Festool rail length

[derekcohen]

Michael, you have an AT65 E as well. What rail length would you use for a 800mm crosscut (I have just measured an internal door in our house)?

Now I am going to throw a bit more into the mix: I do own a rail. It started out as a Makita 1400, and I cut it into 800 and 600. I have the Makita joiners, and can return it to 1400, if needed. Why do I have it? I purchased it about a year ago to use with a router. Having read about the differences between the Makita and the Festool rails, what I fix on is that both work, but the Festool works better. I am comfortable purchasing another rail, but I really only want one for crosscutting. I can switch to the Makita for a longer length, however it will need a little re-tuning, as all know, since there is a smidgeon difference in the guide, which would lead to slop unless adjusted.

I would prefer not to go to another 1400 (I'd rather have a Festool 1400 than a Makita 1400), and anyway, it is now a 800, which is likely to be too short. If the preferred length is 1080, this would also tuck away nicely under the bench. However, that is not the best reason to get it, if it will not do what I intend it to do.

Regards from Perth

Derek

 

[Jim_in_PA]

Derek, the Makita rails are compatible with the Festool saw. In fact, my "short" rail mentioned above is a Makita and was purchased from an SMC community member who ended up with multiples for some reason a few years ago. It's probably in the 1000mm range, but I'm not able to go measure it right now.

 

[Michael Kellough]

[member=4358]derekcohen[/member]  I got the saw out and checked. My 65 is actually a venerable old Festo AT 65 so it must differ slightly from your saw. I misremembered the slot design. Unlike my ATF 55 the slot on the AT 65 has a wide section in the middle so it does require getting both gibs on the rail, or close to it.

The runway required for my AT 65 at full plunge is 300 to 400mm. 400 gets both front an back gibs engaged for maximum lateral stability. 300 gets close so you need to be a little careful. I didn’t check the required runway at a shallow depth like for sheet goods but it will be less than for full depth, probably around the 300mm mark.

Add the length of the cut you want to make to the 400mm runway requirement to find the minimum rail length. 400+800=1200.
(The 400mm total allows the blade to be fully out of the work at full plunge depth at both beginning and end of the cut while both gibs are on the rail)

So it sounds like you’re all set. Just rejoin your cut down rails to trim the door.