So - sell me a Carvex ......

[AlexThePalex]

I have a cordless Carvex now for 3 or 4 months. I wasn't looking for one, but it came in a lot with tools I did need, and decided to keep it for now to try it out.

Safe to say, this is one of the worst jigsaws I have ever used. Those two guides on the side are simply horrible. It is a sparkfest 90% of the time, and they still don't keep the blade straight. The blade wanders more than I have ever seen in any other jigsaw.

Mine also has a defect where one of the led lights is permanently on, draining the battery unless I disconnect it after use.

The power buttons are finnicky, many times it will not engage the first time I press it.

I also dislike the blade change mechanism. You have to actually push a lever from the back to the front that then opens the blade clamp, and the blade jumps out. Well, with the guides in place, it often doesn't work and it is making it very difficult to change the blade. And the way I work on a project requires me to change blades often. One moment you cut wood, the next metal, and then another type of wood that requires a finer blade. Oh yeah, the blade clamp often doesn't close by itself after inserting a blade.

And cut 45 degrees? You can't do that. You need to buy an extra base for it that costs 175 euros! "Yeah, or else it is not precise" - precise? The blade wanders all over and has a life of its own. What do you mean, precise?

Only job I did like the Carvex for is laying laminate flooring. It being cordless proved to be a great improvement in speed over my corded jigsaw. Laminate is thin enough for the blade to stay on track and not mess up. But I liked it there because it was cordless, not because it was so good.

 

[woodbutcherbower]

Many thanks for the additional contributions - and thanks also to [member=70099]Ocfishingguy[/member] for his super-helpful PM. Zero response from Mafell. I tried my buddy’s Carvex out for a few hours this morning and could immediately identify with all of the above comments. It’s 100% not for me. The Hilti rep will be calling by at my jobsite on Monday with the barrel-grip 22v cordless to demo. I doubt if I’ll ever find anything quite as good as the Mafell, but anything which cuts true and with minimal blade deflection will do what I need it to. I’ve also warmed to the idea of cordless.

Plus - I know that if it breaks - they’ll fix it.

 

[Spandex]

I already tried, Coen. Mafell won't supply parts to anyone except authorised dealers and country distributors.

Have you checked Miles Tool & Machinery?
https://www.mtmc.co.uk/Spare-Parts/...re-Parts__p-240-12735363-12735367-106028.aspx

They seem to carry a lot of Mafell spares. That being said, looking at some of those prices it doesn’t look like it’s a particularly cheap option.

 

[CeeJay]

I ordered a bunch of spares from Miles Tools & Machinery for my P1CC. I only received one part (the sole plate) and didn’t receive the rest - they were on back order for 6 months. I cancelled and asked for a refund which I didn’t receive yet - still chasing a further 6 months later. In my experience Mafell spare parts are extremely difficult to source, unlike Festool which are straightforward.

Having said that I do love the P1CC - just have to be sure not to break it.

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[mwolczko]

How about emailing Mafell and pointing to this thread?  Maybe they will be shamed into doing the right thing.
After reading this, I wouldn’t get one.  I have a Carvex and second all the complaints … it’s the only Festool I wouldn’t recommend.

 

[Cheese]

How about emailing Mafell and pointing to this thread?  Maybe they will be shamed into doing the right thing.
After reading this, I wouldn’t get one.  I have a Carvex and second all the complaints … it’s the only Festool I wouldn’t recommend.

Now that is hilarious...a German company being shamed into doing the right thing...that is truly funny.

 

[MikeGE]

Now that is hilarious...a German company being shamed into doing the right thing...that is truly funny.

What exactly is "the right thing" Mafell is not doing?  I haven't read anything in this thread that indicates Mafell will not repair the P1CC if the OP sends it to an authorized repair facility. 

If you think Mafell's business model for service and replacement parts is restrictive, try getting a new Nikon DSLR repaired.

 

[CeeJay]

I ordered a bunch of spares from Miles Tools & Machinery for my P1CC. I only received one part (the sole plate) and didn’t receive the rest - they were on back order for 6 months. I cancelled and asked for a refund which I didn’t receive yet - still chasing a further 6 months later. In my experience Mafell spare parts are extremely difficult to source, unlike Festool which are straightforward.

Having said that I do love the P1CC - just have to be sure not to break it.

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Well this thread reminded me to prod Miles Tools and they just processed my refund.

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[Tracy Nauman]

Stay away from the Carvex. In my opinion it is the worst jigsaw out there. I have never used mine that I was not disappointed and now hate to even use it. I was planning on selling and going with Mafell but I think returning to the Bosch is the way to go. 

 

[mino]

Stay away from the Carvex. In my opinion it is the worst jigsaw out there. I have never used mine that I was not disappointed and now hate to even use it. I was planning on selling and going with Mafell but I think returning to the Bosch is the way to go.

Hi, not want to detract, but this is a very bold claim. And a patently false at that.

Firstly, in the world of P1CC, almost any jigsaw is crap. Event the Trion which was built for straight work, unlike the Carvex.

I cannot speak for the corded version but I have the cordless PSC and am generally happy with it. But I bought it specifically for VERSATILITY. Not for precision or as a replacement for my tracksaw. It is adequately precise as "the tool of last resort" how I use jigsaws.

Lastly, there are a pile-LOT of jigsaws which have no way the versatility of the Carvex series and still are way worse in precision, blade guidance etc. etc. We have 4 of those gathering dust in our shop. While two are hobby, 2 are from major pro brands.

You want precise/straight cutting? Stay away from the Carvex. Trion is for that as far as Festool goes and P1CC is the king there.

You want a versatile jigsaw asa tool of last resort? Carvex series are a good choice with the cordless being preferrable as the battery weight makes them less jittery.

Nuf said.

 

[notenoughcash]

i would buy a cordless carvex over a p1cc any day.  not coz i'm a fan boy, but i use my psc mainly for coping skirt.  so 1. cords get in the way by the time you have twisted it around a few times, 2. the colins foot for the carvex is cheeper than the mafell [wink].

i also use the batts on the tsc.

but if the p1cc was cordless, i would pick it up as a skin and run it on metabo batts.  i have felt one at axi, and it feels just quality, and it feels a bit nicer in the hand than the ps/c.  that said, the carvex is head and shoulders above any other jiggy i have ever used.  and i have use the PS and the PSC.  better than makita, milwaukee and dewalt, by a long shot

 

[Rick Herrick]

I want a jigsaw and exact cuts aren't really necessary.  I do want 18V though.  Why is the Trion considered a better jigsaw than the Carvex? 

 

[allthegearnoidea]

I tried out both the Carvex and the Bosch GST160. the Carvex has a lot of party tricks with all its different bases and accessories etc., but the Bosch is the more competent saw when it comes to power and quality of cut. I found it the blade deflected and wandered less than the Carvex did.

Not saying the Carvex is bad, but it's a bit of a gimmicky product as opposed to the reliable workhorse the Bosch is.

Hope that helps.

 

[mino]

I want a jigsaw and exact cuts aren't really necessary.  I do want 18V though.  Why is the Trion considered a better jigsaw than the Carvex?

TLDR:
Carvex saws are the generalists, able to use any blade from 2mm to the special 4mm wide ones. Thus able to "carve" things using the thick blades. Tasks you really do not (want to) attempt with the thin 2.5mm blades.
Trion or P1CC and most other jigsaws I am aware are the traditional tools specialised in the "make a straight cut with narrow blade" task group.
Different tools for different use cases.

-----
The Trion has tripple-guided blade. The "tri" from the name actually. This makes it more steady as the blade is way more stable.

But it also means that it cannot handle varied blade thicknesses and there is more "stuff" around/above the cut area, obstructing visibility.

The Carvex has dual-guided blade as was common in the past. This has two positive effects:
- excellent visibility of the cut area
- the ability to accomodate varied-thickness blades, it can "eat" blades from 2mm to 4mm and anything in between, this is the versatility piece I mentioned, and it can switch pretty fast between the various blade types bu adjusting the "runner" carbides
And it has negative ones too:
- the blade guide MUST be correctly adjusted to the blade thickness which can be tricky
- the given blade will never be as stable as a tripple-guided one (partially compensated by the 4mm "CARVEX" blades)

I believe the people the most disappointed with the Carvex are looking for a Trion/P1CC style tool as they do not require the ability to use the special "Carvex" 4mm blades.

The way Festool has "solved" the dual-guide-only limitation is by making the 4mm-wide blades available, which are WAY more stable than the standard 0.1"/2.5mm blade can ever be. This allows even a two-point guided blade to be reasonably stable. But the problem starts when you take your "standard" 2.5mm blade and use it with the Carvex. Yes, it will work. But it will not have anywhere near the guidance like on a Trion or the P1CC.

This is an intentional design tradeoff and is why the Carvex series are NOT a replacement for the Trion. It is a DIFFERENT TOOL. A tool that can do almost any job a jigsaw can possibly dream to do.
The price there is it cannot do some of those jobs well, like working a 2.5mm blade and trying a straight cut with it ... nothing is free.

EDIT: TLDR

 

[jonnyrocket]

[member=61254]mino[/member]

Thanks for this explanation. In all the discussions I have seen here on the FOG regarding the carvex, this is the first time I’ve seen the information that you’ve shared. Your comment should be pinned as a separate thread for all others to learn from.

 

[Rick Herrick]

Thanks [member=61254]mino[/member] , appreciate the information.  Is the dust collection on the Triton done well? 

 

[Cheese]

Is the dust collection on the Triton done well?

Here's a link to a previous comparison that I made.
https://www.festoolownersgroup.com/festool-tool-reviews/loving-the-carvex/

Here's the Cliffs Notes version of the above comparison. The photo's in order are: Carvex, Trion & Mafell.

[attachimg=1]

[attachimg=2]

[attachimg=3]

 

[semenza]

Were you cutting strips off the edge of the plywood? All cut settings the same? Front dust shield on Carvex closed? Is the picture order correct? I ask because I have had much better DC with Carvex than Trion. I don't have the Mafell to compare though.

Seth

 

[mwolczko]

What exactly is "the right thing" Mafell is not doing?

The hallmark of a premium brand is support. They should offer to inspect the unit, at no cost, and if it failed because it was defective, fix or replace it for free.  And otherwise offer a repair at reasonable cost.

Here’s an example of superb service: some years ago I bought a Zeiss optic (an image-stabilizing monocular), second-hand.  After a while it was clear it had a problem.  Zeiss offered to inspect it and quote for a repair.  In the end they sent it back to the factory in Germany, fixed it, and returned it to me — at no cost. And I wasn’t even the original owner.

 

[mino]

The hallmark of a premium brand is support. They should offer to inspect the unit, at no cost, and if it failed because it was defective, fix or replace it for free.  And otherwise offer a repair at reasonable cost.

To be fair here. Maffel is a small company. Their tools are so expensive not because they make them from gold. But because they make so few of them to cover development costs, compared to Festool etc.

They not able to provise free inspection outside their home market for out-of-warranty tools is not the real problem here.

The real problem is the *combination* of that with their unwilingness to sell spare parts to retail.

Even Festool, being like 10x the size, does not provide free inspection - you still have to pay for the shipping. What they do provide, however, is easy access to all spare parts as well as the spare parts catalog being online for anonymous site visitors.
That mitigates most of the lack-of-local-repair a non-mainstream brand usually faces. Any tool repair shop can just browse the eKat and order the parts needed for their customers. No special contract with Festool needed. That is what Maffel needs here as well.