Found a reason to buy the Festooll tracks instead of the Makita ones.

[mgrobins]

Makita tracks also have more ‘serrated’ glide strips on top of the rails,  that with time wear grooves into the saw base. At least this was true 5+ years back.

If you replace it with the Festool glide strip, does it ride at the same height, so it still pivots around the edge of the splinterstrip?

Makita rail... 170 bucks. Festool rail 340 bucks... 10 meters of Festool glide... 35 bucks. And you only need 6 meters.

This is a really good point. One of the issues that crops up on some of the saw comparisons online is that some don't rotate at the intersection with the splinter guard. I'm reasonably certain they are the same thickness... so surely using the Festool glides would bring it to proper alignment (if it's not already with the makita ones).

With talk of the makita glides damaging the saw base, I might be wanting to replace them anyway. Still works out cheaper than a Festool track!

 

[Michael Kellough]

Makita tracks also have more ‘serrated’ glide strips on top of the rails,  that with time wear grooves into the saw base. At least this was true 5+ years back.

If you replace it with the Festool glide strip, does it ride at the same height, so it still pivots around the edge of the splinterstrip?

Makita rail... 170 bucks. Festool rail 340 bucks... 10 meters of Festool glide... 35 bucks. And you only need 6 meters.

This is a really good point. One of the issues that crops up on some of the saw comparisons online is that some don't rotate at the intersection with the splinter guard. I'm reasonably certain they are the same thickness... so surely using the Festool glides would bring it to proper alignment (if it's not already with the makita ones).

With talk of the makita glides damaging the saw base, I might be wanting to replace them anyway. Still works out cheaper than a Festool track!

Test it.

 

[Coen]

Makita tracks also have more ‘serrated’ glide strips on top of the rails,  that with time wear grooves into the saw base. At least this was true 5+ years back.

If you replace it with the Festool glide strip, does it ride at the same height, so it still pivots around the edge of the splinterstrip?

Makita rail... 170 bucks. Festool rail 340 bucks... 10 meters of Festool glide... 35 bucks. And you only need 6 meters.

This is a really good point. One of the issues that crops up on some of the saw comparisons online is that some don't rotate at the intersection with the splinter guard. I'm reasonably certain they are the same thickness... so surely using the Festool glides would bring it to proper alignment (if it's not already with the makita ones).

With talk of the makita glides damaging the saw base, I might be wanting to replace them anyway. Still works out cheaper than a Festool track!

Test it.

The problem is... if it doesn't work out I'm stuck with a rail I don't want that I can't easily return either.

But if you want to test it, be my guest  [tongue]

 

[Michael Kellough]

The people who are reasonably certain there is no significant difference other than price, and plan to buy Makita rails, are the ones who should test that certainty. I’m not among them.

 

[Coen]

My gutfeeling says there is a tolerance difference between the brands.

But then again the shoulder of my first rail (an 800) is thinner than all the later rails I got.

 

[alltracman78]

Makita tracks also have more ‘serrated’ glide strips on top of the rails,  that with time wear grooves into the saw base. At least this was true 5+ years back.

I've read that too. I haven't used mine long enough for it to happen

I stand corrected. I happened to look at the bottom of my Makita saw today and grooves are just starting to form.
So definitely a problem there.

I also measured the distance between the inner surface of the blade and the blade side of the guide groove in the bottom of the saw.
The Makita is roughly 3/64 inch less than the Festool saws I have. So the Makita saw does cut closer to the edge of the rail, which is what I noticed while cutting as well.
I don't know if there's enough adjustment in the Festool or Makita saws to make up for this. I doubt it.
The pivot point also seems to be off with the Festool saws on the Makita rail, but I didn't get a chance to confirm that with a cut.

 

[Coen]

Does it sit higher on the Makita rail?

 

[alltracman78]

I don't think so?
I haven't measured but visually it looks the same height.

I did order a Festool rail and some Festool glide strip. So I'll see how the glide strip works on the Makita rail and I'll also see how the rails directly stack up.

 

[derekcohen]

Makita tracks also have more ‘serrated’ glide strips on top of the rails,  that with time wear grooves into the saw base. At least this was true 5+ years back.

From what material are the latest Festool tracksaws constructed? How do they wear out on Makita tracks?

I have an older Festool AT 65 EB/1, which is around 20 years old, but in new condition (purchased recently from a weekend warrior). It performs superbly and I do not see a need to "upgrade" (probably not an upgrade as this has a more powerful motor and larger blade that the TS55). This has a steel base. I cannot see it wearing out on the Makita track I have. Or will it?

Regards from Perth

Derek

 

[Coen]

Makita tracks also have more ‘serrated’ glide strips on top of the rails,  that with time wear grooves into the saw base. At least this was true 5+ years back.

From what material are the latest Festool tracksaws constructed? How do they wear out on Makita tracks?

Magnesium alloy. The Makita strips are apparently very hard and apparently over time cut into the base due to the higher local pressure.

I have an older Festool AT 65 EB/1, which is around 20 years old, but in new condition (purchased recently from a weekend warrior). It performs superbly and I do not see a need to "upgrade" (probably not an upgrade as this has a more powerful motor and larger blade that the TS55). This has a steel base. I cannot see it wearing out on the Makita track I have. Or will it?

Regards from Perth

Derek

Yes, that steel base is less likely to wear out.

Not to rain on your parade... but; A new TS 55 F with 1.8mm blade will definitely outrun an AT 65 with 2.8mm blade even despite it's 300W lesser motor, as long as the cut is within depth range of the 55  [tongue]
The AT65 is also >50% heavier and the saw tooth speed is also ~15% lower.
Might also be the 1200W TS55 motor is more efficient, but that is just a question mark.

 

[Coen]

I don't think so?
I haven't measured but visually it looks the same height.

I did order a Festool rail and some Festool glide strip. So I'll see how the glide strip works on the Makita rail and I'll also see how the rails directly stack up.

I don't know. I assume not, but looking forward to your report  [big grin]

 

[derekcohen]

Yes, that steel base is less likely to wear out.

Not to rain on your parade... but; A new TS 55 F with 1.8mm blade will definitely outrun an AT 65 with 2.8mm blade even despite it's 300W lesser motor, as long as the cut is within depth range of the 55  [tongue]
The AT65 is also >50% heavier and the saw tooth speed is also ~15% lower.
Might also be the 1200W TS55 motor is more efficient, but that is just a question mark.

Thanks Coen. That helps. I will stay with the Makita track already in use.

Until I am convinced that the tracksaw is going to be used frequently enough (I have a Hammer K3 slider), there is no desire to upgrade the saw for a new version. Also, the extra weight of the steel saw is fairly neutralised by it only being used with the track. I am impressed with the quality of the cuts to date (mind you, the blade is brand new).

Regards from Perth

Derek

 

[Ollaren]

View attachment 1

You can see how the groove in the attachment base won't fit over the lip on the rail.

You can remove it really easily, and you can use your router and others festool accessories on it.

For the TS55 (i have the TSC55K), just put a little piece of plastic (like credit card):

I got few makita rails and just check if they were straight. I remember one of them got a +5mm bend, i just returned it.
Oh, and festool clamp are compatible.

 

[BobInOhio]

I think my Makita tracksaw works better in the Festool rail. I have to tighten it to the Makita track to get rid of slop. Seems I don't have to tighten that much on the Festool.

 

[Coen]

View attachment 1

You can see how the groove in the attachment base won't fit over the lip on the rail.

You can remove it really easily, and you can use your router and others festool accessories on it.

For the TS55 (i have the TSC55K), just put a little piece of plastic (like credit card):

I got few makita rails and just check if they were straight. I remember one of them got a +5mm bend, i just returned it.
Oh, and festool clamp are compatible.

That is not how the FS-OF 1400 is supposed to be used.

Also; a full CC thickness??? Is the Makita profile that much smaller??

 

[alltracman78]

I haven't had a chance to do a full comparison because life seems determined to go 1000 MPH non stop.

But I did measure quickly.

Sample size is relatively small. I have 3 Makita rails (38?, 55, and 118).
I have 3 Festool rails (420 FSK, 680 FSK, and FS1400/2 KP).

The actual guide strips visually are the same height (I didn't measure).
The Makita guide strips are almost double the width of the Festool ones (I didn't measure) and ridged while the Festool are smooth.

The actual guide portion (middle raised rail) on the Makita rail seems to be roughly .010 to .020 inches smaller than the Festool. There seems to be a < .010 inch variation in the width of each manufacturer across their respective tracks. Considering sample size and quick measurements there MAY be no effective variation between manufacturers. But my 3 Makita were all smaller than my 3 Festool.
Even if the Festool is slightly larger that shouldn't make it any more accurate or better. Just a different size.

The distance from the outside edge of the guide portion to the cutting edge of the track (I did not include the splinter strip, only measured to the edge of the aluminum) was visually less on the Makita. Roughly .030 inches.
That difference explains the problem when cutting an angle with a Festool saw on a Makita rail and it not being on the same line as cutting at 90*.
I know my Festool saws cut noticeably closer to the edge of the Makita rail than my Makita saw does (I haven't tried the Makita on a Festool rail, and I'll have to make sure the saw won't cut the aluminum before I do).
Going off the adjustability of my TS75 (just an educated guess at this point, no measuring yet) that difference is more than you can adjust out. Different Festool saws may have more adjustability than others. I believe some of the older saws have more adjustability than the newer ones. Also, if you compare the adjustable portion between the TS saws and the HK saws they are different.

 

[squall_line]

The distance from the outside edge of the guide portion to the cutting edge of the track (I did not include the splinter strip, only measured to the edge of the aluminum) was visually less on the Makita. Roughly .030 inches.
That difference explains the problem when cutting an angle with a Festool saw on a Makita rail and it not being on the same line as cutting at 90*.

That shouldn't make a difference; the cut line when changing angles is controlled by the saw body and its height above the work surface, not the lateral distance to the rail guide.

 

[mino]

Anecdotal, as our sample size is not very big. Observations do align with price differences though:

3 Makita tracks 1500 (bought as 1 + 2 at same time). Along the reference surface all three had about 0.2-0.3mm (0.01") deviation over their length. This meant that when 2 rails were joined, however precisely, one would be potentially up to 1mm off in the middle of the cut. No matter how precisely one places or joins the rails.

I found out when a furniture piece made of laminated board not "meeting" in the centre section. That is when I bought a $150 reference straight edge and started comparing ...

5 Festool rails, 2x 1400, 2x 1400 LR32, 1x 1080. Bought gradually over 2 years. All are about 0.1 mm deviation along the reference surface.

I am excluding my 2700 as do not have a reference edge long enough and the fact that improper placement of such a long rail on the stock can make up for 0.5 mm deflection by itself.

We sold all our Makita rails. That they do not work with many rail-attached squares /per above, fixable/ and that their anti-slip pads are nowhere close to the FS/2 rails grip were just secondary considerations. Originally we wanted to save money ... and avoid having "expensive" FS/2 rails in a commyunity shop. Ended up just wasting money .. as is goes.

Caveat emptor:
When placing the rail on stock, the weight of the rail itself, and how it is placed, can cause as much as 0.2 mm deviation across the length of a 1400/1500 rail. This can be limited to under 0.1 mm with careful placement and is a limitation of the 180x2mm rail form factor. As such, rail accuracy better than 0.1mm/m is very much pointless. Festool met this. Makita fell a bit short. (For us.)

 

[Ollaren]

On all of my makita rail and with my TSC55K, the saw has some play even with the two wheels tight, and i need to put something betwen the excentric and the little piece sliding on the rail.
As you can see, the excentric wheel is not even at minimum even with the credit card (1mm, yes full thickness).

And i don't need to adjust this for my different makita rail (all are 15,5mm thick).

For the FS-OF1400 the picture isn't a tutorial for showing how to use it, it's just for compatibility.  ;D