Hey Bill,
Haven't got my MFK yet, but here's my two cents worth anyhow....
The VS600 really rocks. What it excels at is big wide pieces - think dovetailed cabinet carcass. With the vac, there is very little sawdust - a huge improvement over other jigs. The jig is incredibly accurate - if you do the initial setup carefully, your pieces will come together with just a little pressure and fit perfectly flush. Probably the biggest shortcoming is that it won't do halfblind dovetails in half inch stock, kinda a standard in the US.
I think Don is right that the MFK probably won't work with the VS600, due to guide bushings and bit travel.
I have both the OF1010 and the OF1400. The 1010 is considerably lighter and that is a good thing when you are doing a lot of dovetails. On the other hand the OF1400 excels in ease of use - bushing change with no tools and it comes out perfectly centered!
A few odd hints:
- do your projects in metric from the get-go, including design and dimensions. Your dovetails
will be metric sized and mixing metric and imperial measures will drive you nuts - or at least it did me.... :
- read Jerry Work's excellent manual on the VS600, a couple of times, and have it handy at setup time.
- take Jerry's advice about putting scrap backer boards behind the workpiece to reduce tear out.
- take the time to understand which copy rings and which bits are needed for your project - the amount of detail is maddening but it will make sense - when you figure it out write it down!
- check that vac bag every couple of feet of dovetails - it fills in a hurry when you use the VS600 and it will turn into a brick if you don't watch out.
- don't think you have to buy every template at the beginning, just get what you need for your project. I have a couple that are still virgins.
Enjoy!
Jess
