splinter guard peeling off at the end

[pgrbff]

My rails have never been used with a saw, just my routers. The end of the splinter guard is peeling off.
I have now bought a saw, is there a way of salvaging the unused guard or should I replace it?

 

[Michael Kellough]

I still have a stash of the old black strips so this might not work as well on the new clears strips...

First bend the loose strip back and brush off any debris that has stuck to the adhesive.

Heat the rail end and strip with a hair dryer or heat gun so they're both very warm but not dangerous to handle. This reactivates the adhesive.

Put the strip back in place and immediately cover the strip with a flat piece of wood and then add clamps.

Leave the clamps in place until the rail is back to ambient temperature.

Trim off any of the strip that extends past the end of the rail and also clip the corner of the strip off.
The corners tend to catch on things and pull the strip off.

 

[Mike Goetzke]

If Michael’s trick doesn’t work I have used Aleene's Tack-It Over & Over Liquid Glue for similar applications. Might be worth a try.

Mike

 

[Michael Kellough]

If Michael’s trick doesn’t work I have used Aleene's Tack-It Over & Over Liquid Glue for similar applications. Might be worth a try.

Mike

That reminds me of another product they make that I'm glad to have found.
But it won't be any good for sticking the splinter guard back on.

Aleene's Always ready Tacky Glue

It's regular pva glue that is thick (maybe high solids?) and comes in a small dispenser that stands upside down so it's always ready to go. The small nozzle allows precise placement of a small drop of glue that will stay in place while you maneuver the work into position. It's great for attaching small or pre-finished stuff when you don't want to use fasteners and don't want the glue to extrude out from between the parts.

 

[Sparktrician]

And as for re-using the splinter strip, gently peel it off and clean the rail with denatured alcohol or acetone to remove any debris of finger oils.  Reapply the strip, but space it out 3-4 mm from the stop ridge on the rail.  Once the strip has been reapplied, just run the TS down the rail to re-cut the splinter strip precisely.  [smile] 

Forgot to mention that if the adhesive strip has given up the ghost, use a strip of double-faced carpet tape as a replacement. 

 

[Joebuck]

Another solution is to cut a short strip of clear heavy duty packaging tape and fix it over both the start and ends of the splinter guard making sure to wrap it up overlapping onto the top of the aluminum rail. It’s so thin it doesn’t obstruct the travel of the saw. It’s worked really well for me and is a cheap and easy fix.

 

[Peter_C]

I clip the ends of my strips at an angle just so they are less likely to peel off. If it is around a couple of centimeters just cut it off. You won't be cutting at that point (Except when putting two rails together, which is not as good as using a longer rail).

Should it be peeling further back do as others have suggested by removing, cleaning and using double stick tape to reattach it moved over slightly, then re-cut it.

 

[wmarazita]

You didn't say, but I will assume your track has a clear Festool splinter guard so I will respond with that in mind.

This is such a huge Festool mystery to me: Why did Festool ever change from the original black splinter guards to the current clear splinter guards? They are "clearly" inferior. It seems many/most/all people have similar problems as yours with the clear splinter guards.

The first tracks I have from Festool from years ago still have the original black splinter guards. They are still perfectly attached. My newish, long track came with the clear splinter guard. It peeled off at the ends within several months of owning it. I replaced it with a Makita black splinter guard which appears to be the same as the original Festool black splinter guards. The new one from Makita has lasted like the old Festool black splinter guards and has never peeled.

My suggestion to you: replace the clear splinter guard with a Makita black splinter guard.
My suggestion to Festool: well, its pretty obvious.

 

[semenza]

This is such a huge Festool mystery to me: Why did Festool ever change from the original black splinter guards to the current clear splinter guards? They are "clearly" inferior. It seems many/most/all people have similar problems as yours with the clear splinter guards.

  People used to say that it was hard to see a pencil mark up against the black.  And when changing strips the adhesive on the black ones made it very difficult to remove.

Seth

 

[Peter_C]

And when changing strips the adhesive on the black ones made it very difficult to remove.

Seth

I would venture to guess it is not the strip material but the adhesive they used to use that worked so well. Was the original adhesive banned or something? Usually that seems to be the case for the better of the environment or cost savings for higher profits.

Not sure if this the best stuff, but seems to work for awhile.https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00002N8T6/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_search_asin_title?ie=UTF8&psc=1

 

[pgrbff]

The adhesive at the ends was dry and slightly powdery. I decided to replace both lengths.
Thanks for all the replies.

 

[wmarazita]

This is such a huge Festool mystery to me: Why did Festool ever change from the original black splinter guards to the current clear splinter guards? They are "clearly" inferior. It seems many/most/all people have similar problems as yours with the clear splinter guards.

  People used to say that it was hard to see a pencil mark up against the black.  And when changing strips the adhesive on the black ones made it very difficult to remove.

Seth

Oh that makes some sense at least for why they changed.

The clear splinter guard does seem like a softer material to me. I was wondering if maybe it was more sensitive to expansion and contraction with temperature changes and the movement caused the adhesive to fail prematurely.

 

[dheisner]

Out of frustration, I called Festool to get their take on how to keep the splinter guards from coming off.  Here is a summary of their response:

1. Clean glue off with acetone
2. Prep rail with rubbing alcohol
3. Press along the whole setup (lots of people do use different ways to push on it, but you need to press down the entire length of the rail)
4. Cut shorter than the rail
5. Let it cure
6. Keep out of

 

[peter halle]

[member=101]Festool USA[/member] , can you confirm and possibly elaborate on what was written above as the latest recommendation?

[member=2559]dheisner[/member] , I totally believe that what you wrote is what you were told.  I just would love to see a confirmation whereas  I stood in front of a Festool employee just abut two weeks ago and heard something totally different and it is important to those who have spent a fair share of money for tools to have the most recent official recommendations.

Peter Halle - Moderator

 

[Michael Kellough]

8. Can glue back on with glue that is compatible with silicone

Really?! What glue is that? Now we know why the splinter guards come loose  [huh]

 

[Cheese]

This could be a pretty interesting thread as I just purchased new splinter strips to attach to my FS & FSK rails. Over the years I've had various Festool track saws and they've all managed to mangle the splinter strip to a greater or lesser degree.

I've finally settled on the TSC 55 K, HKC 55 and MT 55 track saws being used on the rails, even though that TS 60 or HK 85 might be in the future.

 

[sancho57]

Sedge just did a festool live on the splinter guards that will answer most of your questions

 

[peter halle]

Sedge just did a festool live on the splinter guards that will answer most of your questions

He did mention that extreme temps can affect the adhesive.  Also mentioned that if loose just at the end a drop of CA glue can be used.

I'll stick with my Makita strips installed on Festool rails. 

Peter

 

[ElectricFeet]

Sedge also mentioned in another Festool live a while back that when you put the splinter guard on, make sure you cut it slightly shorter than the rail at both ends.

That way, if you place the rail on the ground/floor vertically, you won't risk having protruding strip bend over and be the cause of it eventually peeling off.

(And you'll never use those 2mm at either end, in any case.)

His comment matched my experience perfectly. I've since sliced a couple of mm off the ends of the strips on all my rails.

 

[Coen]

Sedge also mentioned in another Festool live a while back that when you put the splinter guard on, make sure you cut it slightly shorter than the rail at both ends.

That way, if you place the rail on the ground/floor vertically, you won't risk having protruding strip bend over and be the cause of it eventually peeling off.

(And you'll never use those 2mm at either end, in any case.)

His comment matched my experience perfectly. I've since sliced a couple of mm off the ends of the strips on all my rails.

When coupled you do use those 2mm. I think Sedge said so too.