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Pro-Cut 50 - Next Generation Table Saw

12K views 18 replies 11 participants last post by  LibertyWolf 
#1 · (Edited by Moderator)
#2 ·
There's a EZ-smart sort of setup that's somewhat similar.

These are not table saws of course. They are panel saws,
panel routers.

You might want to consider the stiffness of the arbor
and so forth in using a circular saw. Does it rip straight
and square enough edges to run through an automatic
edgebander?

These sorts of rigs certainly solve some problems. I had
an early version of the "Panel King"... I think Festool put
them out of business on the Woodworking show circuit.
The Panel King was accurate but one had to be very
hygenic and methodical in doing the setups to get
the best cuts. It did inspire me to design and build
a panel saw better suited to my working methods though.
 
#4 · (Edited by Moderator)
Well, for site-built face frame cabinetry I could see
it being real useful. You still need a lot of room
for ripping down full sheets but I expect the
cut line would be straighter than what most
operators can get hand-feeding a table saw with
a T-square fence, even with support tables.
There I expect it beats a contractor saw.

Same thing for crosscutting pantry sides and
stuff like that. It looks like a good tool for that…
doing the stuff you'd want a radial arm saw to
do that many won't due to width limitations.

Setting up track saws for dead-square crosscuts
is not as easy as manufacturers want us to
believe. This tool probably handles that issue
better.

I think it's worth considering for on-site workshops.

It is, after all, not dreadfully expensive for the pro
and compared to some of the Euro gimmickry
it may be a bargain.

I am not certain, can it straight-line crooked boards?
 
#5 ·
It certainly was a cool video and worth watching. It is cool you posted it. I agree with Loren, this would be excellent for an on site machine for building cabinets. I have friends who build cabinets on site, pull a cargo trailer around with their work shop in the trailer. Not sure how well that works, but I know folks do it that way.

My first thought watching the video was it is a manual CNC, but that would not make sense I suppose. With the cost of a CNC coming down and becoming more affordable, I have a hard time envisioning that horizontal panel saw/router being the future. I think I will stick with our CNC and our 2 PM 66 saws.

Sure was a cool video though. Thanks for sharing.
 
#6 ·
Loren…. I read your recent post and am in agreement. I could see this real useful on the job site. The router set up would also be very useful for cabinet joinery (dado's for example) among other things on the job site as well.
Thanks for sharing your opinion.
 
#12 ·
For routing panels it looks like there are a lot of start/stop from x to y movement and back or between stops which could lead to burns in the material as the bit is turning and the router is not moving.

For the saw portion, it is a panel saw which is nice to have, but it is not a table saw. There are pieces I cut on my TS that would require new types of jigs. Secondly, as the blade on the ProCut saw rotates opposite from a table saw, I would think that you would work with "good" side down to reduce tear out on the face side.

Sorry if I repeated any other comments/concerns, it's late and time for bed!
 
#13 · (Edited by Moderator)
It lacks a floating shoe for the saw to hold a zero
clearance plate. The copy states that a shallow
scoring cut may be taken prior to the through
cut but otherwise the cut quality on splintery
veneers would be like you get at the lumberyard
on the panel saw.

"Bridge" systems like track saw crosscut tables
press a zero-clearance strip against the upper
face to control tear-out.
 
#14 ·
I can fill you in a little on the Pro-Cut 50 since I use one most every day. By design it will cross-cut any board or panel up to 50" wide with excellent accuracy. Because you can cross cut your large panels first, you don't always need the 18 or 20 running feet you would need for a table saw.

It also works just like a table saw for rip-cutting. It comes with a 50" Aux Side Fence that works like a huge feather board to hold your work piece tight against the fence for smooth and very accurate rip cuts.

It also comes with everything you need to add your router. With the router you can do a wide variety of functions and, the really nice part is, the router is top mounted so you can always see what the router is doing. The machine is designed with clamping rails on both sides that gives you even more flexibility for cutting or routing.

You can make countless jigs because the saw or router moves through the wood in the cross-cut position. You can even use it as a huge miter saw or cut arcs in panels. You also have the ability to kerf cut or pre score the wood prior to cutting to achieve a factory edge even on thin veneer sheets.

The Pro-Cut 50 is a very popular machine and there is generally a waiting list to get a system. At last count is was 4 to 6 weeks. The video link is and the web site is www.torontotool.com. There is a section for customer projects that are quite impressive.
 
#16 ·
Well I have must say this machine has piqued my interest. Right now I have 3 small portable table saws for my work. I am selling the oldest Dewalt because of the time in service. I am a design/build remodelor. Our tools need to take rough use. We move from job to job and it is tough to keep things from just the abuse of moving from job to job. I have been contemplating purchasing a grizzly hybrid that would stay in our shop for sheet goods knock down. We have also talked about a track saw for cutting sheet goods on site for numerous things. So, either cut the sheet goods in the shop and then use one of the job site portables to final cut, or a track saw to the job site for final cutting and placement.
The nice advantage about the Grizzly Hybrid is that we could then use in the shop for other things.
The nice thing about the Festool or Makita track saw is the excellent dust control.

So, for me, what I see in the Pro-Cut 50 is sort of a compromise. Somewhat portable but not as portable as a track saw but also somewhat stationary. I visualize hauling it to the job site then setting it up in the shop for making everyday cuts. As an example, today we were working the punch list on a small office space build out. We had 4 pcs. of undersill trim that needs to be ripped because a desk is setting under these windows and the undersill needs to fit. So, we just brought those pcs. back with us to cut on one of our portables. If we had the Grizzly hybrid it would be done in about 5 minutes or less. The track saw would be cumbersome to rip that trim. And I am not sure how the Pro-Cut 50 would handle that.

The other issue I see with the Pro-Cut 50 is dust containment. Not so much in permanent location but in jobsite locations. Which is where it is becoming more and more critical. Festool gets it when it comes to dust containment for a design/build remodelor like me. The other tool people think that everyone works on new homes. 95% of the time there is a family that has to eat supper where we work today. They get tired real quick of the dust. So, whatever we can do to minimize it is greatly appreciated. Sure makes change orders easier to swallow.

If Roger from Toronto tool is still listening. For me they need to address dust control. That Hitachi has no method to contain the sawdust. Why couldn't we put a Festool or a Makita on the Pro-Cut 50 so we could control the dust. And we haven't even talked about the router.
 
#18 ·
As luck would have it, there is now a dust collection system available for the Pro-Cut 50 as a simple add on. There is a removable overhead arm that attaches to the machine with simple thumb screws to hold the 2-1/2" hose with adaptors for either a shop-vac or the standard 4" shop system. I have not see any dust control that is 100%. The Pro-Cut 50 is about 90% for dust collection with the saw. (not bad) For the router there are numerous attachments for dust collection but again, I don't think any are 100%.

There will be a video produced shortly about the dust collection. It will show saw dust without dust collection compared to with dust collection.

I read a post about the router bit burning the wood. Because the router is mounted overhead on the Pro-Cut 50 (much like a CNC machine), once a cut is made I have not experienced burning when locking the sled for x and y movement. This is provided you use good bits that are not dull of course.

Like most, I have experienced the burning when stopping too long using a hand held router especially with larger dado bits. Here is a simple trick I use to help avoid that with my hand held router. The reason the bit burns the wood is because it is flat on the wood and the weight of the router resting on the wood does not allow any air flow around the bit. What I do is shim the router base so the base is about 1 to 5 thousands higher on the trailing edge. This is just enough air gap to allow the bit to "breath" but not enough to affect the cut. I may even argue that I get a better cut because of the slight angle of attack. With this simple shim trick, you will see that you have more time before the bit burns the wood. Again, you need to use good bits that are sharp.

Roger
 
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