Thanks for the compliments Ron, I'm blushing!! The HKC is a very handy saw. I also use it with the ABSA-TS 55 dust cover although not when tilting the blade. I wish I could tidy up as quickly as you do, lol.
Hi great video and content. I am a fellow Carpenter specialized in stair and railings installation. I bought the original track saw KS 400 Mafel 2 years ago. I love it.
This video sold me on buying this saw though I am still debating between corded or battery. The one feature which sold me is the detent which lines up with the back of the blade.
I bought one, it's great! I use it for building sheds... it makes roof trusses very easy. I use it all day, on and OFF track :) Great video Ron, thanks!
love the overall. but i think that festool missed something where instead of upto 60° they could have accounted for a much broader swing range past 80°. This would make my stair stringer jobs go so much faster.
Hi Ron, Love the videos and thanks for the great effort you put in to each one. Can you tell me if this saw can cut through a 2 x 4 at 45 degrees while attached to the track. Thank you for the time you take to post very interesting and informative videos. Cheers and Merry Christmas.
Thanks for the other good video. I am looking a "track saw"(ish). I am carpenter/framer and I love making cabinets and wood working too. I can only buy one saw to start with. What do you recommend? HKC55? Or TSC 55? Can you please make some comments between these two? (Dust collection/guide rail/ cut finishing/plunge cutting /clampdown.......)
If I could only have one track saw it would be the FT TSC 55 cordless. www.bobmarinosbesttools.com/tsc-55-plus-xl-fs-cordless-track-saw/p/561702/ I would also get a short track for most work, a medium track for cross cutting plywood, and a long track for ripping plywood.
Hi Ron, Im 17 and just ordered one. do you think this will do everything a normal ts 55 will? I ordered it with the mid sized fsk rail, a 55" LR32 track and rip fence. thanks for your super informative videos and fantastic content -billybob
Good looking tool , but too expensive for framing and blade is too small for timber framing , where you'd appreciate track. I was checking it out on last Festool show and although nice saw , don't see practical application in my remodeling business.
I don't timber frame, but I have cut many roofs using 2x12s and would have put it to good use. The only big stuff I cut is a few beams, which I have a skill 10" that will cut most of it. I make all headers from 2x and stack. For walls: plate, jacks, cripples, sills, etc.., I am comfortable with a worm drive and speed square. In summary, the FT saw would cut 99% of the framing I do and have done, but I am planning on using it for finish mostly. I think it would work wonders with custom closets.
Honestly, this saw with the spring-loaded track is probably best suited for Hardwood guys. Not having to move your lumber on to a chop saw is probably a huge time saver. This could handle any cross cuts at any angle easily. Just pull out a cordless jigsaw for any notches, or pull out a longer track for any long rips. Voila! No more wrestling boards in tight spaces onto table saws and chop saws!
Ron I have been following you for a long time now though I in my DIY shop a spare bedroom in my apartment would love a festool it's not in my retirees budget so if you want to do a giveaway of your corded one count. me in I build wooden toy chests out of oak plywood and oak molding to dress it up. by the way can't wait till you start the new trailer.
I see the pricing of FT a little different. My experience is that FT is one of the best, if not the best value for professional carpenters. I am glad that a few companies build their tools to be durable, productive, ergonomic, etc.. and then let the price fall where it may. Most companies do market analysis and then the bean counters say to the engineers, "your retail price point is $199 so you have $89 to built the tool." This hamstrings the engineers and the final tool. When I amortize the cost of tools over time and the increased production, then FT becomes my best value or lowest cost divided over its use. I see this across most all products: cars, cameras, etc.. I would compare FT to upper-middle-value car, not a luxury vehicle. Also, in construction over my near 30 years, tools as an expense are no more than a rounding error. The big cost is labor by large margin, taxes, insurance, and vehicles next. FT is a professional tool and are worth every penny in that arena. FT's market is not the consumer. The consumer market is much larger than the pro market, but it also has many more choices. Just visit any Home Depot and you can choose from many brands. Most old professional brands have left the pro-market to cater to the consumer market: Milwaukee, Porta-Cable, to name a few. The knock off brands also make camera gear that are professional look-a-likes, but the working photographer knows the difference and cannot afford the cheap stuff.
i actually agree with both you ron and havenisse on the difference btw pro and hobby markets. i guess in any professional activity with tools the wisest option is to do with what you have and save for a good investment, but festool is just almost out of range here, a shame there is nothing in between a pos tool and them, even makes that in the past have served me good now are just burning bearings, brushes, switches, etc i was a faithful dewalt and bosch man, not anymore and they drove me into the consumer market, go figure. cheers. pete
Yes, those with negative views are vocal. I ignore them, knowing that any video posted for public consumption will draw them in like flies;o) I have made a personal commitment to focus my life and all that I do toward the positive. I have never given a dislike or thumbs down online ever and plan on keeping a perfect record.
Thanks for the compliments Ron, I'm blushing!!
The HKC is a very handy saw. I also use it with the ABSA-TS 55 dust cover although not when tilting the blade. I wish I could tidy up as quickly as you do, lol.
I have a chance to get this saw for 600 what you think?
Hi great video and content. I am a fellow Carpenter specialized in stair and railings installation. I bought the original track saw KS 400 Mafel 2 years ago. I love it.
I am SO GLAD you reviewed this with the comparison. I feel so much more informed.
This video sold me on buying this saw though I am still debating between corded or battery. The one feature which sold me is the detent which lines up with the back of the blade.
I bought one, it's great! I use it for building sheds... it makes roof trusses very easy. I use it all day, on and OFF track :)
Great video Ron, thanks!
Nice review. Thanks!
love the overall. but i think that festool missed something where instead of upto 60° they could have accounted for a much broader swing range past 80°. This would make my stair stringer jobs go so much faster.
Wow! what a saw! love it. thanks for a great demo.
Hi Ron, Love the videos and thanks for the great effort you put in to each one.
Can you tell me if this saw can cut through a 2 x 4 at 45 degrees while attached to the track.
Thank you for the time you take to post very interesting and informative videos.
Cheers and Merry Christmas.
Thank you Ron excellent review , it's on my wish list 👍🏻
Thanks for the other good video. I am looking a "track saw"(ish). I am carpenter/framer and I love making cabinets and wood working too. I can only buy one saw to start with. What do you recommend? HKC55? Or TSC 55? Can you please make some comments between these two? (Dust collection/guide rail/ cut finishing/plunge cutting /clampdown.......)
If I could only have one track saw it would be the FT TSC 55 cordless. www.bobmarinosbesttools.com/tsc-55-plus-xl-fs-cordless-track-saw/p/561702/ I would also get a short track for most work, a medium track for cross cutting plywood, and a long track for ripping plywood.
Hi Ron, Im 17 and just ordered one. do you think this will do everything a normal ts 55 will? I ordered it with the mid sized fsk rail, a 55" LR32 track and rip fence. thanks for your super informative videos and fantastic content
-billybob
try cutting a LVL on a bevel, like you would for most hips and valleys. Major design flaw in this saw.
Thats not even close to the application this saw was designed for. Thats what your Skilsaw or Sawsquatch is for :)
Good looking tool , but too expensive for framing and blade is too small for timber framing , where you'd appreciate track. I was checking it out on last Festool show and although nice saw , don't see practical application in my remodeling business.
I don't timber frame, but I have cut many roofs using 2x12s and would have put it to good use. The only big stuff I cut is a few beams, which I have a skill 10" that will cut most of it. I make all headers from 2x and stack. For walls: plate, jacks, cripples, sills, etc.., I am comfortable with a worm drive and speed square. In summary, the FT saw would cut 99% of the framing I do and have done, but I am planning on using it for finish mostly. I think it would work wonders with custom closets.
+Ron Paulk that was my thought as well. More of a finish project then rough framing. There's a reason it's called "rough "
Honestly, this saw with the spring-loaded track is probably best suited for Hardwood guys. Not having to move your lumber on to a chop saw is probably a huge time saver. This could handle any cross cuts at any angle easily. Just pull out a cordless jigsaw for any notches, or pull out a longer track for any long rips. Voila! No more wrestling boards in tight spaces onto table saws and chop saws!
Ron I have been following you for a long time now though I in my DIY shop a spare bedroom in my apartment would love a festool it's not in my retirees budget so if you want to do a giveaway of your corded one count. me in I build wooden toy chests out of oak plywood and oak molding to dress it up. by the way can't wait till you start the new trailer.
oh come on ... i`ll wait for the wifi version that send the meters cut to my phone. man those tools are nice. thanks for the review
take care
pete
I see the pricing of FT a little different. My experience is that FT is one of the best, if not the best value for professional carpenters. I am glad that a few companies build their tools to be durable, productive, ergonomic, etc.. and then let the price fall where it may. Most companies do market analysis and then the bean counters say to the engineers, "your retail price point is $199 so you have $89 to built the tool." This hamstrings the engineers and the final tool. When I amortize the cost of tools over time and the increased production, then FT becomes my best value or lowest cost divided over its use. I see this across most all products: cars, cameras, etc.. I would compare FT to upper-middle-value car, not a luxury vehicle. Also, in construction over my near 30 years, tools as an expense are no more than a rounding error. The big cost is labor by large margin, taxes, insurance, and vehicles next. FT is a professional tool and are worth every penny in that arena. FT's market is not the consumer. The consumer market is much larger than the pro market, but it also has many more choices. Just visit any Home Depot and you can choose from many brands. Most old professional brands have left the pro-market to cater to the consumer market: Milwaukee, Porta-Cable, to name a few.
The knock off brands also make camera gear that are professional look-a-likes, but the working photographer knows the difference and cannot afford the cheap stuff.
i actually agree with both you ron and havenisse on the difference btw pro and hobby markets. i guess in any professional activity with tools the wisest option is to do with what you have and save for a good investment, but festool is just almost out of range here, a shame there is nothing in between a pos tool and them, even makes that in the past have served me good now are just burning bearings, brushes, switches, etc i was a faithful dewalt and bosch man, not anymore and they drove me into the consumer market, go figure. cheers. pete
nice tool
You are number one?👌🏻
Would be nice if you tested the mafell version in comparison with the festool
for example www.mafelltoolstore.com/kss300crcusy2.html
If only I had a million dollars.
Festool, clever as always.
Prepare for the festool haters.
Yes, those with negative views are vocal. I ignore them, knowing that any video posted for public consumption will draw them in like flies;o) I have made a personal commitment to focus my life and all that I do toward the positive. I have never given a dislike or thumbs down online ever and plan on keeping a perfect record.
I’m still wishing you were nominated for president but your dad had to mess it up🥺
bought this by mistake.... anyone want it