Festool FS Guide Rail vs Mafell F Guide Rail

[ScotF]

FWIW - Mafell rails are also ground square and straight on the edge opposite the anti-splinter strip - useful if guiding a jigsaw against the rail.

 

[Cheese]

FWIW - Mafell rails are also ground square and straight on the edge opposite the anti-splinter strip - useful if guiding a jigsaw against the rail.

That'd certainly be a nice touch if that is true...just looked at both of my rails and I could not detect any grinding marks of flycutter/endmill marks on the edge. The surface finish appears to be the same as the rest of the rail.  [sad]

 

[Svar]

FWIW - Mafell rails are also ground square and straight on the edge opposite the anti-splinter strip - useful if guiding a jigsaw against the rail.

That'd certainly be a nice touch if that is true...just looked at both of my rails and I could not detect any grinding marks of flycutter/endmill marks on the edge. The surface finish appears to be the same as the rest of the rail.  [sad]

Could be ground and then anodized? Would that make sense?
Regardless, a good quality extrusion is straight enough as it is for any woodworking task.

 

[Cheese]

Could be ground and then anodized? Would that make sense?
Regardless, a good quality extrusion is straight enough as it is for any woodworking task.

It would have to be ground/flycut, then bead blasted and then anodized. All of which is possible and maybe explains why the rail is so expensive compared to the Bosch rail. The surface finishes over the entire surface of the Mafell rail are all exactly the same.  [smile]

Don't know...just love the connector though.  [big grin] [big grin] [big grin]

 

[ScotF]

I checked one of mine tonight and I stand corrected...don't think they are machined. Sorry for the misinformation!  [embarassed]

Still nice rails, though....Mafell and Bosch.

 

[tallgrass]

Ground? I seriously doubt that. Sound great but it makes no sense. Especially on a material as soft as aluminum. I checked my Festool  rails with a Starrett square. ALL of my rails seem dead on. Also if they were not, it would be painlessly easy to correct.

 

[yetihunter]

The only thing lacking in the Mafell rail is the lack of a TSO Guide Rail Square...however, I'm sure Hans [member=59331]TSO Products[/member] is working on it as we speak.  [big grin]  [poke]  [big grin]

Hans came aboard the MUF a couple years back, tossing around the idea, ultimately he was pretty clear about not wanting to pursue it.

FC Tools makes the most praised model.
https://fctools.co.uk/product/fc-mafell-mf-rail-square

I own the Taiga and have no complaints.
https://www.taigatools.com/precision-rail-square-mafell-bosch.html

Apparently Benchdogs UK make one.
https://benchdogs.co.uk/products/benchdogs-rail-square-mafell-bosch

 

[yetihunter]

As a recent purchaser to the Bosch/Mafell rail (I bought a short length Bosch rail) for my newly acquired jigsaw. .I won't be moving my tools over. I like the features of the Festool rails too much. If the selling point is that the Mafell/Bosch rails link up easier, that's solved with aftermarket accessories for the Festool rails and is a moot point. I do like the Mafell/Bosch rails lean low profile feel but that's about it.

This is how I felt when I still owned sets of both.  There were virtually no aftermarket accessories for the Mafell rails for quite some time.  TBH, though, before Seneca and TSO got the ball rolling, there weren’t any Festool guide rail accessories for an almost equal amount of of time.  We’re looking at about a 2 year gap before people started copying those products and making them for Mafell/Bosch.  I agree: the Betterley product does it’s job.  I wouldn’t kick either out of bed but I’ve grown more partial toward the Mafell rails over time.

 

[yetihunter]

Has anyone tried the metabo rails?

No, but I’ve tried those Metabo rail saws.  You can have them, but you’ll have to ask my neighborhood waste management truck driver where he took them to. 

 

[Svar]

There were virtually no aftermarket accessories for the Mafell rails for quite some time...

There is still virtually none and it's not going to change. Simply because there is no place to attach the accessories.

 

[yetihunter]

There were virtually no aftermarket accessories for the Mafell rails for quite some time...

There is still virtually none and it's not going to change. Simply because there is no place to attach the accessories.

https://fctools.co.uk/product/parallel-guide

And the aforementioned three readily available squares.  What am I missing? 

I was going to post pics of my OF1010 sliding along a Mafell rail but this website has been having hiccups with photo uploads and so you’re just going to have to take my word for it.

 

[Cheese]

The more I use the Mafell rails the more I like them. Just like what was previously mentioned, the MT 55 is so easy to change blades that you don't think twice about changing a saw blade...too easy peasy. Well the Mafell rails are in the same category. Join them, disconnect them, join them again, it's all so easy with the Mafell rail connector. And the MT 55 stores the rail tool on-board so it's always at the ready.

I've been cutting/ripping a lot off birds-eye maple lately and it's just so easy to add and subtract rails and change saw blades with the Mafell offering. I'd never go back to Festool and I still own the TSC 55 and an early TS 55. You really have to experience it for yourself.  [smile]

 

[ScotF]

I like both systems and will use both for the foreseeable future. The Festool rails stick to the surface better and I do like the green glide strips vs the metal on metal with the Mafell. I also like the anti-splinter insert for the offcut on the Festool and think it yields slightly better cuts vs the Mafell on certain plys - but it is negligible. The power of the Mafell and ease of blade change and better DC are what I really appreciate with the MT55 - same power as my TS75 in a lighter, smaller package - which is great. Clamping close to the cut line is also key for narrow stock.

It is good to have options and choices.

 

[Cheese]

The Festool rails stick to the surface better and I do like the green glide strips vs the metal on metal with the Mafell. I also like the anti-splinter insert for the offcut on the Festool and think it yields slightly better cuts vs the Mafell on certain plys - but it is negligible.

I'll readily give you that the Festool rails will allow both saws to move down the rails easier, significantly easier. However my splinter strips on my Festool rails have always been rather hacked up and look terrible. Consequently it's always an issue when trying to align them with pencil lines. The splinter strips on Mafell rails are always smooth and are vey easy to align on the pencil line.

I'll post something tomorrow about ripping narrow pieces on the Mafell rails.

 

[Svar]

However my splinter strips on my Festool rails have always been rather hacked up and look terrible. Consequently it's always an issue when trying to align them with pencil lines. The splinter strips on Mafell rails are always smooth and are vey easy to align on the pencil line.

Contrasting color sure helps, but how hacked up they are is simply a function of amount of use.

 

[thudchkr]

However my splinter strips on my Festool rails have always been rather hacked up and look terrible. Consequently it's always an issue when trying to align them with pencil lines. The splinter strips on Mafell rails are always smooth and are vey easy to align on the pencil line.

Contrasting color sure helps, but how hacked up they are is simply a function of amount of use.

I agree with Cheese on this. The splinter strip on the Mafell rail retains it’s edge much better than the Festool offering. I don’t trust my Festool rails to be spot on when I align my marks to the exact edge of the strip. Unless it’s a brand new strip on that specific rail, my cut is usually just beyond my marks because the edge hasn’t held up very well. This is not the case, however, with the Mafell rail. I have not changed the strip on any of my rails and they all continue to cut right at the edge of the installed strip.

I like Cheese’s “hacked up” comment. It’s how I think of my edges on “my” Festool rails.

The Mafell rails get tuned for the precision cuts nowadays.  Not so much on the Festools.

 

[Cheese]

Yesterday I needed to cut some drawer fronts but I was having difficulty sliding the Mafell clamps into the forward hold-down slot on the Mafell rail.

Chased it down to this culprit.

[attachimg=1]

When they punched the rails for whatever reason, a very small burr was left on the underside and prevented the clamps from sliding on easily.

[attachimg=2]

Just use a small flat Nicholson file on the underside of the slot. It doesn't take much. Both ends of the 2 rails had this issue although the RH end was always easier to slide on than the LH end.

[attachimg=3]

 

[Cheese]

This update segues nicely with a previous post that dealt with the need/use of Starrett double squares.

So, I needed to rip 6 drawer fronts to the proper width. They came from 6 different boards that were different widths. All had previously been run through the thickness planer.

I wanted to come up with a method that would accurately cut each different width board to the proper width and I wanted it to be repeatable as the drawer fronts will be next to each other with just about 1" to spare.

I decided to register off of the rear of the Mafell rail using a pair of Starrett double squares set to the same distance.

[attachimg=1]

[attachimg=2]

The rear board behind the double squares is just to keep the squares in place as you move the rail in position to touch each square. Without the rear board the double squares will move because nothing restrains them, the rear board being held by your hand does the restraining and keeps the squares nicely in place.

[attachimg=3]

[attachimg=4]

Make sure you clamp the Mafell rail as it moves easier than the Festool rail because of its narrow anti-skid strips.
Here's the result, 5 boards exactly the same width while the 6th board is 1/2 mm narrower on one end only for about 1" in length. Don't know what happened there... [eek]  but I'll take it and make sure that drawer front is used on an end.

[attachimg=5]

 

[blues]

Recently i bought the Mafell Aerofix and am loving it.  Takes a little bit of getting used to it.  Like once you position the rail, have to start the saw so the vacuum kicks in providing the required clamping force giving it an additional second or so before you engage. But the joy of not using clamps makes the work flow go quick. Also the additional unit that's shipped let's you use it from the top allowing you to position the rail at floor level. 
What could have been better is that the bottom of the Aerofix could have been used as a reference for perfect 90°. Sadly it is not.
I was able to connect a larger rail and rip a full 4x8 sheet and the vacuum provided fantastic clamping all through the length of the sheet. It is a bit pricy. But you don't have to fiddle with clamps and all you do is position and cut. I am using my mft a lot less after i got the Aerofix.

 

[FestitaMakool]

Cheese, so.. now you say that I (we) need to buy 2-two double squares.. cause they work so well in pairs  [big grin]. Pocket friendly parallel guides they are!
How do you like the Mafell clamps? I see Bessey are now offering them with their name on them, I like the features..