Miter cuts on the mft

[jnug]

So I can't say that I have completely closed the door on a real mft/3 to go with my mft-like top work surfaces. For folks that have one already, how useful a tool has the miter gauge been for you? It looks impressive. Festool seems to have gone out of its way to make sure it squares up. No sense having a miter gauge that is not dead on. I have a good miter gauge and I can use it in makeshift fashion on my work surface. I don't have that much work to throw at one. Usually if I am cutting miter's they are small and can easily be done on my miter box. But the miter gauge is the cats meow coupled with the other features of a real mft, maybe it becomes a gotta' have for me.

Do people like it...or conversely maybe don't really use it?

 

[peter halle]

My guess is that the MFT is used mainly for square cuts.  I have used mine for some angled cuts but if my work fits on a Kapex I will go there first.  Is the protractor head accurate? - yes, if you have calibrated it.

Peter

 

[Tinker]

I do not have space for setting my SCMS for square or angled cuts.  I am doing all right with the MFT and dogs or, sometimes using the miter gauge.  I can do anything on the MFT that i can do with my SCMS.  This past weekend, i started rearranging mt who pfor better space and work flow.  I think I am close to a set up for my Hitachi SCMS.  I usually use that for short pieces.  I will know when i get fully set up whether it will work out for longer pieces. 

The SCMS is a lot quicker for production work, but it seems to take more trial cuts for 45's.  For four corners on one project, i can set up with the MFT and dogs the quickest.

For a lot of cuts, on short pieces, the SCMS is the quickest.  Bevel cuts I take a lot of trial cuts on scraps to get it right with the TS 55 on MFT.  Very frustrating.  The hitachi takes less time but still a few trial cuts before I can get it right.  Again, once i am all set up, it may prove to be quicker to do bevels with the Hitachi. 
Tinker

 

[jnug]

Well at least it sounds like you can get adequate results on the mft. The protractor and its rails all seem to be very very robustly built which is a good thing. You want to make sure you can actually hold your angle of cut. Sounds like a small thing. But there are a ton of Miter gauges, protractor heads and rails out there that won't hold anything!

This is where I am really torn on the mft. If I could equip my mft-like work surface with the metal frame of the mft then I would have a foundation for recreating the mft for miter cuts. But I can't do that and that has really got me thinking that I might should try an actual mft.

 

[Birdhunter]

I've never used the miter gauge that came with the MFT. I done only square cuts and 45 degree cuts on the MFT in the 3 years I've owned it. The hole pattern combined with Qwas dogs work beautifully for those common cuts.

To be honest, I have a big table saw and an aftermarket sled with a very accurate miter gauge.

 

[waho6o9]

Another vote for rail dogs and qwas dogs it's quicker.

 

[jnug]

Man I have got to check those QWAS dogs out. Are the rail dogs you mentioned from the same outfit?

 

[waho6o9]

Yes and I can cut 4 x 8 sheets using this set up on Stanley horses,
a couple of MFT3 tops is all that is needed.

[attachimg=1]

 

[jnug]

Hey is that a particular kind of rail or edge along the long dimension of the mft top at the front. It almost looks like a t-channel extrusion or U-channel extrusion even an mft edge of some sort.

 

[waho6o9]

It's a Walko 4

 

[Rob-GB]

It is not just great for miter cuts but for other angled work too...

I have also used the gauge & fence on my CMS saw sliding table as it has a longer reach than the one supplied with the saw table.

Rob

 

[grbmds]

Since I have my MFT and TS55 I don't miss the miter saw (sold it). I made a picture frame about 6 months ago. I left the miter head at 90 degrees and use dogs in the MFT holes to create a "fence" against which I butted the wood to cut 45 degrees. The mitered corners were perfect. I was never able to make perfect miters on my miter saw.

 

[leer]

Man I have got to check those QWAS dogs out. Are the rail dogs you mentioned from the same outfit?

Qwas has bench dogs and rail dogs, and I have both.  The rail dogs are fantastic.  I use them to hold my rails locked down, since I built my own "MFT-XL" and have no MFT protractor or other bench accessories.  I really like the Parf Dogs from Lee Valley.  They are available in short and tall versions.  A nod of the hat to Peter Parfitt for inventing these.  If you have not seen his posts and YouTube videos, just keep browsing this forum! I use the tall Parf Dogs to anchor mobile tools like this arbor press to my workbench.  A tall Parf Dog is standing next to one of two anchoring the base: