TS 55 plate wear

[festooltim]

What do I do when the plate wears down and I run out of adjustment to take out the play on the rails?

 

[woodie]

You have to purchase a new baseplate. The good news is they've revised the plate for the TS55. It now includes replaceable plastic strips at these wear points.

 

[festooltim]

What do they look like maybe I could try to modify mine to ad some sort of wear strip. The way I see it I have nothing to lose.

 

[woodie]

I have the TS75, which they unfortunately have not made this revision to. I'll try and find the video were Brian from Festool mentions it. I think it was in the video he did on setting up the MFT?

 

[Alan m]

i would buy the replacment stips for the newer saw and glue them on. nothing to loose.

 

[woodie]

Oops, it was Steve not Brian. He doesn't show the new baseplate but talks about it. It's around 4:40 into the video.

MFT Setup 1

 

[woodie]

You could try using something thin with an adhesive backing. Just trim it to fit over the existing tab and stick.

Here's a couple of products.

Slick Strips

Slick Saw

 

[Laminator]

A solid strip sounds like a really good idea!  I like the way the atf55 saw does not have tabs which lets you go further down the rail without bobbling as the ts does when the tab goes past the guide rail.  I feel a modification coming on.

 

[festooltim]

I have a roll of the green strip stuff I could try a piece of that. Does the green strips on the track wear down ,does anyone replace theirs on a regular basis.

 

[ajones]

remove the green plastic adjuster slip over a piece of heat shrink tube and heat. repeat twice and trim of excess  repeat once worn.

 

[Administrator_JSVN]

Since this was posted in the Ask Festool section... The base plate is considered a wear item. If you're cutting solid surface or other abrasive materials, it can wear the plate down. Under normal circumstances when used with wood, you shouldn't see this type of wear. You can contact our service department to order a replacement base plate. Their number is below in my signature.

Shane

 

[mouppe]

I'd be tempted to thicken up the rail rather than adjust the baseplate with some double-sided foam tape. Obviously leave the saw side of the tape with the paper on. You can get 1/16" or 1/8" depending on the thickness you need and the foam will have sufficient "give" to take out the play in the saw but still leave it wobble-free.

Richard.

 

[Jalvis]

I have a TS and ATF that both have wear on the plate as shown.  Mine are worse than yours and I intend to use a strip like whats on the rails.  Seems more cost affective then buying an entire plate. 

I also think its best to fix the plate on the saw not the rails.......I have around a dozen rails so that doesn't make sense. 

 

[Brice Burrell]

Since this was posted in the Ask Festool section... The base plate is considered a wear item. If you're cutting solid surface or other abrasive materials, it can wear the plate down. Under normal circumstances when used with wood, you shouldn't see this type of wear. You can contact our service department to order a replacement base plate. Their number is below in my signature.

Shane

Im confused can you tell me why the wear would be different in his picture?!   If your sliding your saw back and forth over a few years eventually its going to wear in that area indicated in the picture regardless of what your cutting.   From what your saying if he was cutting wood only it wouldnt wear out.

JMB

I believe what Shane is saying is that dust from materials like solid surface is far more abrasive than wood.  It's this dust on the rail that exacerbates the wear on the base plate. 

 

[Alan m]

yes but surely most of that dust should be in the vac and not on the rail

 

[Administrator_JSVN]

Since this was posted in the Ask Festool section... The base plate is considered a wear item. If you're cutting solid surface or other abrasive materials, it can wear the plate down. Under normal circumstances when used with wood, you shouldn't see this type of wear. You can contact our service department to order a replacement base plate. Their number is below in my signature.

Im confused can you tell me why the wear would be different in his picture?!   If your sliding your saw back and forth over a few years eventually its going to wear in that area indicated in the picture regardless of what your cutting.   From what your saying if he was cutting wood only it wouldnt wear out.

I believe what Shane is saying is that dust from materials like solid surface is far more abrasive than wood.  It's this dust on the rail that exacerbates the wear on the base plate. 

Just like Brice said, from the abrasion from the solid surface dust. Even with dust extraction, it can be very fine and work it's way into crevices. The Rotex sanders were designed with a sealed gear housing for this very reason.

 

[Distinctive Interiors]

I brought a TS75 a couple of months ago specifically for cutting up solid surface material. As Shane said, the dust is quite abrasive and even though the saw is always used with my CT, the dust residue on the base of the saw and the rails, is a bit of a problem.
I,ve got into the habit of keeping an Anti-Static Micro fibre cloth close at hand when I,m using my saw. As soon as I,ve finished a cut, I wipe the base of the saw and the full length of the rail with the cloth, top and bottom and it removes the very fine dust. If I forget to do it, then go to use the saw again, I can really feel the extra resistance between the saw and the rail when I push the saw along.

Tim.

 

[festooltim]

I think I will try to put some wear strips on the plate before spending money on a new one. That will be fairly cheap but when I do that I have to replace all the cutting strips on my rails and I have 5 different rails. I'm afraid to add that up. I suppose if I kept them wiped down with armorall I might have prolonged this. I also have a crack in the blade cover piece where the splinter guard is attached. I think it fell and landed right on the splinter guard and cracked it there.

 

[Distinctive Interiors]

I dont wipe it all down if I,m cutting MDF or timber JMB......!!! Only if I,m cutting Acrylic Solid Surface material. The really fine dust has an almost "Static" quality to it, and it seems to cling to everything. Anyway, it only takes one wipe and a couple  of seconds. No big deal at all!!!!

Tim.

 

[ccmviking]

    Your plate does not look to be worn to the point of losing adjustment.  I would order two of the adjusting wheels if I were you and just try that for now.  They are a wear item too and would be a cheap and easy thing to try.  The newer bases are nice due to the lower friction on the rail but you may be able to hold off til further down the road. 

Chris...

What do I do when the plate wears down and I run out of adjustment to take out the play on the rails?