Questions on STM 1800 setup

[jcrowe1950]

Hi Folks,

    I was setting up an STM 1800 today and ran into a couple of questions. The first step was to screw metal tubes to some sacrificial pieces, I think European beech, through holes in the tube. In your experiences, should there have been pre-drilled holes or should I just wing it....also, they were specified as PZ1 but appeared to be a very small Torx screw.
    Second question....in the instructions, the next step is specified as screwing the caster housings on with some 8mm drive cap screws with a washer. I received both a flat washer and a lock washer for each caster. I assume that both of them go under the screw.....25 n M torque IIRC. Finally, one of the, what I call aircraft, nuts on one of the caster hubs was missing....I guess I'll run over to a hardware store for a replacement....once I get these issues ironed out, I will perhaps share my first impressions.

 

[ChuckM]

Someone asked about the two different types of washers elsewhere, with some using both, and some using one.

Whoever complied the assembly manual could take a page from IKEA and make it better.

 

[FestitaMakool]

Haha.. you’re right about that ChuckM. Very tiny drawings as well. (Get one of your toddlers to read out [big grin])
I put the lock washers in - not extremely necessary, but now I know where they are!

Jcrowe, mine was in fact PZ1 - Torx is better.. PH1 and PZ1 is better avoided.. at least, the screws was of good quality, and did indeed fit PZ1 bit. PH1: always grind down your pointy bit on the bit - and the fit is way better. Much less chance of runout.

 

[manuc]

I was the one that asked this in a different thread. I used just the flat washer. I watched the Festool Europe YouTube assembly video after I assembled the table and they only had the flat washer. So I didn’t feel bad skipping the lock washer.

I centered and predrilled the holes in the wood and used a torx bit for the screws.

I had no issues with missing parts, etc.

By the way thanks for helping we with my bent guide rail issue a couple of weeks ago. The new FS 1900 I bought from Woodcraft and the FS 1080 is providing straight cuts.

 

[jcrowe1950]

Hi Folks,
    I finally got a chance to go finish up the STM 1800 assembly today. Bought an M6 x 1.00 "aircraft nut" at Ace hardware and when I started to screw the wooden bits to the metal tubes, I realized that the screws were indeed T10s, not PZ 1 as described in the User Guide, which was almost worthless. It did park nicely under one of our MFTs. I hope to try it out tomorrow and use it extensively the weekend of 2-October through 3-October for demos.....cabinet making demos in fact.

    In a totally unrelated matter, how deep do most of you set your track saw plunge beyond just cutting through the stock?

 

[ear3]

[member=39505]jcrowe1950[/member] I generally go with 2mm, which i think is the amount Festool recommends in the manual or in a demo somewhere. 

Hi Folks,
    I finally got a chance to go finish up the STM 1800 assembly today. Bought an M6 x 1.00 "aircraft nut" at Ace hardware and when I started to screw the wooden bits to the metal tubes, I realized that the screws were indeed T10s, not PZ 1 as described in the User Guide, which was almost worthless. It did park nicely under one of our MFTs. I hope to try it out tomorrow and use it extensively the weekend of 2-October through 3-October for demos.....cabinet making demos in fact.

    In a totally unrelated matter, how deep do most of you set your track saw plunge beyond just cutting through the stock?

 

[wubears71]

I’m glad I found this as I thought I was nuts.  I kept trying to get those screws in and realized they were t10, not PZ1. Thanks for confirming.  Other than the setup, this is one great setup.  I love having something so compact that I can easily break down sheets of plywood and not have to drag 4x8 sheets up to my shop anymore to break down.

 

[peter halle]

Hi Folks,
    I finally got a chance to go finish up the STM 1800 assembly today. Bought an M6 x 1.00 "aircraft nut" at Ace hardware and when I started to screw the wooden bits to the metal tubes, I realized that the screws were indeed T10s, not PZ 1 as described in the User Guide, which was almost worthless. It did park nicely under one of our MFTs. I hope to try it out tomorrow and use it extensively the weekend of 2-October through 3-October for demos.....cabinet making demos in fact.

    In a totally unrelated matter, how deep do most of you set your track saw plunge beyond just cutting through the stock?

IN regards to track depth - I usually work with 3/4" material.  I take the track saw.  Set the depth stop to largest cut.  Then do the Fastfix like you are going to change the blade.  While it is locked adjust the depth stop upwards as far as you can.  Then you are set for that depth.

Just a tip I learned years ago and is not commonly shared.

Peter

 

[semenza]

Hi Folks,

    In a totally unrelated matter, how deep do most of you set your track saw plunge beyond just cutting through the stock?

I do +5mm for the guide rail and another + 2 to 4 to clear the bottom of the stock. For 18mm / 3/4" I usually just set the depth to 25mm or 1" depending on your saw scale.

Seth

 

[jeh]

Hi Folks,

In your experiences, should there have been pre-drilled holes or should I just wing it....also, they were specified as PZ1 but appeared to be a very small Torx screw.

T10 is correct. If you would like to pre-drill the beech just line up the board where you want it and use a long punch or finish nail to maker the spot. I did pre-drill the beech because the T10 head is so small that I would hate to strip it. Whenever I change out the beech I'll use better screws.

 

[FestitaMakool]

It could be that the orders that where made for the US market was specified with Torx as PZ is not readily available with you. It seems that PZ1 was what was delivered here, as it was on mine.
The beech is so hard that pre-drilling is highly advisable. It’s easy to snap the screws otherwise.
They could have chosen slightly fatter screws though.