Does the Carvex get hot?

[JonathanJung]

Jonathan,

One machine that hasn't been mentioned are portable band saws. These machines are designed explicitly for the application you're describing (precise, scrolling cuts in thick timbers), and while they're not inexpensive they'd likely served you better than a jig saw in the long term. I had an opportunity to try the Mafell Z5 when I took the training a few years ago, it's very intuitive and very precise. There is a local timber framer who uses one and just loves it.
https://www.timberwolftools.com/mafell-z5ec-portable-band-saw

To those who would scoff at the price, let's remember the OP is a professional asking about a heavy duty application, thus I am suggesting a professional piece of equipment.

Alternatively, is there a scenario where you could prepare 3/4" MDF templates for your cuts, rough-cut the finished pieces on a band saw, then use a shaper with a copy ring and spiral cutter to complete the finished pieces? I do this regularly for curved work and find it much easier.....

This was a very nice suggestion. I asked the president of Timberwolf about it, and the two issues are:
blade kerf - so narrow I'd be hard-pressed to split my joint
distance between the blades is only 6"

 

[Tom the Remodeler]

Jonathan,

One machine that hasn't been mentioned are portable band saws. These machines are designed explicitly for the application you're describing (precise, scrolling cuts in thick timbers), and while they're not inexpensive they'd likely served you better than a jig saw in the long term. I had an opportunity to try the Mafell Z5 when I took the training a few years ago, it's very intuitive and very precise. There is a local timber framer who uses one and just loves it.
https://www.timberwolftools.com/mafell-z5ec-portable-band-saw

To those who would scoff at the price, let's remember the OP is a professional asking about a heavy duty application, thus I am suggesting a professional piece of equipment.

Alternatively, is there a scenario where you could prepare 3/4" MDF templates for your cuts, rough-cut the finished pieces on a band saw, then use a shaper with a copy ring and spiral cutter to complete the finished pieces? I do this regularly for curved work and find it much easier.....

This was a very nice suggestion. I asked the president of Timberwolf about it, and the two issues are:
blade kerf - so narrow I'd be hard-pressed to split my joint
distance between the blades is only 6"

Glad to hear you had an opportunity to chat with the team over at Timberwolf. They're a great resource, and I've found them to be less interested in making a sale, as they are in making sure you're getting the correct tool/machine for the job. Whatever the opposite of a pushy salesperson is, they are that.

I have the P1cc and while I really like it, I can't speak to whether it'll solve your heat issues. If nothing else, I suspect it'll be the most robust tool of its kind for the task. In terms of cooling down, I'm not an expert on the topic, but it's my understanding that running the tool under no load might help to dissipate heat faster (due to the fan cooling the motor) than just setting the tool down. In this scenario, you'd remove the blade and let it run a few minutes, in a place/manner where you wouldn't risk injuring yourself.

If you opt for the P1cc, give a look to the Collins Coping Foot, they make a version just for the P1cc, and I've found it to be really handy when performing sculpting applications.....https://www.collinstool.com/tools/coping-foot-mafell/

Neat project, looking forward to hearing what your learnings are  8)

 

[woodbutcherbower]

Hi Jonathan - getting a supplier to allow you to 'buy, try, keep or refund' is a great position to be in. I wish that tool dealers over this side of the pond were so accommodating.

Just another answer to a question you asked regarding scrolling/curved cuts - the Cunex W1 (the special double mega-blade) is further modified after welding by machining it vertically into a V-shaped wedge, so the kerf is actually only 3mm at the cutting edge - it then tapers down to a thinner section at the rear, so it goes round corners super-easily. It's obvious that they've really thought about this. I bought mine 3 years ago at a trade show after watching the Mafell rep demonstrating the machine with the W1 blade cutting a perfect circle around a £2 coin (just over 1" diameter) in 50mm/2" oak. The cut edges were exactly 90 degrees to the surface.

One other tip - this blade is super-aggressive, and it's an upcut. You need to use the supplied splinterguard with it, otherwise it will make a real mess of the top edge of your cut. The splinterguard is very effective. It consists of a clear plastic moulding which slides tightly in between the jaws of the saw. When you insert it, you'll realise that it won't slide all the way home because the blade is in the way. What you then do is to turn on the saw, turn the machine through 90 degrees so that it's facing downwards - then push it firmly downwards onto a solid surface with the saw running. As you do this - blade immediately cuts through the guard as it pushes backwards and locks home, leaving a nice little blade-shaped slot in the guard. It's exactly the same principle as running a TS55 down your rail after fitting a new splinterguard.

And on the same topic - the splinterguard is designed to sit tightly in the jaw, so you'll need pliers to pull it back out. It's worth buying a pack of extra guards so you can have a few of them with different sized kerf slots for the different blades you use. You'll also need to pull out the guard if you break a blade and need to replace it - the Mafell's clamping system ensures (annoyingly at times) that if a blade does break, it will always break just below the bayonet. Hope all that helps.

Let us know how you get on with the machine if you decide to go for it.

 

[Cheese]

I just happened to be using the P1cc so I grabbed some blades and put the caliper to them.

[attachimg=1]

I like the Mafell W1 blade but because of the wide kerf, cutting does slow down a bit. For that reason I usually use the W2 or sometimes the Festool Trion blade.

Mafell recommends both the W1 & W2 blades for curves.

Festool recommends the S 75/4 K blade for curves.

Here's a thickness comparison between:
1. W1 & W2
2. Trion & W2
3. S 75/4 K & W2

[attachimg=2]

[attachimg=3]

[attachimg=4]

Here I measured the kerf of each blade and the thickness of each blade. The W2 blade is interesting because the blade is very thick but the rear edge of the blade is tapered, like the W1, for cutting curves.

[attachimg=5]

[attachimg=6]