LR 32 hole system help- whats realty necessary?

[Brandon]

Wanted the LR 32 system but didn't really want to shell out the money for the entire kit in the systainer plus the guide rail. Besides the rail w holes in it and the bit. What else is really needed to use the LR 32 system?

 

[chrisrosenb]

The items that are required are a rail with holes, the guide plate & a router.
The rest of the items just make setup & making repeat drilling on different parts easier.

 

[BlueMaxx]

What size initial rail do folks with experience get for their initial buy? There is such a large price difference between shorter and longer hole rails. Or is it better to buy two small and use a rail joiner?
I can see where a longer rail would be useful for larger carcase builds, however buying one in advance of planned projects is tricky for me
Sorry for the hijcak [embarassed]
(I am finally making the plunge when taxes come this year hence my additional question)

 

[bionicus]

There's a more affordable 'stripped down' kit available. I believe it includes everything except the systainer, clamps, hinge boring bit, and both 5mm shelf pin bits. It's part No. 583 290. Link.

 

[Brice Burrell]

There's a more affordable 'stripped down' kit available. I believe it includes everything except the systainer, clamps, hinge boring bit, and both 5mm shelf pin bits. It's part No. 583 290. Link.

This is the set I bought, great value in my book over buying the complete set. I already had clamps, an extra Systainer and at the time of my purchase I was using 1/4" bits for my shelf pin holes.

The items that are required are a rail with holes, the guide plate & a router.
The rest of the items just make setup & making repeat drilling on different parts easier.

Chris is technically right but I'd recommend getting the set bionicus linked to. It has the stops for the guide rail that make it a much easier system to use.

What size initial rail do folks with experience get for their initial buy? There is such a large price difference between shorter and longer hole rails. Or is it better to buy two small and use a rail joiner?
I can see where a longer rail would be useful for larger carcase builds, however buying one in advance of planned projects is tricky for me
Sorry for the hijcak [embarassed]
(I am finally making the plunge when taxes come this year hence my additional question)

The flaw to the larger rail is it's under 8" feet so you can't do full height panels. And the problem with joining two short rails is maintaining a perfect 32 mm spacing between the two rails. The new 1400 mm LR32 rails and their connectors will be a welcomed addition to my collection, if they make it to the US.

My advice, get one short rail and hop-scotch it down a long panel if needed. 

 

[BlueMaxx]

Thanks you sir!
That makes perfect sense,
Mike

 

[Wood_Junkie]

I've been looking at this system for quite a while, and have ascertained the following:
- You need a LR32 rail with the holes in it.  There are two flavors:
   > FS1080 LR32 (~42"):    $81.50
   > FS2424 LR32 (~95"), $264

Updated 10/4/2010:
As of late the FS1080 LR32 rail has been discontinued.
So the currently available LR32 rail options are:
    > FS1400 LR32 (~55"):    $95.50
    > FS2424 LR32 (~95"):  $264

- You need a router plate that rides on the rail and has the 5mm pin that registers in the LR32 rail.  There are three flavors to get these plates:
  > Full blown kit, includes plate, two edge guides, end stop, centering mandrel, 5mm and 35mm router bits, clamps, etc etc in Systainer. $425
  > Lesser kit, which includes plate, edge guides, end stop, and centering mandrel.  $205
  > Bare bones kit, which includes plate and centering mandrel.  $104

You can *probably* fit other routers onto the plate.  I've been test fitting my DeWalt 618 plunge base on the plate and debating whether it will work or not.  Have to drill some holes in the plate for the DeWalt mounting screws... and the hold down stops only have about 1mm of threads available  So, it's a minimum $104 experiment, to get the plate, and some grinding on my plunge base casting...  

Various thoughts / observations:  You do not *need* the edge guides or end stop.  But then you must manually position and align the guide rail.  These things help make that faster, easier and more precise (and smarter!), and repeatable.  You can buy non-Festool 5mm and 35mm router bits and/or drill bits.  

My own inclination is for the middle kit, as I have clamps, an extra Systainer, and would buy third-party router bits.

HTH

 

[danrush]

I purchased the smaller kit as described above, with the short rail, thinking that I had never needed to drill longer than a  36" cabinet for pins.  The next week, I got a job building six pantry units.  Went right out and bought the long rail after an hour of unsuccessfully messing around with hop scotching the rail up and down.  The long rail now does double duty, I added a short (18") or so piece of regular rail for 96" panel cuts, and for 32 drilling I just remove that piece.

I think the long rail is ok for 90" or so pin runs.  I have never seen shelf pins go completely the full length of a 96" cabinet.

If you think you may ever do longer cabinets, go long and save the dough you would have spent on the shorter rail.

Dan

 

[Brice Burrell]

...You can buy non-Festool 5mm and 35mm router bits and/or drill bits. 
...My own inclination is for the middle kit, as I have clamps, an extra Systainer, and would buy third-party router bits.

HTH

Sure, any bits will work. However, the quality and price of the Festool 5 mm bits make them a very good value. I give them two big thumbs up [thumbs up] and that silly grin too.

 

[joraft]

Went right out and bought the long rail after an hour of unsuccessfully messing around with hop scotching the rail up and down ...

No doubt, having the long rail for tall cabinets would be faster and easier, but I've never had any trouble with using the short one. I just align the last hole on the rail with the last hole drilled, plunge the router with the 5mm bit into that hole and lock it down to hold the rail while aligning it. It takes only a few minutes and hole alignment has always been perfect.

 

[Mac]

John,

Good to see you back...have missed your posts!

Mac

 

[danrush]

John,

I agree that longer runs can successfully be done with the shorter rail, it's just that I need the tools to make me a better/quicker cabinet builder than my skills will allow!!  I just don't have the time, (or more accurately the inclination) to move and line up successive runs of holes when a single placement of a rail will get it done. 

My main point of the story was that now I have a "dedicated" long rail that can be used for many functions, including hole drilling AND ripping 96" sheets.  I own WAY more rails than I need, just because I didn't think through all the possiblities of double usage for each rail, etc. 

Just my way of doin' it,  Dan

 

[WarnerConstCo.]

Just sell me some of those unused rails Dan, then you won't feel so bad. [big grin]

 

[joraft]

I own WAY more rails than I need, just because I didn't think through all the possiblities of double usage for each rail, etc.  

A few months ago I found myself on a project several hundred miles away, where my LR 32 set was needed. I remembered to take the kit and the router, but forgot my guide rail. I would have bought the long rail, but the local Festool dealer there only had the short one. Now I have two short rails, and I haven't been able to join them and keep the proper hole spacing.

At least I now have a spare.  [big grin]

 

[joraft]

Good to see you back...have missed your posts!

Thanks, Mac. I don't always have time to post (or much to add), but I read the posts here every day.

I really like the direction in which the forum has moved.

 

[Wonderwino]

They told us in Lebanon that special joiner/spacers will be available later this spring to enable precision joining of LR32 rails.  [thumbs up]  [drooling]

 

[NVA_WW]

They told us in Lebanon that special joiner/spacers will be available later this spring to enable precision joining of LR32 rails.  [thumbs up]  [drooling]

Did they say anything about the 1400 rail for the LR32?

 

[peter halle]

In another thread here when the question was asked about the release of the spacers and the 1400 rail for the LR32 system her in North America, Shane replied:

Chris, I don't have any specific information but I would look for this in the second half of the year.  As always, I will provide information about this and any other new product introductions on the forum and via our email newsletter as information becomes available.

Peter

 

[oneinch]

Wood_Junkie, Did you successfully mate your 618 to the Festool system? I was wondering about this very combination. Thanks.

 

[Wood_Junkie]

Wood_Junkie, Did you successfully mate your 618 to the Festool system? I was wondering about this very combination. Thanks.

No, I did not get it to work (well).    Just as a follow-up to my earlier post above, I did wind up getting the mid-tier LR32 kit, with the sled, side stops and edge stops.  I purchased the LR32 plastic insert to hold this stuff in a spare Systainer I had, and got a Whiteside 5mm spiral bit.
I also recently got the LR32 rail connectors, via an overseas chum.  They are handy (in my mind) to have, although I haven't yet put them to use. 

Anyway, as to the LR32 experiment:
I drilled the holes in the LR-32 sled, to match up with the DW618 router body (this took some precise geometry).  And attached it! ...

... And then realized that because of positioning the screws holding the DW plunge base would be scraping along the guide rail, which eventually would cause some rail damage, and putting the router off level (rocking on the screw heads).  Since the sled is just sheet steel, there isn't enough material to countersink the screws.  And the DW router base is webbed, not solid, so there's really no where else to tap new screw holes.  And because of the size of the DW plunge base, there isn't a lot of option for rotating the base to fit in another orientation, unless you give up on having the bit centered in the LR32 sled.

There's no getting around it that I could think of.  Unless you want to cut off the hold-down bolts on the LR32 sled.  That'd give you some more options for rotating and aligning the router base for a bit better advantage.  But I still don't think it would work and would have seriously ruined the LR32 sled.  The Festool routers attach to the phenolic footings that serve as screw anchors, and they don't tear up the guide rail.

So, I figured it was an omen and picked up some Festool routers.  ;-)
The OF1400 fits pretty well.  The OF1010 fits *perfectly*!