Purchasing Advice for Toronto, Canada

[afoot10]

Hi Everyone

I am a long time lurker and soon to be a proud festool owner.  I am going to be purchasing either the TS55 or T75 , CT22 and MFT1080 over the next few months.  I am living in Toronto, Canada and have talked to Hafele (the only Canadian distributor) and to be honest I must echo many of the comments shared on this forum by my fellow Canadians - they stink!  I was wondering if anyone has purchased south of the border and what issues they had with shipping, duties, taxes etc.  I would even consider driving for an hour or two and bringing the goods across the border myself.  Any input would be greatly appreciated!

One other question I had was if I should purchase the TS55 or TS75 - I certainly like the greater power and cutting depth  at 90 and especially at 45 degrees but I was concerned about how the higher amp draw on the TS75 would work with the CT22.  The TS75 draws up to 13A and the CT22 varies from 3-10A - will i be popping a breaker every time I use the autostart feature on the CT22 - if anyone could shed some light on this I would appreciate it.  Even though I may not require the extra cutting depth at the moment  I figure for the extra hundred or so dollars it would be wise to have the capability down the road.  At this point I am not committed either way I am looking for some input from the seasoned users of this group (which is pretty well all of you)  I am a hobby woodworker with a full shop of tools - General Tablesaw, Laguna bandsaw, Delta Planer, Bosch 12" Slider Chopsaw etc....  In the past I have always purchased the best that I can afford from a quality and functional perspective.

If there are any details that I forgot to mentions please let me know and I will fill in the gaps - I want to make an informed decsion as possible these are not cheap tools and I dont want to regret purchasing one saw over the other for the sake of a hundred dollars.

I look forward to your responses

Thanks in advance

Andy

 

[Michael Kellough]

I don't have the 75, I generally don't need the extra depth and I don't want the extra 5 pounds. So, I can't answer the question with any authority bit I think we would have heard if there was a problem running the 75 with any of the Festool vacs. I don't think Festool would have released the tool if there was such a problem anyway.

I think the reason it works without tripping breakers is that there is more delay in the startup of the vac (compared to the Fein vacs which have a lower capacity for the attached tool) so the high current startup load of the saw has settled down by the time the vacs starts sucking up the juice. In use, the vac isn't drawing so much current because you aren't clogging the hose so you stay withins the capacity of the breaker even when loading the saw. If you where doing a lot of cutting non-stop for a long time you very well could overheat the breaker and trip it.

 

[Dan Lyke]

The CT-22 has a 20 amp plug (3 prong, hot and neutral at 90 degrees) on it, you have to use a supplied adapter to plug it into a 15 amp plug (3 prong, hot and neutral parallel, the one you usually see). So the CT-22 is clearly built for tools which draw real amounts of power.

Here in my living room, for various (bad) reasons I've had the CT-22 plugged into a power strip, and when I load down my OF 1010 I can trip the power strip breaker (Which is probably good, because I trust the power strip more than I trust the wiring in this house, what does that tell ya?). I've taken that as a hint that I'm trying to take out too much wood in one pass, but based on that:

1. It's a function of the wiring you're plugging it into, not the limits of the dust collector.

2. The soft-start means that the highest electrical draw is when you put the tools under load, not when you start 'em up. That's refreshing.

 

[Dan Clermont]

Hi Andy

I recently bought a TS 55 across the border with no hassles. I told them it was made in Germany and tehy told me their was no duty although another forum member claims their is 6% so i would call the Port of Call you plan on crossing to confirm beforehand

I bought mine from bob Marino who was prompt to answer questions and bent over backwards to accomadate me.

The TS-55 is good for anything less then 1 15/16" so if you see yourself working woods thicker then that don't waste your time and get the TS-75.

Can't comment on the vac as I am using my Ridgid shop vac for now.

 

[Dave Ronyak]

Like you, Andrew, I am a hobbyist in the midst of a major home refurbishment and upgrade program which would keep me busy for at least 18 months if I could work on it full time.  I purchased a TS 55 shortly after it was introduced as the "65" saw was being phased out.  I was a bit skeptical about the cutting capacity of the small blade, but time has proven it sufficient for trimming passage doors and 2X stock (I am not doing bevel cuts in 2X stock) and every thing of less thickness.  Using its precison guide rails, others have proven that you can complete a cut from the opposite surface if the thickness of the stock is too great to do from one side.   The TS 55 is considerably smaller and lighter than the TS 75, and it and accessories lower in price.  Since I planned to also buy a 10" table saw, I did not see much need for additional cutting depth capacity beyond that of the TS 55.  IMHO only if you plan to work a lot with thick stock is the TS 75 the better choice.  For rough work, e.g treated deck framing lumber, I use my old Skillsaw.   I have never had any circuit breaker trip, even if I heavily loaded the saw, or my 1400 router, but all of my receptables are 12 ga. wire with 20 A breakers.

 

[Mirko]

Andy in Toronto,

Welcome! Like you, I was disipointed with the Canadian distributer, and went south to pick up my stuff. I'm in vancouver so its about a 300Km round trip to the closest Festool dealer in Washington State. The prices are the same as the Festool website + 8.5% sales tax. When you return home you will have to pay Pst + Gst on the total. Not sure how it works in Ontario, but in BC its 14% for the two taxes.
Your Question regarding the TS55 v TS75, this is a tough choice to make, I will try to explain my expeiance with both:
TS 55
Was the first Festool I ever used and it was absolutly amazing! At the time I was not aware of the TS 75 but the need for more depth was not a concern of mine. It is very simple to cut on the top, then flip over, line up your Track with the saw kerf finish your cut. The 55 will cut just over 4" thick, used in this way, note if you have a TS75 you will have to do the same thing for 4" stock but can cut up to 6" stock in two passes. So you will have to think what you maximum cuts will be 4" = TS55 6" = TS75
If you never cut anything over 4" thick get the TS55. Warning this saw IMO can be underpowerd if your blade is beginning to lose its edge. This was the only upset I had with the saw, cutting 3/4 mdf on a 45% bevel, it will have a hard time if your doing this all day.
The TS55 I was using was not mine but I used it everyday for about a year on a project in the Caribbean. I went through two blades (we did not have the option to get the blades sharpend, the job site was in the middle of nowhere)Once I retured home I decided to get the TS75 just for the power alone. This saw can be heavy, if your making repeat cuts. In the long run, the power will make up for any regrets you may have.
I am going to buy the TS55 also, just to end further doubt on the matter.
Hope this helps.

Mirko

 

[Michael Kellough]

Dan said, "The soft-start means that the highest electrical draw is when you put the tools under load, not when you start 'em up."

Thanks for pointing that out, slipped my mind.

 

[Lou Miller]

I do some pretty heavy duty cutting with my TS55 on a daily basis. I've yet to run into a situation where I needed or wanted more power, or cutting depth. The TS55 is 10 amps, and with the correct blade (that's very important), it'll cut anything you want it to. Unless you truly need the cutting depth of the TS75, its not worth getting the larger saw, IMO. I rip through 8/4 hard maple (planed down to about 1-3/4") all the time. With the rip blade on the saw, it doesn't even bog down at all. The extra power just hasn't been needed for me.

 

[afoot10]

Gentlemen

Thank you all for your quick and detailed responses its much appreciated

Cheers

Andy

 

[JJSchumer]

Andy,
I do not know if this will help or not........
There is a Festool dealer here in Tonawanda NY.
That is only about a 1.5 hour drive from Toronto.
Let me know if you want the name and number.
If have recently purchased from them and they are very helpful.
John

 

[Dan Clermont]

Got a quote from my local Hafele rep today on some drawer slides and threw ina request for a price better then $585 for the OF 1400 router.

The sales rep called and asked me a bunch of questions on how much I pay to bring things across the border. I know from my own calculation that router is about $100 less once you figure in all the taxes.

Anyhow, I got my quote shortly thereafter and the price was still $585

Guess I'll be supporting my friends south of the border. I think he was hoping to convince me the prices were comparable but he hasn't returned my e-mails.

Dunno.

Dan Clermont

 

[bcook01]

Next time you are heading south for a vacation have the dealer drop ship to where you are staying then bring it back with you to Canada. In this case there are no taxes and shipping is usually free from the dealers on the net. I have never been questioned and I now have quite a selection of tools gathered over time. 

I have the TS75 and do not feel the saw is too large. It is great for slicing through multiple layers of plywood saving time.  The anti-kickback is a good feature that is not played up. It is also very easy to trim outside doors. The extra weight can be an advantage for stability IMO.

Re Hafele
They have not learned to pay commissions to salespeople nor motivate those dealing with the public. ;D ;D

bob

 

[Frank Pellow]

I have had Festool (via Bob Marino) ship to three different friends in the USA (in Michigan, in Utah, and in Washington state).  Then I have brought them across the border (four different times into three different provinces).   I have never paid duty.  I did twice have to pay GST.  I never had to pat PST.  Two times I had been in the USA long enough to bring the tools across on my duty free allowance.

I trust the Festool has designed to TS-75 to work with the their vacuum.  I own the older ATF 55 and would like the extra depth of the TS-75.  Maybe someday I will upgrade.

Trying to deal with Hafele is a complete waste of time.