Kapex 120 making bad cuts - centre section not secure- lifts at end

[lawrielol]

Hi
my kapex does not make true cuts. I run through 4 cut calibration and other calibrations but still have problems.

I have found that the rear main vertical fence is coplanar however the left, right and middle rotating section are not co planar. horizontally. The centre is perhaps 2mm higher than the sides. Getting down on my knees I saw that when the centre section moves up and down when releasing the lock knob. If I then stand and apply downward force to the handle on the mid section it is once again coplanar.

I checked the centre nut that holds the rotating centre to the base and it is tight.

Looking at the exploded parts diagram I can see 3 parts that I initially thought may be related to the issue, namely the spring washer, bushing (worn?) and "glide plate" . part numbers 97, 113 and 131 respectively.
https://www.sparepartsworld.co.uk/product/SPARE_495776

I dont think it would be the spring washer and bush as they could not apply significant downward clamping force being at the centre. My hunch is that it is not being held down at the outside edge and that the force that the locking clamp is lifting the whole rotating section..

Has anyone experienced this? Does anyone have an idea before I dismantle and inspect?

Thanks in advance

Lawrence

 

[Birdhunter]

I just checked my Kapex. It is coplanar across the back fences. It is coplanar across the pivoting part at the back. The "tongue" on the pivoting part rises slightly as it moves out toward the locking handle.

I get perfect square cuts with the wood left of the blade. My cuts are very slightly off square with the wood on the right side of the blade. I've never figured out why this happens. I've spent hours trying different adjustments with no success. I do precision cuts on my SawStop Industrial table saw.

 

[lawrielol]

HI Birdhunter,
it sounds like you could have a similar issue to my machine. The spring built into the end of the swivel arm that you use to depress the stop into the angle detent and the spring that you can use to lock the arm/tongue at any specific angle cause the end of the arm to rise above the plain defined by the outmost edges. The centre nut, bush and spring washer that holds the 2 main pieces together is at the centre of a lever so surely not designed to hold it level from the centre.

Its more likely that the clamp at the end of the rotating arm use for the indents at specific angles on the bevel scale would be a better place to put a mechanism to pull the arm down level with the edges but the bevel scale/indent ring is flimsy in the vertical direction. I therefore assume it must be wear in the "glide plates" that can be seen in the exploded parts diagram.

In a previous attempt to make accurate cuts I have made a detachable double pneumatic clamp assembly that is foot operated and fixes to saw/MFT table. It cost less than US$100 in parts to make, I will post some pictures when I can. I made it to ensure that the pieces being cut were held securely before cutting in my quest to simply cut a 45.0 +/- 0.1 degree bevel.

I use it with a MFT table and two UG extension arms, quite a significant investment, all I want is for it to cut precise 45deg cuts from left or right hand side, that's not much to ask is it? Or do I need to buy another Kapex and set it up for cutting accurately from the other side?

I would love a Sawstop, very cool machines from what I have seen but I dont have the space in my workshop, I have to take my dewalt table saw from a shelf, set up on a temp table use and pack up. A real PITA but I dont rip much wood. One day though...

Lawrence

 

[Birdhunter]

The slight rise of the "tongue" on my Kapex has never caused a problem with any of my projects

 

[lawrielol]

Its great that it doesn't cause a problem for you but I have a consistent issue with my mitre joints when cut on the Kapex. I use the Kapex for work and I cannot make the quality of product I expect with it.

I have an old Dewalt collecting dust on the shelf, its sturdy and not flimsy in terms of the pivot centre rocking up and down, perhaps its time to start using that and built a mitre station for it.

If anybody has a similar issue with their Kapex and especially if it has been fixed (by themselves or Festool ) I would love to hear from anyone on this forum.

 

[squall_line]

Is it safe to assume that this tool is out of warranty?  That is the only reason I can think of to want to self-disassemble at this point.

Was the Kapex always this way?

 

[lawrielol]

Hi Squall_line
yes you are very safe in assuming its out of warranty...  :-\

It appears that it happens also on new Kapexs also, see this post from another user.https://www.festoolownersgroup.com/festool-tool-problems/kapex-base-is-not-level/

He has posted a few videos of the problem on youtube here...https://www.youtube.com/user/eiden844/videos

That forum unfortunately diverges from the original subject but at the end another user reports of a similar problem that he fixed by taking to a machine shop. It seems a little excessive...

Quote = "This is what I did to my saw.  I took the miter base off of the saw base, removed the saw head from it and took it to a machine shop to have it resurfaced.  They took off  .005 of an inch to make it perfectly parallel to the saw base.  With new SS shims, I regreased it with a graphite lube.  Then I assemble it without the head attached.  The miter base was perfectly flat with the saw base in all directions.  I also replaced the spring washer with needle bearing and two races to minimize the flex.  Its really solid now.  After attaching the saw head to the miter base, there is a little flexing and the front part of the miter base does come up a little (now it's only .004").  I have to say though, with some further investigation, I noticed that when you pull the head forward to start a cut, the miter base becomes dead flat with the saw base.  And as you go through the cut, the bases are still pretty flat.  Only when I put the head up and back the base flexes.  It was a blessing in disguise because I fine tuned my saw's angle stops.  I made an acrylic throat plate and cut the kerfs in it with my wood blade.  Mistake.  Now i gotta send it in for sharpening because I tried to cut some mahogany and almost didn't want to cut!"

After thinking about it more perhaps the nut holding the two pieces together is not pressing/pulling the pivot hard enough to the base unit. Defective spring waster?

Does anyone else have the problem?

Hoping its a simple easy fix...

L

 

[ChuckM]

What happened to the Inside Festool 2022 series? Other than a 1.19 min clip (with little info. revealed), there seems to be nothing coming. I am waiting (hoping) to see how Festool does its QC/QA before a product leaves the production line. A miter saw that doesn't come with a flat bed, and a straight fence that's square to the bed should not leave the factory/warehouse.

 

[sancho57]

festool service is your freind

 

[lawrielol]

Ahh I rang the Festool service dept before I posted. I couldnt speak to anyone who could help, just someone who said there is £27 fee to send it in for inspection. If I remember the options would then be:

1. Receive a quote, pay it and get it fixed - I am a bit reluctant to do, partly because it sounds pricey and its prob an easy fix, (spring washer?) 
2. Have it returned unrepaired
3. Festool would scrap it for me free of charge (although I think I still had to pay £27 ~ US$35 )

My second hand US$100 old Dewalt job site saw is older, more used and cuts better.  Any Festool technicians out there who could chip in a thought?  [smile]