TKS80 - Guide Rail Adjustment - Help needed

[The Otters]

Hi all
I recently purchased a TKS80 as I am replacing many of my older tools and was so excited about buying this system.
Spent the first two lockdowns toying with the idea!

Anyway I note that when I am ripping a piece of timber, it is becoming very tight between the blade and the guide stop.
Forgive me if I am not using the correct name for this as I note it is called several items in the manual.
From Rip Saw Fence to
The part number is LA-TKS 80 Stopper.
It is the fence that runs parallel to the blade on the right hand side.

It would appear that it isn't running truly parallel to the blade, so the riving knife is pushed over.
I was hoping there was some adjustment at the far end of the Stopper however this doesn't seem to be the case.

Has anyone else had any experience of this?
And hopefully a solution.

 

[AlexThePalex]

ROFL, the notorious LA fence.

You know, I have the same problem with the exact same fence for my CS70, and some other people have said here they don't like it either. Problem is, it is not stiff enough and it runs not true enough on the front rail to also be in the exact same spot on the back rail.

My solution is, I always measure it in the front and the back to make sure it is dead straight. I don't know anything else.

 

[DeformedTree]

Clamping Piece

Does Festool make items like Mafell has to clamp rails and such down?

It sounds like this is the same case with other saws where the blade is skewed from the fence, and the close point is only at the leading edge of the blade.  I think the CMS insert for the T55 was the same. 

If you are getting binding, maybe you need the fence on the other side of the blade.

 

[TinyShop]

[member=74775]The Otters[/member] - are you making sure to tighten the round knob first then rotate the lever (which locks down the far side)? Doing this sequence out of order is a recipe for disaster.

 

[FestitaMakool]

[member=74775]The Otters[/member]
Be sure to do as Tony Shop says. The large round knob straighten the fence, the lever to the right locks the rear of the fence. It is vital to do in the right sequence. When both are locked it’s dead steady.

Measure after doing it in the right sequence, then check if the fence is parallel to the blade (preferably less than half a Millimeter toe out in the far end)
The TKS 80 also has a non conductive piece glued to the aluminium sliding fence extrusion I’ve seen some with this glued on wrongly from the factory, so that the fence won’t stay square to the table, because the non conductive piece lever the whole fence.  [huh]

After checking this ^ the fence can be calibrated by loosening the (four) Allen bolts under the moulded “square” where the large knob sits. (At least it’s this way on the other LA fences for CS50 and CS70) You may need to loosen the plastic end cap of the fence itself to reach the nuts inside the fence. Loosen all four, then slightly tighten two bolts diagonally, be sure that the fence can be positioned without being too loose when you measure and calibrate. Then tighten the bolts, begin with the two diagonally, then cross tighten all four.

EDIT: Be sure to calibrate without the rear lever lock engaged, lock only the large knob. The rear lock is just a slave and do not correct the fence in any other way than clamping it to the rear. So always lock the large knob with the rear locking lever fully open.

 

[The Otters]

Hi everyone.
Thank you so much for your replies.
I took the say down a few days ago so cannot try the pants that you have mentioned.
I will especially look at the sequence of tightening the LA.
However after getting particularly frustrated that it was not sitting correctly I did what very few men in the world have ever done - I read the instructions and followed them through point by point!
Still to no avail.
I did note that when the pressure was added to bring the back stop into play it made matters worse.
Perhaps the answer is at the handle end rather than the rear grip. I will report back in a couple of days.

Mustard Mitt that I am glad it wasn't just me having these issues!
The fine adjustment system is just garbage! Apart from that I love the saw.

 

[AlexThePalex]

The fine adjustment system is just garbage!

Exactly, I took it out of mine. Totally unneeded and it only makes things difficult.

By the way, you have a funny autocorrect thing going on there.  [smile]

 

[FestitaMakool]

The fine adjustment system is just garbage!

Exactly, I took it out of mine. Totally unneeded and it only makes things difficult.

By the way, you have a funny autocorrect thing going on there.  [smile]

The fine adjustment is a joy to use  [big grin] ..sneaking up on a line, or with a ruler, instead of constantly knocking? on the fence [wink].
But then, no one forces anyone to use it or like it. I’ve found the LA fence quite good - but Festool can certainly develop it further, very soon! And that with backwards compatibility  [wink]
I can see a turning wheel, also with reduction gears, under the “V” to adjust the fence, for a start.. and a cantilever lock for the rear lock instead of the twist lock..

And yes, don’t turn off autocorrect, a bit of everyday fun that is [big grin]

 

[TinyShop]

For posterity - I came across the following blog post from 2016 (written in German) which includes photos and brief instructions for how to dial-in (a.k.a. improve the accuracy of) the rip fence (a.k.a. "stopper") for the CS 70 [scroll down the page until you find the section that deals with this topic].
https://www.holzundleim.de/2016/10/hilfreiche-tipps-fuer-die-festool-cs-70/

Here's the English translated version of the above blog post.

Since the design for the CS 70 rip fence hasn't changed (and since it's the still the basis for the rip fence that's currently available for the CMS, for the TKS 80 and for the CS 50 (Note - the CS 70 version is also compatible with the MFT/3) I thought I'd post the link to the blog post to aid folk's understanding of the process.

I also took the liberty of amending the title of this thread to make it easier for inquiring minds to find this guidance in the future.

Enjoy!   

 

[KevinR]

I own and use a TKS 80 purchased in August 2020. I also own and use the mentioned fence. There are many positives to the machine, but I have also had problems.

Problem 1: the blade was misaligned to the table, and the blade alignment is not adjustable -- according to my dealer. So, I was given a replacement saw. According to the dealer, this was a known problem.

Problem2: the riving knife on my replacement saw is both misaligned with the saw and not flat. Thus "pinching" my workpiece between the correctly aligned fence and the knife. There is adjustment on the riving knife mount -- I can get the front adjuster to move, but cannot move the rear adjuster and am afraid of damaging it. So I cannot completely solve my pinching problem without "kicking out" the fence a small amount to accommodate.

I hope this helps.
Perhaps one of the above problems that I have experienced pertain to the original posting.

 

[NZ3.14]

Hi,

The blade alignment can be adjusted on the TKS80 - Follow the instructions in this video:


I'm in the process of building back a table for it with a mitre slot, once this is done I will measure the alignment.

I am also having the same issues with the riveting knife...

The SawStop video states an error of 0.254mm (over 254mm) from the front to the rear of the blade is acceptable... Ripping a 1000mm board will result in an error of 2mm... I hope the alignment can achieve better accuracy with a more accurate gauge.

-Philip