negative.

-No dust extraction (cmon this is a FESTOOL)
-Rides on only half a fence when non-obtuse angle.  Maybe not a huge deal, but I do feel its a step back.

I'm looking forward to the light, the more robust accessories, added power, clearer view, better dust extraction (when not cutting on the angle, swivel plugit attach)

So several steps forward, maybe one step back.

A better angle adapter or a third party addon might fix the step back

Maybe a 3D print angle piece so you can connect the dust collection again....

And a base that is Trion like that swivels as a whole for those non-obtuse angles

 

[johninthecamper]

the butterfly base did seem like it was missing some parts.watching it cut with "half" a base ,it worked fine.I think that I would be more stable whole,when on a angle didnt seem to a notice lack of platform.putting it on a edge to cut,it helps,nothing in the air unsupported.

 

[Acrobat]

Paul, I really enjoy your demo and instructional videos. And I learnt a thing or three from this latest carvex vid. Awesome.
The manual is a bit vague on what the pendulum settings actually mean and what effect they have, so I was delighted with your description and advice on each setting there.
Also the descriptions of each additional base and how they could be useful for certain conditions and materials. I had thought they might be an extravagent waste of $, but am now leaning towards getting the additional bases set. Damn you Festool.

Thanks for taking the time to show us all Paul, it's so appreciated mate (as with all the posters on this site).

 

[PaulMarcel]

Thanks for the compliments, Acrobat!

Have to admit the pendulum setting video clip seemed like it would be interesting and useful, but I liked it much more after recording it and seeing how the oscillation setting affected it.

 

[mike68au]

I must admit i never correctly understood how the Pendulum action work till your video Paul.... thanks.

It was so well explained you should load it up as a small independent video.

 

[PaulMarcel]

I must admit i never correctly understood how the Pendulum action work till your video Paul.... thanks.

It was so well explained you should load it up as a small independent video.

Not a bad idea to pull it out.  People will be completely lost and confused, though, seeing a 2 minute video from me  [tongue]  I'll pull that out before tossing the raw footage.  Thanks for the compliment, too