The one that really matters
The Trion is Dead?
- Thread starter onocoffee
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MrToolJunkie
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- 2,998
Yes - it looks like it is still available in 230V versions. But 110V is non-existent. It is possible it is still one some local shelves of dealers somewhere, but I did not find it listed on any of the Festool dealers online.
luvmytoolz
Member
I'm looking at replacing my old Makita LXT18 with something that will hopefully cut at clean right angles in hardwoods, up to 50mm thick sometimes, and was looking at the Mafell P1CC or one of the Festool's.
The Trion appears to be better than the Carvex for blade rigidity, is the P1CC markedly better than the Trion, or much of a muchness?
The Trion appears to be better than the Carvex for blade rigidity, is the P1CC markedly better than the Trion, or much of a muchness?
onocoffee
Member
You might consider visiting (or calling) Festool dealers that have been around for some time. I found my Trio BG in November when I stopped by a Woodcraft that has been around for a long time. They had a 2012 PS300 sitting around that was pretty seriously discounted (it's SKU had been discontinued). And since I got it from the dealer, the warranty started when I bought it!
It's better, but the Trion is still very good. I have the corded Mafell, along with a cordless Carvex - I'm going to sell both and get the cordless Mafell, if the Aus distributor actually has one in stock.
Cheese
Member
Mafell
TrionFor cutting out circles using the Mafell with a Trion badged blade, if you force feed the Mafell, the blade will still deflect very slightly...let the machine do the work. For straight cutting, perpendicularity is not an issue with the Trion blade. If you want the maximum in blade stiffness then use the Mafell W1 blade. It's actually 2 blades silver soldered together.
Though it comes in 2nd place, the Trion is an extremely capable jig saw and with a little care and common sense, the cut will be very perpendicular. If you don't want to spend almost $800 on a jig saw, the Trion at $300 is a steal. The Carvex is a mess.
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luvmytoolz
Member
Yeah the Carvex is the only currently sold here and with one battery is $950AUD, compared to the P1CC with the tilting base at $1540AUD. I do really like the double blade idea though, that would be great for curves and mitres. I might keep my eyes open for a second hand Trion. Shame the Carvex seems inferior compared to the Trion though, as cordless would have been nice.
For cutting out circles using the Mafell with a Trion badged blade, if you force feed the Mafell, the blade will still deflect very slightly...let the machine do the work. For straight cutting, perpendicularity is not an issue with the Trion blade. If you want the maximum in blade stiffness then use the Mafell W1 blade. It's actually 2 blades silver soldered together.
Though it comes in 2nd place, the Trion is an extremely capable jig saw and with a little care and common sense, the cut will be very perpendicular. If you don't want to spend almost $800 on a jig saw, the Trion at $300 is a steal. The Carvex is a mess.
Lol what on earth
For curves you need the teeth to fan out wider than the body of the blade. This doesn't seem to have that.
mino
Member
Well ... if you want to use a jigsaw in place of a (circular) tracksaw, then one wants such a blade ..
To others asking if P1cc or Trion:
If you have spare change for the P1cc, get the cordless variety of it.
If you need a shop animal and wired is OK, get the Trion with its PlugIt while available /goes for Europe too/. It gets you 95% of the way to the jigsaw-that-can-cut straight Nirvana for about half the cost.
If you need just a jigsaw for those "tool of last resort" use cases, the CARVEX is right up there with the best ones on the market in its cordless variety.
The Trion and the P1cc are in a bit of a category of their own by capabilities, not sure how to call it, but their propensity to cut straight sets them apart from pretty much everything else on the market. But you pay with weight for that. Those are no nimble tools.
Michael Kellough
Member
You need this blade if you want to cut dead straight too.
That is if you want a straight edge or guide rail to guide the body of the saw.
Not even the Mafell P1 can cut straight with an ordinary narrow kerf blade.
The best upgrade for any jigsaw is to use the Mafell double wide blade, but it may cause too much strain for a lot of them.
It's a 'wedge' shape - tapered from the front of the blade to the back.
Michael Kellough
Member
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Michael Kellough
Member
Forgot that the Mafell W1 blade has the reinforced shank so it won’t fit any other jigsaw. It’s shown in Cheese’s pic higher up but here is a closer shot.
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Cheese
Member
Here's a couple of better photos of the Mafell W1 blade. The kerf of the blade is 2.98 mm however it tapers to only 1.16 mm at the back edge of the blade for cutting curves.
In comparison, the thickest Festool blade has a kerf of 2.00 mm and a back edge thickness of 1.30 mm. That is the gold colored Trion marked blade S 74/4 FSG...486551.
In comparison, the thickest Festool blade has a kerf of 2.00 mm and a back edge thickness of 1.30 mm. That is the gold colored Trion marked blade S 74/4 FSG...486551.
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I think that currently is 204316 for 5 blades
onocoffee
Member
Well, I am just leaving Hingham Lumber in Hingham, Massachusetts and they have at least one PS300. 2021 build in a SYS3. This is the display model. It looks clean and they said that if that’s the last one, they would sell it. And I think the MSRP is $315.
Better call them now and grab it up!
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Michael Kellough
Member
@Cheese, thanks for checking that! I’ve wanted to be able to cut a dead straight line with a jigsaw for decades. Thought I bought the ticket 40 years ago when the Bosch 1584 DVS came out. It was the first jigsaw that (I know of) purported to be capable of being run along a straight edge. I never found a blade with enough set (until the W1) that could tolerate the degree of unparallelness between the axis of the blade and the shoe of the saw. I’ll try that gold Festool blade.
Jim_in_PA
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I have the track adapter for my Trion. I've only used it a few times, but it does work. With a sharp blade and a slow, steady cut, it's "reasonably" accurate.
Michael Kellough
Member
How far can you go? If more than a foot you have an exceptional saw.
I have several jigsaws including the Trion and Mafell and the blade simply isn’t close enough to parallel to the base to allow the cut to continue very far.
When I tried track cutting with the Mafell I didn’t use a heavy set blade. I’ll try again with the gold blade Cheese called out but if you have to use a coarse blade it kinda (sometimes) defeats the purpose.
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