Short review of the carvex 420

[Stone Message]

Looking at the blades in some of the pictures it looks to me that the grub screw has been over tightened as there is rather a lot of scoring.

In a number of the tests Art found that his old jigsaw and the PS420 did not make particularly good cuts - is there a chance that technique is an issue?

Cutting curves in solid wood, particularly hard woods, can give poor results if the wrong blade is used. The direction of cut will also make a difference (cutting into the grain or away from the grain).

I am about to start the review of PS420 and will try to address the issues raised.

Peter

 

[medicusdkfz]

Pip, go buy the Mafell P1 CC and be happy with straight cuts. Kauf' dir die P1 und seinglücklich mit winkeltreuen Schnitten.  [wink]

Pierre

 

[Stone Message]

I have now started the testing of the PSC420 and am not getting any indications of problems like those shown by Pip.

The straight cuts are straight. I have cut through 100mm block with no problem at all - in fact I did 3 cuts in a row to prove that it was easy. This certainly proves that the so called tests shown in the thread stated by the Dutch guy were fabricated. I have a little suprise in the video which will convince everyone just how tough the Carvex is - I just need to do the rest of the filming and then you will see what I mean.

I am getting some deviation from square but nothing to worry about and certainly nothing at all like Pip has experienced. I still believe that either he is using the wrong blades or he is not setting things up correctly.

I have more tests to do and must get cracking.

Peter

 

[ldmillar1981]

Hi Peter,

I enjoy your reviews, your one on the ts55r, helped me to decide to get that, just one question now you have been hands on with the 420 would you buy one? I am going to the kempton park tool fair this weekend and I was already considering getting the 420 with accessories and a ctl26.

A friend has the 400 and given the few problems, which are negated buy festools excellent customer service, he would still recommend it so if the 420 is an improvement, i think its for me, I will never cut anything more than a 54mm apature in a fire door, or 40mm sink in an oak top.

Thank you

Regards
Leigh

 

[woodguy7]

I do both those cuts with the TS55, just use the jigsaw for the rounded corners.

 

[ScotF]

Looking forward to your review, Peter.  I hope you post how much out of square your cuts are for clarity and I would be interested to learn if there is any way to adjust for square -- it seems like the base could be adjusted to get square to the blade, but not sure on the Carvex 420.  I am in need of a jigsaw and like others, have been holding out for the hopeful release of the Carvex 420 in NA. 

Scot

 

[Stone Message]

Hi Peter,

I enjoy your reviews, your one on the ts55r, helped me to decide to get that, just one question now you have been hands on with the 420 would you buy one? I am going to the kempton park tool fair this weekend and I was already considering getting the 420 with accessories and a ctl26.

A friend has the 400 and given the few problems, which are negated buy festools excellent customer service, he would still recommend it so if the 420 is an improvement, i think its for me, I will never cut anything more than a 54mm apature in a fire door, or 40mm sink in an oak top.

Thank you

Regards
Leigh

Hi Leigh

The short answer is yes I would buy one but I am not sure if I would get the battery machine (which is what has been sent to me) as I work almost entirely in the workshop I think that corded would suit me better. However, if I were still running up and down ladders and doing work for people far and wide then the versatility of the battery version would appeal.

Thank you for the kind words.

Peter

 

[Stone Message]

Looking forward to your review, Peter.  I hope you post how much out of square your cuts are for clarity and I would be interested to learn if there is any way to adjust for square -- it seems like the base could be adjusted to get square to the blade, but not sure on the Carvex 420.  I am in need of a jigsaw and like others, have been holding out for the hopeful release of the Carvex 420 in NA.  

Scot

Hi Scot

I had thought that I could do this review in a couple of days but I have a lot of other ongoing tasks. So, I am going to put a short video showing the machine cutting thick lumps of wood on very soon. That should satisfy anyone who might have believed what was being said in the locked thread. I will show a close-up of the squareness - it is only slightly out and not something that would worry me.

Peter

 

[ldmillar1981]

I do both those cuts with the TS55, just use the jigsaw for the rounded corners.

Hi woodguy,

Any straight cuts I agree and do use the ts55, but I fit kidney shaped sinks in worktops and often odd shaped glass apatures in fire doors, next week I have a porthole to fit in a fire door which sounds like the 420 will be perfect for. Hopefully it will save me many passes with the router.

Thank you for your response Peter, I will be going corded. i have a cordless Makita currently which lacks power, but I now have the green bug.

Regards
Leigh

 

[richard.selwyn]

Pip,
I am interested by the fact that your cuts seem to go off towards the end. That is exactly my experience with several different jigsaws. What is going on?
I should just mention that I've looked at all the other rubbish that's been posted about bending blades etc and feel that your test seems to be honest - and reflects my experience. Peter Parfitt has proved that the 420 can cut perfectly so I am not putting that in question. What I am interested in trying to find out is what is going on when it goes wrong?
Richard

 

[Stone Message]

Pip,
I am interested by the fact that your cuts seem to go off towards the end. That is exactly my experience with several different jigsaws. What is going on?
I should just mention that I've looked at all the other rubbish that's been posted about bending blades etc and feel that your test seems to be honest - and reflects my experience. Peter Parfitt has proved that the 420 can cut perfectly so I am not putting that in question. What I am interested in trying to find out is what is going on when it goes wrong?
Richard

Hi Richard,

This may not be very helpful but...

A few years ago I read an article in Taunton Press's Fine Woodworking about bandsaw blades and why it is often difficult to cut in a straight line. Whatever the effect is it means that using a side fence on a bandsaw can sometimes be of no use at all as the blade will still wander a bit. I cannot remember what the solution was or even the cause but I think that it is due to the slight flexibility of the blade. Then when it starts to go off a bit it compounds the problem and just makes matters worse.

When I started my videoing for the (yet unfinished) PS420 video I made a short sequence of me cutting a piece of wood in a straight line on the bandsaw. It illustrates how you have to keep making adjustments to keep the cut on track. This is the reason why Festool recommend a 20mm limit to the thickness that one might cut whilst using a guide rail or core maker with the jigsaw.

Peter

 

[Rembo72]

Peter,

A few years ago I read an article in Taunton Press's Fine Woodworking about bandsaw blades and why it is often difficult to cut in a straight line. Whatever the effect is it means that using a side fence on a bandsaw can sometimes be of no use at all as the blade will still wander a bit. I cannot remember what the solution was or even the cause but I think that it is due to the slight flexibility of the blade. Then when it starts to go off a bit it compounds the problem and just makes matters worse.

I think you refer to blade drift on a bandsaw, basically every bandsaw you install on your saw will have blade drift. meaning that when you parallel guide is attache in a 90 degree angle to your bandsaw table and you want to cut a strip of a piece of would the blade will not folllow the straight line but drift away.

The solution is to find the angle at which you will have to set your parallel guide and feed your piece of would under an angle in your blade. The correct angle is found by marking a 90 degree pencil line at a piece of board and feed that board into the bandsaw blade. The angle you will feed the board into the blade at which it's vutting at the straight line is the angle you have to set yur parallel guide at.

once you have done that you will get perfectly straight cuts from your bandsaw when you use the right blade obviously. At my bandsaw this made the difference between not being able to cut a 2" piece of softwood straight and being able to do so with a 10" piece of stone hard oak. Correcting the blade drift allows me the actually cut veneer at my bandsaw without too much difficulties and up to 10" wide.

Many vids on youtube explain this better than I did above here. This is one link

Bandsaw Blade explanation

Glad to be able to make a constructive post here after all the other ones , hope this one is appreciated. [big grin]

 

[peter halle]

We appreciate constructive posts.  Thanks.

Peter

 

[ART at WORK]

Thats a fair point you make there Peter, the drift did seem to be replicated in both machines.

I did say that with different blades and another operator the results could be different.

I was using the metal rail as there were a number of requests to repeat the tests the Dutch team were doing.

I will try the free hand method which is how I usually cut most stuff with a jig saw.

Look forward to your report.

Pip

 

[Rembo72]

When I started my videoing for the (yet unfinished) PS420 video I made a short sequence of me cutting a piece of wood in a straight line on the bandsaw. It illustrates how you have to keep making adjustments to keep the cut on track. This is the reason why Festool recommend a 20mm limit to the thickness that one might cut whilst using a guide rail or core maker with the jigsaw.

Peter, fair point indeed, did not look at it that way, potentially what we did with the metal guide equals the use of a rail. You limit the ability to correct the jigsaw and machines with saw guides could than give an issue. Carvex was however the only machine with these kind of issues, Trion and Protool that also have guide system where ok.
I'm tepted now to rerun without the metal rail guide but don't have a Carvex here and don't have that block either.

Could well be the reason for the issues we've seen and indeed Festool describes this as a potential issue in the user manual as you state.

 

[Alan m]

peter . sounds like the gauntlet has been set. its worth a try . "maybe " there could be an issue with using the rail.
get out of your sick bed and make some dust.  [tongue] [tongue] [eek]

 

[Laminator]

I know that with my ps300, you have to angle the rear of the machine to the right to follow a straight line, which is why it will not work properly when connected to a guide rail. 

 

[Stone Message]

peter . sounds like the gauntlet has been set. its worth a try . "maybe " there could be an issue with using the rail.
get out of your sick bed and make some dust.  [tongue] [tongue] [eek]

I have already done a straight line cut with the rail in 30mm kitchen worktop. It was straight enough but slightly out of square. I have yet to try the same cut freehand following a line where I expect it also to be straight and square. Forgive me but I just cannot see why anyone would want to use a guide rail when it is so easy to follow a straight line freehand. If the line is so long that the poor operator might get tired then he should be using a TS.

Peter

 

[richard.selwyn]

Thanks for the replies - Peter is right using a TS is often the answer, but sometimes its not possible. What is important to me is that the saw works using the circle guide. The 400 was a disaster in 18mm ply. I have some circles to do in 22mm and given the limit of 20mm stated by the instructions for the 420, it looks like it will be back to freehand and a router cleanup. That's a shame!
Richard

 

[Stone Message]

Thanks for the replies - Peter is right using a TS is often the answer, but sometimes its not possible. What is important to me is that the saw works using the circle guide. The 400 was a disaster in 18mm ply. I have some circles to do in 22mm and given the limit of 20mm stated by the instructions for the 420, it looks like it will be back to freehand and a router cleanup. That's a shame!
Richard

Richard

I will get to that test as soon as I can. I have lost some time recently and do not want to neglect Osmo or Hitachi and I have my magazine editor waiting for more stuff - and that's the only work that I get paid for! This recent nonsense here on the FOG has wasted a lot of my time.

Peter