Kapex - impressive cuts (pics)

[Lou in DE]

I'm relatively new to Festool and the Kapex was one of my first purchases about 6 months ago. As I get more familiar with it I find that it is an amazing tool - this is not a "chop saw" by any stretch. I'm not sure that there is a miter saw out there that can slice through wood like this:

 

[jmac80]

Looks good  [big grin]
just ordered a kapex today  [cool]

 

[peter halle]

I would like to compliment your images  Very nice.  [thumbs up]

Peter

 

[flair woodworks]

In addition to your photos, I also like your wooden accessories.

 

[Gwerner]

Nice. I really need to add a zero clearance fence to mine.

 

[Gary in Texas]

I'm relatively new to Festool and the Kapex was one of my first purchases about 6 months ago. As I get more familiar with it I find that it is an amazing tool - this is not a "chop saw" by any stretch. I'm not sure that there is a miter saw out there that can slice through wood like this:

Lou, very nice zero clearance insert and fence!  Makes me want to upgrade my Kapex now.

But, why why why why why did you have to add your last comment about the Kapex not being a chop saw and not sure if there is a miter saw that can slice through wood like this, i.e. - your nice photos....

You do realize you made me drag out my very old (+15 years old) chop saw, yes, the despised by many on this forum, the old DeWalt DW705 - out from under my radial arm saw (yes, still have one of those too), where it had been thrown many months ago after purchasing my Kapex. 

So, here are my not so pretty photos, a la half a fence, and zero clearance TAPE, using a saw that I haven't done a darn thing to in years as far as calibration.  Will I need to blow the dust out of my shop now?  Uh, yes....  Would I need to blow the dust out of my shop if I placed it back onto its miter saw station, complete with vacuum and 4" dust collection to prevent said dust, NO! But this little exercise has also totally comvinced me my old DeWalt can cut as good, no, better than my Kapex (shudder the thought!)....

Note, a slightly used Kapex, complete with a straight fence and level cutting platform may very well enter the Classified section soon.  Still a lot of life and quality cuts in this old DeWalt saw with its Craftsman blade!

Oh, almost forgot.  Cut samples - done in a hurry, were walnut 1-1/4" thick x 7-1/2" wide, maple is 1 x 4", and the other is a 2x4 pine.

Point being, yes, I will put my old DeWalt chop saw up against your Kapex any day of the week!  And win.... 

Gary

 

[jacko9]

Well said Gary and I only bought the Kapex because I was curious about the Kapex and because my son needed my DeWalt with Bosch Gravity Rise Stand (He loves it).  I didn't upgrade, just changed to a smaller footprint (and spent a lot of money).

Jack

 

[Lou in DE]

Lou, very nice zero clearance insert and fence!  Makes me want to upgrade my Kapex now.

But, why why why why why did you have to add your last comment about the Kapex not being a chop saw and not sure if there is a miter saw that can slice through wood like this, i.e. - your nice photos....

You do realize you made me drag out my very old (+15 years old) chop saw, yes, the despised by many on this forum, the old DeWalt DW705 - out from under my radial arm saw (yes, still have one of those too), where it had been thrown many months ago after purchasing my Kapex. 

Hi Gary - always wondered who bought that legendary DeWalt [big grin] [big grin] [big grin]

Seriously tho, my previous Makita could not come close.

Happy that you love that old saw - someone here would be happy to pick up your Kapex I'm sure.

Lou

 

[Tyler Ernsberger]

I'm relatively new to Festool and the Kapex was one of my first purchases about 6 months ago. As I get more familiar with it I find that it is an amazing tool - this is not a "chop saw" by any stretch. I'm not sure that there is a miter saw out there that can slice through wood like this:

Lou, very nice zero clearance insert and fence!  Makes me want to upgrade my Kapex now.

But, why why why why why did you have to add your last comment about the Kapex not being a chop saw and not sure if there is a miter saw that can slice through wood like this, i.e. - your nice photos....

You do realize you made me drag out my very old (+15 years old) chop saw, yes, the despised by many on this forum, the old DeWalt DW705 - out from under my radial arm saw (yes, still have one of those too), where it had been thrown many months ago after purchasing my Kapex. 

So, here are my not so pretty photos, a la half a fence, and zero clearance TAPE, using a saw that I haven't done a darn thing to in years as far as calibration.  Will I need to blow the dust out of my shop now?  Uh, yes....  Would I need to blow the dust out of my shop if I placed it back onto its miter saw station, complete with vacuum and 4" dust collection to prevent said dust, NO! But this little exercise has also totally comvinced me my old DeWalt can cut as good, no, better than my Kapex (shudder the thought!)....

Note, a slightly used Kapex, complete with a straight fence and level cutting platform may very well enter the Classified section soon.  Still a lot of life and quality cuts in this old DeWalt saw with its Craftsman blade!

Oh, almost forgot.  Cut samples - done in a hurry, were walnut 1-1/4" thick x 7-1/2" wide, maple is 1 x 4", and the other is a 2x4 pine.

Point being, yes, I will put my old DeWalt chop saw up against your Kapex any day of the week!  And win.... 

Gary

Thanks for your post.  I use my dewalt with a freud blade everyday and I get great results from it.  I can cut thin slices just like the photos above.  You dont need a Kapex for great cut quality.

 

[Gwerner]

I'm relatively new to Festool and the Kapex was one of my first purchases about 6 months ago. As I get more familiar with it I find that it is an amazing tool - this is not a "chop saw" by any stretch. I'm not sure that there is a miter saw out there that can slice through wood like this:

Lou, very nice zero clearance insert and fence!  Makes me want to upgrade my Kapex now.

But, why why why why why did you have to add your last comment about the Kapex not being a chop saw and not sure if there is a miter saw that can slice through wood like this, i.e. - your nice photos....

You do realize you made me drag out my very old (+15 years old) chop saw, yes, the despised by many on this forum, the old DeWalt DW705 - out from under my radial arm saw (yes, still have one of those too), where it had been thrown many months ago after purchasing my Kapex. 

So, here are my not so pretty photos, a la half a fence, and zero clearance TAPE, using a saw that I haven't done a darn thing to in years as far as calibration.  Will I need to blow the dust out of my shop now?  Uh, yes....  Would I need to blow the dust out of my shop if I placed it back onto its miter saw station, complete with vacuum and 4" dust collection to prevent said dust, NO! But this little exercise has also totally comvinced me my old DeWalt can cut as good, no, better than my Kapex (shudder the thought!)....

Note, a slightly used Kapex, complete with a straight fence and level cutting platform may very well enter the Classified section soon.  Still a lot of life and quality cuts in this old DeWalt saw with its Craftsman blade!

Oh, almost forgot.  Cut samples - done in a hurry, were walnut 1-1/4" thick x 7-1/2" wide, maple is 1 x 4", and the other is a 2x4 pine.

Point being, yes, I will put my old DeWalt chop saw up against your Kapex any day of the week!  And win.... 

Gary

Thanks for your post.  I use my dewalt with a freud blade everyday and I get great results from it.  I can cut thin slices just like the photos above.  You dont need a Kapex for great cut quality.

Agreed completely. I didn't buy my Kapex for the cut quality, I bought it for the smaller footprint and dust collection.

 

[Thomas Prusak]

i often wonder why anyone would ever consider buying a 10" miter saw instead of a 12"? There is no substitute for cut capacity IMHO.

 

[Timtool]

i often wonder why anyone would ever consider buying a 10" miter saw instead of a 12"? There is no substitute for cut capacity IMHO.

My impression is that Festool is in general more aimed at cabinetmaking and installers who don't really need the cut capacity of a 12" and don't want the unavoidable loss in accuracy and increase in weight/size that comes with them. A bit like asking why not everybody uses 36V drills as they can do anything other drills do, with more capacity. For those who don't need that capacity it becomes a bad compromise.

 

[Tyler Ernsberger]

I'm relatively new to Festool and the Kapex was one of my first purchases about 6 months ago. As I get more familiar with it I find that it is an amazing tool - this is not a "chop saw" by any stretch. I'm not sure that there is a miter saw out there that can slice through wood like this:

Lou, very nice zero clearance insert and fence!  Makes me want to upgrade my Kapex now.

But, why why why why why did you have to add your last comment about the Kapex not being a chop saw and not sure if there is a miter saw that can slice through wood like this, i.e. - your nice photos....

You do realize you made me drag out my very old (+15 years old) chop saw, yes, the despised by many on this forum, the old DeWalt DW705 - out from under my radial arm saw (yes, still have one of those too), where it had been thrown many months ago after purchasing my Kapex. 

So, here are my not so pretty photos, a la half a fence, and zero clearance TAPE, using a saw that I haven't done a darn thing to in years as far as calibration.  Will I need to blow the dust out of my shop now?  Uh, yes....  Would I need to blow the dust out of my shop if I placed it back onto its miter saw station, complete with vacuum and 4" dust collection to prevent said dust, NO! But this little exercise has also totally comvinced me my old DeWalt can cut as good, no, better than my Kapex (shudder the thought!)....

Note, a slightly used Kapex, complete with a straight fence and level cutting platform may very well enter the Classified section soon.  Still a lot of life and quality cuts in this old DeWalt saw with its Craftsman blade!

Oh, almost forgot.  Cut samples - done in a hurry, were walnut 1-1/4" thick x 7-1/2" wide, maple is 1 x 4", and the other is a 2x4 pine.

Point being, yes, I will put my old DeWalt chop saw up against your Kapex any day of the week!  And win.... 

Gary

Thanks for your post.  I use my dewalt with a freud blade everyday and I get great results from it.  I can cut thin slices just like the photos above.  You dont need a Kapex for great cut quality.

Agreed completely. I didn't buy my Kapex for the cut quality, I bought it for the smaller footprint and dust collection.

I upgraded my dust shoot on my dewalt miter saw,  now it gets 85%-90% of the dust.  When the Bosch cm12 came out I notice it had an awesome dust shoot.  I ordered the Bosch shoot and the little parts and with a little modification mounted it on my Dewalt.  I think the parts cost me $10. 

Im not saying that my Dewalt is the best saw in the world,  just saying theres other alternatives.  Truthfuly when my Dewalt dies I will buy the Bosch hinge saw.    Its very hard to justify  $1400 for a miter saw.  For $1400 I can buy 4 Dewalt saws and almost 3 hinge saws. 

 

[HDClown]

I upgraded my dust shoot on my dewalt miter saw,  now it gets 85%-90% of the dust.  When the Bosch cm12 came out I notice it had an awesome dust shoot.  I ordered the Bosch shoot and the little parts and with a little modification mounted it on my Dewalt.  I think the parts cost me $10. 

You don't happen to have the part #'s handy that you used to do this?  I have a DW717 and this sounds like an interesting mod, although it may not be compatible since the DW717 is a slider.

 

[burp110]

this makes me wanna do some test with my makita compound miter saw. will upload pics.

 

[DB10]

this makes me wanna do some test with my makita compound miter saw. will upload pics.

My old Makita mitre saw would give the same cutting results as the OP's kapex, in fact all of my old mitre saws would give those same cutting results.
  It's all about the blade and the Kapex comes with a very good blade, should do for the price. But most saws come with a pretty avarage blades and a lot of people who don't use a saw every day take a while or never replace the stock blade. If you do some research and replace the stock blade it's like having a new saw. I only replaced the Makita with a Kapex because I wanted better accuracy and better dust collection, there was absolutely nothing wrong with the quality of the cut.

 

[Lou in DE]

this makes me wanna do some test with my makita compound miter saw. will upload pics.

My old Makita mitre saw would give the same cutting results as the OP's kapex, in fact all of my old mitre saws would give those same cutting results.
  It's all about the blade and the Kapex comes with a very good blade, should do for the price. But most saws come with a pretty avarage blades and a lot of people who don't use a saw every day take a while or never replace the stock blade. If you do some research and replace the stock blade it's like having a new saw. I only replaced the Makita with a Kapex because I wanted better accuracy and better dust collection, there was absolutely nothing wrong with the quality of the cut.

As the OP and having a Makita for 20+ years with a premium Forrest blades (professionally resharpened by Forrest)  installed I would disagree - the Kapex (& Festool) is on an entire new level of quality. The machine handles like a precision instrument and I really enjoy woodworking with quality tools (if only my skills matched  [big grin])

 

[Lbob131]

That looks like cherry wood on  the OP's  Kapex. Nice  timber.

 

[DB10]

this makes me wanna do some test with my makita compound miter saw. will upload pics.

My old Makita mitre saw would give the same cutting results as the OP's kapex, in fact all of my old mitre saws would give those same cutting results.
  It's all about the blade and the Kapex comes with a very good blade, should do for the price. But most saws come with a pretty avarage blades and a lot of people who don't use a saw every day take a while or never replace the stock blade. If you do some research and replace the stock blade it's like having a new saw. I only replaced the Makita with a Kapex because I wanted better accuracy and better dust collection, there was absolutely nothing wrong with the quality of the cut.

As the OP and having a Makita for 20+ years with a premium Forrest blades (professionally resharpened by Forrest)  installed I would disagree - the Kapex (& Festool) is on an entire new level of quality. The machine handles like a precision instrument and I really enjoy woodworking with quality tools (if only my skills matched  [big grin])

  I'm not knocking the Kapex and I agree with you the Kapex does have a superior precision and is far more enjoyable to use over the Makita, just saying I used to get good cuts with my old Makita once I installed decent after market blades.

 

[Lbob131]

I made a cut on  200 x 65mm  walnut then flipped it  over  and made another cut. Then measured the slice at either end.
This is on my old trusty work horse  the  Makita  LS1013.

The  inaccuracy - 2.19mm.

Then I moved  to  the hammer slider  and repeated the process..

The inaccuracy  here is  O.37mm.