Video Review of Festool MFT System (495462 & 495565 & 495888)

[peter halle]

George,

Welcome to the FOG!  Great news for 1080 owners!  Thanks for sharing.

Peter

 

[NoBreyner]

I received my MFT/3 TS 55 combo from Bob just yesterday.  I used the two rails connected to trim the rubber strip in the middle then connected the uncut ends to finish it off.  I used my two Qwas dogs and a true cut 1.5" wide and 36" long poplar to square the guide rail to the holes then used just the dogs to square the fence to those holes and I could not believe how accurate my initial cuts were.  I bought the poplar lumber from Lowes and the ends looked very rough.  My first use of the saw was to trim a little off the ends and WOW the cut was smooth enough to seem as if the ends were sanded to 150 or so.  I also intend to use the kerf in the top as a reference line to make future cuts.  My first job for the saw/table was to break down the workbench the MFT is replacing.  The legs were laminated 2x4s and cut through one side 1mm into the bottom 2x4 flipped lined up the kerf lines the run again to cut through 3" material, and very little guessing and it ended up perfect (for dumpster fodder).  Just for S&Gs I made a rip cut down the edge of one 2x4 removing a 1/8" scrap piece.  And just WOW; the edges were perfectly crisp and a super smooth cut overall. 

Just because of this video review I have the Starrett R to L  Imperial/Metric tape on its way for late next week.  Oh on a side note I already cut 2mm into the back v groove on the second use not keeping track of the relation between the plunge stop, rail height and stock thickness.  After that I'm going to be alot more conscious of how I do things.

 

[teemacs]

As a bungling amateur who lives in Switzerland, I have to be careful what I buy. Swiss houses are much smaller than their US counterparts, ditto their garages, so everything I buy has to be bought with good storage in mind, otherwise the car (a subcompact!) won't fit. My workbench is relatively small and somewhat awkwardly placed, so I considered this table. It is expensive for a work table, as in very expensive, but then, a bigger house with a bigger garage is even more so, so I bit an entire arsenal of bullets and bought one. I bought in in its homeland (Germany), where it's (a) cheaper, and (b) I can get back the German value-added tax (19%). I tried to be naughty and avoid the Swiss VAT (8%) by bringing it across the border at a checkpoint that the Swiss didn't man at the weekend, but, alas, the German Zollbeamter made me fill in a declaration form and post it in the empty Swiss border post!

Initially, I went through the "what have I done??" agony, having spent all this money on a new toy. But then I started to use it - and suddenly I started to wonder how on earth I had ever managed without one. It's a nice height, workpieces can be clamped firmly on the surface, and the hinged rail makes crosscut sawing such a breeze. I'm constantly finding new uses for it, and the old workbench is now relegated to holding the tools I need, while all the action takes place on the MFT/3. Festool might not make the cheapest things around, but it certainly produces amazingly useful things.

 

[rljatl]

First of all, thanks Paul for yet another great review!

Next, just as an FYI:  To those who own the older MFT 1080 or 800, the clamps used by Paul to secure the fence to the rear rail (originally used on the end of the fence...) are not in the Festool catalogue, nor are they shown as an assembly on Ekat.  The individual components are shown, but not the assembly.  :-\   A quick call to Chris at Festool Service reveals that there IS indeed a part number for the assembly.  Order part #120 (yep, that's all) and the service dept. will assemble the components and send it out, all for a grand total of $6.00

Hope that helps somebody...

I must be missing something...The fence clamp for the MFT/3 is $58!  Why is it ten times the price of the clamp for the 1080?

 

[PaulMarcel]

Maybe give Festool USA a call to order the part. Maybe the listing you are seeing at $58 is for a larger assembly including a fence unit and something else.  Dunno.  That seems more like the price of the whole thing (clamps, fence, flag stop, etc) back on the 1080.

 

[rljatl]

Maybe give Festool USA a call to order the part. Maybe the listing you are seeing at $58 is for a larger assembly including a fence unit and something else.  Dunno.  That seems more like the price of the whole thing (clamps, fence, flag stop, etc) back on the 1080.

You would think it was for the whole thing, but...

Festool 495541 MFT/3 Fence Clamp

 

[PaulMarcel]

Wow, crazy, and I couldn't even see the gold and platinum on those...

 

[coezoo]

Following up on Paul-Marcel's review of the MFT system, I took it upon myself to create a calibration method similar to the one that Paul-Marcel did for the MFT 1080, but for the MFT/3. 

Calibrating the MFT/3's fence to the Guide Rail

Thanks for taking the time to do this!
But, all of the links to the larger photos are dead.  I'd love to be able to see the larger photos to go along with your great write up.  Do they still exist somewhere else?

Thanks

 

[ear3]

[member=62886]coezoo[/member]

Photos from older threads were toasted when the forum was revamped a few years back (someone else, like [member=48572]Shane Holland[/member]  will be able to give the exact date).

Following up on Paul-Marcel's review of the MFT system, I took it upon myself to create a calibration method similar to the one that Paul-Marcel did for the MFT 1080, but for the MFT/3. 

Calibrating the MFT/3's fence to the Guide Rail

Thanks for taking the time to do this!
But, all of the links to the larger photos are dead.  I'd love to be able to see the larger photos to go along with your great write up.  Do they still exist somewhere else?

Thanks

 

[Shane Holland]

Photos from some older threads were lost around mid-2015. I was no longer the forum administrator then so I don't have details on why they were lost or deleted.

 

[peter halle]

Not official Festool here but the information in the database appears to be missing the images from 2013 back.  Images uploaded by members are not accessible anymore in the database.

Peter

 

[thedevme]

Following up on Paul-Marcel's review of the MFT system, I took it upon myself to create a calibration method similar to the one that Paul-Marcel did for the MFT 1080, but for the MFT/3. 

Calibrating the MFT/3's fence to the Guide Rail

1. Initial planning.  You'll need the following items (or their equivalent):

• Fence Calibrator (24” x 3 7/8” x 3/4”)
• Guide Rail Calibrator (24” x 5 23/32” x 3/4”)
• Rail Height Calibrator (4” x 12” x 1/2” [or 12 mm])

    Note: width and length are rather immaterial; only thickness counts on this calibrator.

• Qwas Dogs (set of four)
• 12” x 8” reference square
• Mini-square
• MFT/3 equipped with:
     
• FS1080 guide rail and mounting hardware
     
• Fence and miter scale

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2. Using the Mini-square, verify that the cut-away end of the fence lines up with the right side of the miter gauge. 

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This will provide 1 1/8” clear space between the end of the fence and the cut line in the MFT. 

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3. Loosen the fence clamp top knob releasing the fence. 

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Loosen the miter gauge in/out motion adjustment knob. 

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4. Insert three Qwas Dogs in the second row of holes from the back of the MFT top.  Lay in the MFT/3 Fence Calibrator between the fence and the Qwas Dogs.  Hold the fence tightly against the Calibrator and the Qwas Dogs.  Tighten the miter gauge in/out motion adjustment knob to lock it in place.  While still holding the fence against the Calibrator, tighten the top knob of the fence clamp to ensure that there can be no movement of the fence. 

5. Lay the two 1/2” (12 mm) Guide Rail Height Calibrators in place under the guide rail, then drop the guide rail into place and adjust the height of the guide rail down to meet the Height Calibrators. Now remove the Height Calibrators. 

6. Once the guide rail height has been adjusted, place two Qwas Dogs in the 6th hole column (from the left) and in the 3rd and 7th holes from the back of the MFT/3.  Insert the Guide Rail Calibrator between the Qwas Dogs and the side of the guide rail.  The rail should be snug against the Guide Rail Calibrator. 

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7. Use the 12” x 8” reference square to validate that the guide rail is perpendicular to the fence.

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8. With the fence now adjusted fully to the rear, the MFT/3 will accommodate material at a maximum width of 27 1/4”, more than the piece of ornately-figured and rare Georgian MDF shown in the photo. 

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9. The fence can be moved out to the third row of holes from the rear of the MFT/3 by using Qwas dogs to ensure proper alignment.  As before, use the 12” x 8” reference square to validate the intersecting angle of the fence and guide rail.  Note that there will be some play in the fence unless the fence clamp is moved to the left side of the MFT/3 and engaged to lock the fence into register.  This setup will accommodate stock widths of up to 19 5/8” and brings the stock closer to the saw operator to reduce reaching.  Note that the in/out adjustment of the miter gauge is almost at its maximum point.

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10. If one is using conjoined MFT/3s, the placement of the fence clamp between the MFT/3s is not possible.  If absolute squareness is required, place three Qwas Dogs behind the fence, loosen the miter gauge in/out adjustment knob, the slide the miter gauge back tightly against the Qwas Dogs and tighten the in/out adjustment knob.  Leave the Qwas Dogs in place to ensure squareness.  This position will allow a maximum material width of 20 1/2”.  Moving the Qwas Dogs to the rearmost row of holes will allow a maximum material width of 24 5/16”.  Note that to retain absolute squareness, one should leave the Qwas Dogs in place behind the fence, since the fence clamp can't be used in this position. 

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11. Moving the fence to the maximum extreme of the in/out adjustment will allow the fence to rotate up to 90 degrees clockwise, and up to 55 degrees counter-clockwise before the fence hits the rear guide rail pivot mount shown at the end of the pencil. 
 
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This angle can be increased to 63 degrees by moving the fence to the left so that the fence guide pin is just inside the fence extrusion.

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Moving the fence 1/2” further to the left past the alignment pin will allow full 90 degrees of counter-clockwise rotation, and will give the fence a full 180 degrees of rotation. 

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Note that when the fence is rotated, use of the fence clamp is advisable to retain best accuracy of cuts, but will necessitate breaking apart conjoined MFT/3s to accomplish this. 

12. Note that if you cut your calibrators to a precise 24” length, and choose to apply measuring tape to the fence, you can use the 24” Calibrator length to validate that the 24” marker on the tape is at the exact point to get a good 24” cut at the guide rail.  The Fence and Guide Rail Calibrators can also be used to set the height of the guide rail to 3/4” or 19 mm. 

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[smile]

By any chance does anyone have the pictures explained in this comment saved or has done a similar setup - I would really like to see a few of these images up close.  Thanks in advanced.

 

[Brice Burrell]

By any chance does anyone have the pictures explained in this comment saved or has done a similar setup - I would really like to see a few of these images up close.  Thanks in advanced.

Here's a link to the post with thumbnail pictures.

 

[GarryMartin]

Have tried five times to add the original post back in with the photos I had saved, but the forum software dumps me back out to the create a new post page. [member=57769]TylerC[/member] are you aware of any forum software issues?

 

[GarryMartin]

Will attempt a few at a time...

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[GarryMartin]

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[GarryMartin]

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[GarryMartin]

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[GarryMartin]

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[Vondawg]

Wow Garry you always amaze....can’t ask for better than that.