@PreferablyWood
Don't know if you have a dedicated work space or not or if portability is key to you. Unfortunately I don't have a shop space to work in so all my tools come back inside from the backyard after every building session and get stored away under the stairs & a walk-in closet. That is the reason I bought the CMS-system (and that I got it dirt cheap second hand off our local eBay - I wouldn't have it if I had had to pay retail for it).
It seems as we have similiar situations, space is at a premium here in Copenhagen..
At the time I hadn't even heard of the Incra system and since I'm battling constantly for space to store my tools having 'yet another large object' i.e. a D4R to store away would just not make sense for me (and cause my SO to blow a fuse). And why I can't go with a 'standard' Incra system is that I don't have the space to have it permanently setup around a tablesaw/router table since they don't fold away at the end of the day. Please note that I'm not planning on using the CMS-GE with the Incra system but the CMS-VL base that attaches to my MFT. This provides me with the MFT's holes to clamp/dog the Incra positioner repeatably on the MFT, gives the MFT as the 'extension table' if you wish and gives 17" of cutting capacity in table saw mode and same with rabbet routing if need be. The Incra setup would just not work on the CMS-GE.
You are probably right that doing very wide/long box joints or dovetails on the Incra would not be optimal, but I can't see myself building drawers deeper than 25cm anyway for any normal use and I can always fall back to my dovetailing saw and cut them by hand if the need arises.
Don't get me wrong about the CMS system as a whole - it's probably the best portable system out there, but its obviously not equal in capabilities as full-blown shop gear.
There are small things like
Sawing:
- non-parallel saw fences (unless you set it every time)
- small cutting capacity against the fence of 15cm unless you buy the ridiculously expensive extension table & extra fence
- no out feed unless you purchase the ridiculously expensive outfeed table or do like I do and use my MFT as the out feed when needed
- tilt mechanism of the saw is awkward to use if needed (two screws under the table and you really can't see the angle scale there; use you iPhone on the blade or something similar to get the angle)
- if you can't afford a second saw for hand use you don't really want to move it back and forth even thou it isn't that bad a job. I constantly try to find ways of not having to go through the removal process
- The widget you have to click onto the blade housing is really hard to get in or out when you remove/insert the saw to the CMS module
Routing:
- depth adjustment of the router fence (two discreet screwing points for different depths, have to loosen fence, move it back, screw back in and realign)
- positioning of the fence with eyeballing the markings on the table and still having to measure a few times to make sure the distances are correct - don't trust the printed scale at all
- can do rabbets only on edges and near them within the few cm of depth adjustability of the fence
- Removing router for guide rail rabbeting is again a minor pain, though simpler than the saw (you might lose the alignment piece if you're not careful with it when removed)
- The loose bits from the router setup will fill a TL2 systainer and still you'll have the fence to store away somewhere. Festool really should have a CMS-Of-extra-bits-insert for a (maxi) systainer to have a place to put all the bits and bobs in when not in use...
Jigsawing:
- Not a bandsaw replacement, the blade doesn't have enough rigidity to stay straight if attempting re-sawing
- If you use the zero-clearance insert you need to remove the saw from the CMS-module to change blades
Of course the above is concentrating on the negatives and comparing to stationary shop equipment, which can be argued as unfair, but that is what I'm trying to have in the least storage space and portably as possible. Having the CMS beats the heck out of not having it, but is obviously a bunch of trade-offs with functionality and ease of use.
If I even had a garage workshop where I could leave kit assembled and ready to use I would probably have gone another route with stationary tools like a proper table saw, bandsaw and a separate router table, but life is what it is and you have to get by as well you can so I'm a happy CMS-user who's looking constantly ways of improving what I have withing the limitations I have.
I just wish Festool engineers made magic happen and came up with a CMS-bandsaw module and a CMS-Planer/Jointer module... [wink]
