Kapex died... Festool Repair to the rescue!!

[glass1]

Lol hitachi 8 1/2 only used for trim.  In my world when those hitachis and makitas came we used them for anything and hard.  Azek, really.  Come on there seems to be a problem with the kapex, maybe those untipped lose field windings that that guy exposed in the ts55req are also in the kapex? I know I know some have used theirs for years with no problems, maybe it's luck. It reminds me of an old uncle who bought a pinto and claimed to be rear ended several times with nary an explosion therefore there was nothing wrong with the design. I understand I am being tongue and cheek but I really want to modernize my scms. Many things appeal to me about the kapex but festool has got to get this right: fix the leaky arbor, flying small off cuts, unflat base(could care less about casting marks), more power, ditch the silly safety and internal blade guard,stronger miter lock, and if it's going to have a stiff miter turntable than add a detente override lock. Please stop being so complacent push festool to make the tools better. Like the carvex, why did they lower the power because it's brushless instead of keeping the wattage up and brushless and making a beast of a jigsaw.

 

[Jozsef Kozma]

Still stand by it , up to 2000 it was  mainly a trim saw in this area
Also know the tool repair places were doing pretty  well
We will never know how many had issues ,

 

[topgrip]

Another kapex motor failure here.  Last week the motor started to sparking, smell burnt and blow the fuses. It is 2,5 years old so its under warranty. I will send it to the dealer next week and im sure that festool will fix it. Newer had any problems with festool tools before. I have been reading these reports of kapex failures alot and i am curios is there a specific patch or year or something ?
And does those repaired ones break again ?

 

[ddrumguy]

Brand new to the Festool world and this group, bought my first tool a year or so ago (ts55 REQ and 36 vac) and was ready to pull the trigger on a kapex very soon but after reading all these posts I think i am going to limp along with my junk delta mitre saw. Has no features but when i pull the trigger it works. I can think of alot of other places to dump 1450.00. If I see Festool ever publicly address the problem and fix it - or state that it is fixed in this newest batch i may re-think my decision. But pretty scary reading 1400 dollar saws are taking nosedives after 2 years.. no thanks

In fairness, i went ahead and just made a call to tech support and just asked them what patterns are they seeing with this saw if any, or are they seeing alot of them coming back for repair and they arent seeing specific patterns. It does make me wonder though at what point is the decision made to start investigating from the QC side of the manufacturer. I still have my concerns after reading the above posts but feel a little better based on my talk with tech support (guy seemed pretty upfront)... fwiw... he did mention one thing that is often overlooked is blade maintenance and a dull blade can put undue strain on a saws components.

 

[WoodWhisperer]

When I picked mine up from festool I asked the guy working on them some questions. He was up front and answered all my questions. He said they really see a small % of kapex sold in the U.S. come back for repair. Having said that, there was 4-5 on a shelf in need of repair....  I still love to use the kapex and would have a hard time going back to a dewalt!

 

[Corwin]

When I picked mine up from festool I asked the guy working on them some questions. He was up front and answered all my questions. He said they really see a small % of kapex sold in the U.S. come back for repair. Having said that, there was 4-5 on a shelf in need of repair....  I still love to use the kapex and would have a hard time going back to a dewalt!

Seems that DeWalt and many other brands have a moving target as to build quality. Good reviews on older models, while newer versions may not be anywhere as good. Just my observation.

Not the same for Festools.

 

[topgrip]

Another kapex motor failure here.  Last week the motor started to sparking, smell burnt and blow the fuses. It is 2,5 years old so its under warranty. I will send it to the dealer next week and im sure that festool will fix it. Newer had any problems with festool tools before. I have been reading these reports of kapex failures alot and i am curios is there a specific patch or year or something ?
And does those repaired ones break again ?

UPDATE

Got my Kapex back from the Service. All good now as they fixed more than just the motor under waranty. It is an expensive saw and seems to have some reliability issues but i dont regret  buying it. It is the best of its class.
Mine is 240v model and i mainly use it with dust extractor.

 

[Jeremiah9675]

Hard to make the money when $1500 saws are toasted in 2-3 years... So what's the deal with these?..  Everytime I think maybe I'd spurge, I hear a burnt up story.

Like the other poster - I don't ever expect a mitersaw to die.  I had a Bosch saw for 4 years, a dewalt for 6, and currently use a bosch glide as well as a 11 year old cordless bosch 10" miter saw and a 15 year old dewalt 12"...

Too much scratch for a tool with a sharply defined life span.

Talk all you want about the great warranty, but what about year 3.25?  Maybe that blown up carvex post was a fluke in the lineup, but help me out here - there's been like 30 or so blown up kapex's right?

I spend that kind of cash on  a mitersaw and I plan on being able to use it for at least 10 years.

Jt

I love Festool but this saw is the power tool version of the Boeing Osprey which has crashed numerous times but when its operable is a great asset. I bought One and the motor burnt up cutting pine trim in less than a week. I returned it and did not want a replacement. I bought a Milwaukee Miter saw (12" glide) and haven't looked back since. Now with the new 12" Bosch Glide out Id say go with that. If your cutting 2x12" stair stringers, 6x6 girders, and 2x12 floor joists like  I am now then the Kapex will be useless anyway. Im sure the Festool Kapex may be some peoples first choice but for $1400 the saw should have a 6 year warranty since its more than double the cost of all its competitors and often catches fire. The brushes and commutator must be made by the hoverboard people. Anyway, hang on to your money. There are to many horror stories out there to justify it. Just my opinion.

 

[greenkoolaide]

I suspect the price is 2-3 times more than the average miter saw because the price of replacing a motor during the warranty period has been factored in?

Just a guess.

 

[peter halle]

Mr. GreenKoolaide,

Forgive my formality - May I call you Rob - a name in your email account?    The forum software seems to think that you and another member may be one and the same.  In any case I have placed a ban on your postings until we can get this squared away just in case there is an error because having multiple usernames is a violation of the Forum Guidelines.

Please contact the forum administrator regarding this situation.

Peter Halle - Moderator

 

[Holmz]

There was some humour in his post though.

 

[Wuffles]

...because having multiple usernames is a violation of the Forum Guidelines.

As is abusive language towards another member. Didn't stop you from not banning Darren after I pointed that out.

Happy new year.

 

[peter halle]

...because having multiple usernames is a violation of the Forum Guidelines.

As is abusive language towards another member. Didn't stop you from not banning Darren after I pointed that out.

Happy new year.

PM sent.

 

[Wuffles]

I don't need a pm about it, now. It's 00:41 here on Jan 1st. I think I'm factually bang on, and will leave it there.

 

[unityroad]

Well I'm glad the OP is happy. My 4 year old Kapex has cut everything I could throw at it. It spent a year cutting 2" x 11" wide and hard mahogany. Tons of trim, old wood. Painted old crusted wood, barn siding while it was raining. Rolled up and down 3 flights of stairs daily for 2 year project. Yeah I would buy another. I still use a series 1 Dewalt 12" miter saw.  I do clean and take care of my tools. Maybe I'm just lucky. However I still use my tools where I'm working. If its outside oh well. I Love the Kapex.  I do not "save the Kapex for the good work. She eats whatever I put in front of her. be fine trim or split up nasty old wood we are trying to salvage.