Marc2010 said:
Hi
Hey I was wondering..I just bought the MFK to trim off glue on edge banding on a large project. The salesperson didn't tell me about buying the base separate and the special 5/8" bit. so..3 separate transactions and 3 weeks into it I ended up using the plastic bandit cutter. $10 instead of $400+. I am still excited to use my router for laminate & edge banding. how did it work for you? can you get it to trim off with out touching the top? and is there anything that you would recommend to go with the MFK?
Thanks
Marc
Hi Marc, bummer that you are a victim of a dealer salesperson who either did not attend training class or did not pay attention. Of course what could be worse is that the dealer involved did not have the complete line of MFK 700 accessories in stock. To start with, there is the MFK 700 EQ Basic which comes in a cardboard box. It does include both the 1/4" and 8mm collets, but just the vertical base.
The MFK 700 EQ Set also includes the 1.5 degree horizontal base, the feeler bearing set and a SYS 2 TL.
The Parallel Edge Guide and the 0 ("Zero") Degree Horizontal Base are accessories, as are the various Festool cutter bits.
I advocate owning all three bases, because they have unique uses. Appropriately used, these are very efficient for trimming many kinds of laminate and edge banding. The vertical base is marvelous trimming surface laminate flush with the edges.
In conventional thin laminate work, the first step is applying a band of self edging to the sides of the top. Those are best trimmed flush with the top surface before it is laminated using the Zero Degree base. I also use that base to trim the front ends of the side trim flush. Next the front self-edge material is applied. It is trimmed along the top and exposed ends using the Zero Degree base. Finally after the main surface laminate is applied, it is trimmed all around using the Vertical base.
With thicker edge banding, normally the veneer of the top will be shown. My experience is that normally a TS55 with a sharp blade will make an appropriate glue ready edge that it is not necessary to trim those edges using a vertical base.
When the wooden edge band is fairly thin the 1.5 degree horizontal base is very efficient and safe. Yes, there will be a very slight slope off the top surface, which will hardly upset most clients. The advantage of this slight slope is to reduce the risk of digging into the veneer. In my shop we use a whole lot of 3mm hard wood edge banding, which we trim using the 1.5 degree horizontal base.
It is somewhat controversial to slope thick edge banding. The MFK 700 can trim about 13mm with either the Zero or 1.5 Degree bases. Personally I am not offended by a 1.5 degree slope, but over half of my clients for custom work want no slope of the wider banding. I take that into consideration when calculating the bid. My experience is such a non-slope fit is best done using a very good and sharp hand plane, perhaps with very subtle work with a hard pad on a finish sander, such as the RO 90 DX or ETS 125. Many talented folks use the Feeler Bearing Set to bring this thicker edge banding into range for treatment with the hand plane.
All this points out that it still takes experience and practice to get the most from tools, even Festools. It really makes me sad that dealers allow people to sell Festools who know less about them than do most customers.
Oh, yes, I do own a really super automatic edge banding machine. It has a trimming unit which is fine for many tasks. However, I still prefer to leave 3mm banding slightly proud on the top surface so we can bring it to perfection with a 1.5 Degree base and perhaps some delicate strokes with a good hand plane.
