Universal circular saw glide shoe for festool guide rail?

[Dan1210]

Does anyone know if theres a universal glide saw shoe to get a normal sidewinder circular saw (in this case milwaukee fuel) to run on the festool tracks?

 

[Deansocial]

No but hilti cordless saws fit the rail

 

[Frank-Jan]

Makita sells guiderailadaptors as accesories for their circular saws to run on their plungesaw tracks (that are compatible with the festool tracks.)

Maybe one of them will work for your milwaukee saw. Link with partnumbers and machinetypes on Dutch makita site (cannot find those accesories on the UK site, but I think you can order them by partnumber, you just have to figure out which one would work)

 

[Dan1210]

Cheers dean, i was looking for a cheaper alternative, something for general carpentry and fitting. I was in a sea of cables the other day during a fit and thought its time for cordless.
Currently im framing but my main work is trim/kitchens.
The festool version is quite a price for entry plus its not really great for having lying around on the jobsite if you get what i mean.
The new fuel is getting high praise and retails at about £400 with 2 batts and charger.

 

[AlexThePalex]

Wolfcraft makes a rail with a universal glide shoe. Costs about 70 € here.

http://www.wolfcraft.com/en/products/p/guiding_systems//s/c/index.html

Anyway, it shouldn't be too hard for a handy person to makes his own.

 

[Dan1210]

Agreed alex, thanks for the link.

 

[ifit]

No but hilti cordless saws fit the rail

They do but they tend to chew the splinter guard up a bit and there is no way to adjust the position of the saw

 

[jonny round boy]

If you're looking for a cheap version then Axminster do one - they do guide clamps in 3 different lengths and then a universal base to mount the saw on.

It's very basic, but may do what you want. Bear in mind the longest clamp is only 1270mm though.

 

[ifit]

Cheers dean, i was looking for a cheaper alternative, something for general carpentry and fitting. I was in a sea of cables the other day during a fit and thought its time for cordless.
Currently im framing but my main work is trim/kitchens.
The festool version is quite a price for entry plus its not really great for having lying around on the jobsite if you get what i mean.
The new fuel is getting high praise and retails at about £400 with 2 batts and charger.

The ts55c is only another £100 with a rail
With that said you really need 2 saws - 1 for 1st fix type work and 1 for fit out type work
I have the 36v hilti for cutting studs, rafters, joists etc. and it is fantastic for the job but if i want to trim down doors, cut worktops, cut sheets of mdf, laminate etc. then the ts55 is the tool for the job

Now if they were to add a plunge lock and blade guard to that ts55c  [tongue]

 

[w802h]

You can make a "guide rail" for any circular saw with a narrow plywood rip placed on top of a wider one.  These cuts need to be wicked straight.  1/2" works well since the depth of cut needs to be sufficient for the motor housing to clear the fence piece.  Of course there is more time clamping it down than with the festool track, the saw can wander from the fence since it isn't a true rail, no splinter guard, bevel cuts are different, etc.  I used this method last week to make some straight, decorative cuts in a concrete slab that is going to get an acid wash and the client wanted some geometric shapes of a different color.  I wish I had dust extraction for the concrete blade though!

 

[ifit]

For 1st fix type work I generally just freehand the cuts or clamp/nail a straight edge on to run my saw against, My rails get too bashed about to use at that stage and don't want to lug around a home made ply rail

 

[Dan1210]

Makita sells guiderailadaptors as accesories for their circular saws to run on their plungesaw tracks (that are compatible with the festool tracks.)

Maybe one of them will work for your milwaukee saw. Link with partnumbers and machinetypes on Dutch makita site (cannot find those accesories on the UK site, but I think you can order them by partnumber, you just have to figure out which one would work)

thanks frank.

 

[Dan1210]

Exactly ifit, since ive been doing framing i would rather have some other first fix kit, i have all my festool stuff which is great for trim and kitchens.
although i have built everything with my festools up until now i really would like a saw that can be used on or off the track and cordless, the hilti is far too expensive.

i spoke to a couple of guys selling their tsc's on ebay and generally they werent impressed. Really i would like a couple of cordless saws one for fitting and one for first fix, i was trying to kill 2 birds with one stone... [tongue]

Regarding the tsc, being dual battery concept you really have to get another 2 batts and another charger which pushes the price up considerably. I was leaning towards the new milwaukee which out performs the dual makita on a single battery.

ps i already have the corded ts55 saw.

 

[ifit]

For framing it has got to be 36v and you need to keep a sharp blade unlike and electric saw if it is dull the blade will just stop
The only other 36v I have had was the bosch which cut well but i think it had plastic gears, It went back to bosh 4 times for repair within 2 years, after the 4th time i sold it while it was still working.
I have been using the hilti for about 6 years now and it is top notch, it has been in for repair once when I bent the shaft on a bad kickback but other than that its great, It is as good as an electric saw as long as the blade is sharp expensive yes but I've long since forgotten that.
In your position i would sooner buy a good second hand hilti than a lesser saw

If it is the 28v miwalkee saw you are looking at I tried a mates about 4 years ago and while not bad it did not have the power of a 36v

Makita now do a duel 18v saw which is cheap if you have their batteries looks ok but not tried it personally

 

[Dan1210]

the new fuel milwaukee beats the makita 36v

 

[ifit]

Here is a vid of the makita saw
I know from experience how hard the lvl's he is cutting are

 

[ifit]

the new fuel milwaukee beats the makita 36v

Ahh I didn't know they had a 36v version out sounds like it will be ok then

 

[Dan1210]

ha ha no the 18v milwaukee beats the dual batt 36v makita. the milwaukee is brushless and the batts 4.0

milwaukee just won an award for their battery tech. they also cut lvls no problem in the vids i posted.http://www.protoolreviews.com/buying-guides/2014-pro-tool-innovation-awards-cordless-tools/12227/

the makita looks good too.

 

[ifit]

ha ha no the 18v milwaukee beats the dual batt 36v makita. the milwaukee is brushless and the batts 4.0

milwaukee just won an award for their battery tech. they also cut lvls no problem in the vids i posted.

I did not realise it was only 18v - that looks pretty impressive if you get one report back with real world tests after a bit of use.

A couple of reasons to go for the hilti

it has a 70mm depth of cut  - you can cut 68mm cls on edge, I stack then out in a row on edge when doing studs
it has 50mm depth of cut at 45 degs this gives it the ability to cut jack rafters in normal 45mm stock
It has a guide rail groove - can be useful at times
Tons of power- Hilti claim 490 cuts in 4x2, Ive never counted but it cuts a lot on 1 battery, It will rip wet treated 45mm timber
It uses standard 190mm x 30mm blade  - most do but worth checking as other sizes can be harder to get and more expensive

against the hilti is the price but with how long mine has lasted I'm sure i would be on my 2nd other brand by now, they also have a top notch warranty similar to festool

 

[Dan1210]

Thanks ifit sounds like a great tool.