Kapex running really slowly taking ages to come up to speed

[J.B. Carpentry]

Hi, please can anyone help, or has anyone experienced this problem? I bought my Kapex from a tool shop in brighton, U.K. about 5 years ago. At first it worked fine, but then started to take ages to come up to speed, and then as soon as i started cutting it would slow down or stop. I took it back to the shop and they said the blade was bent, but other than that it worked fine. Not believing this i sent it to festool who agreed the blade was bent, (how this occured i dont know as the machine was used only very occasionally in a workshop and never on site and had the original blade i bought it with). Festool then said due to the bent blade it needed a new gear box and armiture which would cost £700......(2 new makitas or virtually a new Kapex!!). They agreed to just grease everything up and see what happened. When i got it back it was ok for about 3hrs use before the problem reoccured. So i went back to the shop and they sent it off to festool and got the gearbox and armiture changed at a cost of £400. I have since used the Kapex for about probably no more than would equate to an hour or twos continuous use in the year since the repair was done and the same problem has reoccured yet again. The machine has never been"worked" it has had only very minimal use and I can't afford another hefty repair bill. Initially Festool said that because i didnt fill in the online guarantee when i bought it they couldnt or wouldnt help me. Please help this has already cost me a small fortune and im very dissapointed in the service festool have provided!!

 

[Kev]

That sounds like worn brushes to me - if they've replaced the gearbox the only other thing is electrical.

Based on the experience you've described, you appear to be getting unusual service for Festool (at least from my experience). Did you speak to Festool service yourself or have you been going through your retailer?

Also - did you check the blade yourself or did you take their word for it that it was bent?

[welcome] by the way - wish it was under better circumstances for you ...

Kev

 

[bellchippy]

Although I love my festool tools ,the build quality the innovations and the system etc.i am starting to be concerned about stuff under the hood so to speak. I've had two routers and a CS70 need major work. Luckily one router and the CS70 were under warranty. I hope festool don't go down the route like other manufactures of letting things slip in a bid for profit and a bigger customer base. We pay a premium price for tools and they need a long life built in.

 

[sgryd]

Happend to my Kapex too. Occasionally it wouldn't even start. I took it to a Festool repair shop. 3 days later I got it back with new brushes and calibrated lasers. Works great after the service.

 

[Timtool]

Sorry to say but it sounds like a bunch of amateurs that took "care" of your saw,
I had the same symptoms with mine, it would start running slower and slower and get very warm and then stop. Sent it in to Festool Belgium, they said the engine was worn (brushes were good, i checked before) they replaced the engine, the left armature, the bearings and the dust hood, all for somewhere around €250.

The engine running slower is caused by the electronics protecting the engine, the gearbox may have suffered wear from a bent blade, but that can't cause the engine slowing down IMO and if it were bent you surely would have noticed the saw shaking sideways as it was spinning.

Is it even possible to bend such a blade? I would rather guess it cracks before bending.

 

[Tinker]

I would guess the blade could have bent from over heating. 
Why wood it over heat?
A dull blade
forcing the cut thru very hard/dense wood (even a sharp blade can warp if forced )
hitting some metal and dulling the teeth (or even chipping)
Some woods and/or laminates have tendency to dull blades faster than clean wood
Tinker