Kapex KS 120 out of square and flatness issues

[emmakun]

Hi all,

I bought a slightly used, semi-new Kapex 120, manufactured in July 2024 (stamped “Made in the Czech Republic”). I’m honestly disappointed given Festool’s reputation and the price. This saw cost ~10× my old WEN, yet the WEN’s fence is perfectly flat (I can’t slide even a 0.0015” feeler under a straightedge), so I expected at least comparable flatness here.

Findings (straightedge, square, feeler gauges):

• The fence is concave toward the center (at the split). Max gap: 0.008–0.009”. Also, looks like it's not 100% coplanar.

• The fence is not perfectly 90° to the table: with a machinist square, I see light gaps at the top or bottom, more noticeable with the movable fence sections installed.

• The table is not coplanar: the rotating center section sits slightly proud of the fixed sides/extensions (visible with straightedge/feelers around 0.007 to 0.010").

I have attached photos and short videos documenting these issues and can share the serial number as well.

Questions:

1. What are the acceptable flatness/squareness/coplanarity tolerances on the Kapex? Are these numbers out of spec, and would Festool typically correct/replace parts?
2. From Mexico City, what’s the correct path to request warranty/service on a semi-new unit? Who should I contact? Is it even possible?
3. Any known differences between Czech-made units and earlier German ones, or is this likely just my sample?

Dust collection is really great so far, and I know most of these issues could potentially be solved by adding auxiliary fences, but at this price point, I would expect something much better to start with. At this point, I'm debating if I should keep the Kapex and work around its issues or better sell it and stick to my old, cheaper WEN.

I'm sorry for the rant, but it's been really frustrating finding out these issues with such an expensive tool.

Anyways, thanks for any guidance provided

- Emmanuel

 

[makpacman]

Hello. I've had similar issues with my Kapex fence. I have two Kapex, one KS120 and the KSC60. They are great saws but they do have a few oddities. For one, the fence issue you are having is likely due to a kickback. I've had many mitersaws in my time and for some reason the Festool fence is the only one that I've actually bent during a kickback. That's the bad part. The good part is, it only happened once and I was able to quickly bend it to straight again without much fuss or heavy tooling. IRC it was just two screws to remove the lower fence and then I used one solid hit from a deadblow mallet on a sizeable square steel tube or "some other known flat surface" to get it back to straight. I'm not certain, but I think your squareness issue could be handled similarly.

If I had to guess, the saw's electronic speed control motor might exacerbate kickback's, tweaking the fence at times.

Another issue I've had is ongoing, whereby my KSC60 gets out of square when being moved on it's portable stand. This just requires a quick reset to 0 degrees, but why doesn't it just stay put like other saws I've owned?

Also, I've had blade jams that I suspect are due to the excellent dust collection when used with an extractor. Basically, small offcuts of about 1/2 inch or so can get hoovered up and jam the blade and blade guard something fierce.

So for me, none of these issues is a dealbreaker, because I, plus other members of my team often use the saws for 40 hours a week for months at a time, and the saws plus all of their features hold up to that very well.