Festool and mafell
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Birdhunter
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- Jun 16, 2012
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How a tool feels in my hands is important. I can drive 15 minutes and handle any Festool product and even try it out. I can take the Festool product home and try it out in my shop. If I don't like it, I can return it to my local dealer. I can't do any of that with Mafell.
McNally Family
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Birdhunter said:
I'm sure the Festool is a fine saw. My decision to purchase the Mafell saw was made based on my having the Mafell rails, which I purchased after buying the Mafell jig saw (which all research points to it being superior to the Festool jig saw).
Once the rail decision is made, the saw purchase is predetermined.
MrToolJunkie
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- Jul 6, 2009
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McNally Family said:
Except the Mafell can ride either rail.... [big grin]
Holmz
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When did it become a competition?
The DX93 is nice, the domino is nice, and the MFT is OK... I do not have the BS105 yet.
For Mafell the jig saw, MT55 and the rails, and the eva115e are great.
The Erika I will fire up next weekend.
Then there is the deros, and the lamello gear.
Why not just get the best from each?
Being wedded to some belief of "Festool uber alles" seems like denial of factual reality.
Given that that old OF2000 was made by Mafell, and the early vacuums by Nilfisk makes it even just comical.
There is also a lot of Bosch and Metabo gear that also seems desirable.
The DX93 is nice, the domino is nice, and the MFT is OK... I do not have the BS105 yet.
For Mafell the jig saw, MT55 and the rails, and the eva115e are great.
The Erika I will fire up next weekend.
Then there is the deros, and the lamello gear.
Why not just get the best from each?
Being wedded to some belief of "Festool uber alles" seems like denial of factual reality.
Given that that old OF2000 was made by Mafell, and the early vacuums by Nilfisk makes it even just comical.
There is also a lot of Bosch and Metabo gear that also seems desirable.
Slider613 said:
I ended up buying my Mafell saw from the UK and importing it. The price was not much different than a TS55. However, that may fluctuate as the USD to GBP changes. I also probably don't have a warranty.
Slider613 said:
I did not like the Carvex either, but I have a problem with spending more than $400 on any jigsaw. I ended up with a bare-tool cordless Bosch I already had Bosch 18v batteries) barrel style saw I got from UK as well (not available in US) for under $150. It's brushless and works very well.
yetihunter
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- Apr 21, 2013
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No way, dude, the Canadians and Northeasterners make way better hand planes than the Germans. [smile]
Cheese
Member
Slider613 said:
I just traded my Trion & Carvex in for a Mafell P1 cc...no comparison. Hated to spend the $$$ but well worth it, I should have done it earlier before I spent money on a Milwaukee, then a Trion and finally the Carvex. [doh]
maccruiskeen
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- Jun 3, 2017
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- 7
For me the main difference is the rail.
As a tool for sawing the Mafell rail wins hands down - it has a narrower footprint so you can work on smaller pieces, its more robust, the splinter guard stays attached, the process of joining sections together is faster and stronger and automatically straightens the joint as you tighten it. It stays in place while you're working better (I haven't needed to use the clamps during the last 8 years of so of use) The rail sections being a little longer makes them more useable too - supporting the saw beyond the start and finish of full board cuts. I find Festool rails delicate and clumsy by comparison.
Festool's benefit over Mafell is that their rail is part of a much larger system, it has more applications than just sawing. Its a jack off all trades compared to Mafell's master on one. But I can't help but feeling wishing they'd developed a better version of their rail before committing such a wide range of products and processes around it.
As a tool for sawing the Mafell rail wins hands down - it has a narrower footprint so you can work on smaller pieces, its more robust, the splinter guard stays attached, the process of joining sections together is faster and stronger and automatically straightens the joint as you tighten it. It stays in place while you're working better (I haven't needed to use the clamps during the last 8 years of so of use) The rail sections being a little longer makes them more useable too - supporting the saw beyond the start and finish of full board cuts. I find Festool rails delicate and clumsy by comparison.
Festool's benefit over Mafell is that their rail is part of a much larger system, it has more applications than just sawing. Its a jack off all trades compared to Mafell's master on one. But I can't help but feeling wishing they'd developed a better version of their rail before committing such a wide range of products and processes around it.
Gecko suction clamp, dog rail clips, protractors and squares, flip stops, anti tip-over thingies, magnetic rail holders, etc. etc. I've seen many other custom jigs over the years on FOG and elsewhere that utilize that t-slot. It's handy to have an attachment point on your rail.GhostFist said:
