CUTTING ON THE MFT - HELP NEEDED

[johnrichardson]

yeah i think you have it there fshanno    the sag wouldnt make a curved  cut, so it must  be movement horizontally  x y axis.. somewhere ..

 

[Brice Burrell]

yeah i think you have it there fshanno    the sag wouldnt make a curved  cut, so it must  be movement horizontally   x y axis.. somewhere ..

A sag can cause the work piece to move, if the piece rocks because of the sag the cut going to off. I wouldn't rule this out.

 

[pingvinlakrits]

Is the blade on the TS55 properly aligned? Just asking...  ???

 

[arso_bg]

Thank you all for your participation and advice.

I have actually solved my problem with a new guide rail.

Regards

A.G.

 

[MarkF]

So the old one was bent?
(Inquiring minds want to know)

 

[johnl1]

A.G.

I just made my first cuts this weekend on my new mft/3, guess what, curved cuts!!! Was your guide rail bent from the factory? Did Festool replace the rail?

 

[arso_bg]

Hi all

The old guide rail was a long time in use and I would say it was quite heavily used.
Unfortunately I cannot say what and when exactly happened. The new guide rail just solved the problem.

Regards

A.G.

 

[chrisod]

I've got two 1400 guide rails and I was getting bowed cuts. I put the rails back edge to back edge and there was a gap of about 1mm in the middle with both ends touching. On further investigation it appears that one rail is the cause. One is 3 months old, the other about a month old. It's a bit annoying that this type of problem only becomes apparent after hours of wasted time and sheets of wasted material - do Festool have a factory quality checking proceedure ?  I'm waiting for the supplier to provide a replacement.
I also have a MFT/3 table - my advice on the rail not dropping properly on the front guide/support is to move the factory set stop as it will be incorrectly set. Set your fence and rail at right angles using 20mm diameter conduit in the holes in the table and then move the front guide stop to the correct position and lock it into place with an allen key.

 

[nickao]

yeah i think you have it there fshanno    the sag wouldnt make a curved  cut, so it must  be movement horizontally   x y axis.. somewhere ..

A sag can cause the work piece to move, if the piece rocks because of the sag the cut going to off. I wouldn't rule this out.

Yes, I agree Brice sag can cause some really weird stuff to happen, counter intuitive at best.

I think many people have just determined combining the rails is not the simplest way to go and can be cause for some error.
I am saving my pennies for one of those LONG rails.

 

[norwegian wood]

my honest opinion is that if you have a sag in the guide rail the way the guide rail is designed with the raised extrusions on the left side to hold the saw in place is the strongest side of the guide rail, if you bow it down the weaker side of the guide rail (the cutting line side) will tip down and in will pulling inward slightly

 

[richard.selwyn]

I used to use two 1400mm rails joined together but had to bust the piggy bank and buy a 3000mm one as I was not able to get regularly straight cuts.  I hang the 3000mm rail on the wall supported at both ends and am now sitting here in the office worrying if it could sag........

 

[wnagle]

I hang mine vertically on a nail. I'm hoping it stretches... 

 

[johnl1]

Just to update. I went back to my local dealer, Woodcraft, Mobile, with my bent rail. They called the local Festool rep and a new rail is being sent to me. The rep stated that if the rail was cut to soon after being molded that it was possible for it to bend/warp when it cooled.

 

[Dave Ronyak]

I used to use two 1400mm rails joined together but had to bust the piggy bank and buy a 3000mm one as I was not able to get regularly straight cuts.  I hang the 3000mm rail on the wall supported at both ends and am now sitting here in the office worrying if it could sag........

It should be fine.  I store mine the same way you do and have had no problems.  I  do like Wayne's idea and his dream, though.

Dave R.