# FESTOOL KAPEX - WOW! (BUT Not quite 5 Stars (4.5 STARS))



## HarveyM

I don't think double hold downs are recommended (for any mitersaw). There's too much chance of trapping/pinching the blade. Instead, make some zero clearance auxiliary fences for the saw. You should pick up the 'supplemental manual' for the Kapex. It's excellent!


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## RockneLaw

> I don t think double hold downs are recommended (for any mitersaw). There s too much chance of trapping/pinching the blade. Instead, make some zero clearance auxiliary fences for the saw. You should pick up the supplemental manual for the Kapex. It s excellent!
> 
> - HarveyM


Thanks for the tip. . . .


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## Racer2007

A Double Hold down can be nice if you want to hold the board on the left instead of the right without haveing to remove the hold down to change sides. But useing both at the same time , not such a good Idea.


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## chem

I like my Kapex very much. It is my first and probably my last miter saw. The sliding action is great. Lasers to define the kerf are very nice. The angle setting gives amazing precision. The hold down clamp is very effective and easy to use one handed. The trenching cuts can be pretty handy. The dust collection is maybe ~95%. It turns out that 5% is a lot of dust still! However there is not a better alternative I am aware of. Is it 7 times more functional than a $200 miter saw? No way. Would I but it again? Yes. Your love of money/hatred of dust ratio may well lead to a different result for you.


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## MarkDavisson

That product at that price represents, to you, value. And that's what it's all about.


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## woodenwarrior

For the independently wealthy…sure, it sounds like a great saw. For the rest of us poor working slobs its an overpriced saw that does what many other saws do with a little tweaking. I'm not hating on your review, I'm just not one of those guys that will hop on the Festool bandwagon. Expensive does not always equal best or most effective.


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## Putttn

I have had mine for 5 years and even though i don't use it all that much, when I do it is worth the extra dollars in enjoying using a precision tool. I could easily justify a cheaper saw but this is my "entertainment" so that's my justification.


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## RockneLaw

> For the independently wealthy…sure, it sounds like a great saw. For the rest of us poor working slobs its an overpriced saw that does what many other saws do with a little tweaking. I m not hating on your review, I m just not one of those guys that will hop on the Festool bandwagon. Expensive does not always equal best or most effective.
> 
> - woodenwarrior


I haven't hopped on the Festool "bandwagon" - I've posted mediocre reviews of their vacuums, for instance (I guess that was on the Festool Owners Group). But in this case, I had the second most expensive (in the Bosch), and this is convincingly better. So, in this case, expensive does equal best.

Oh, and I'm not independently wealthy . . . I depend on all of the hard work I do every day, and the 9 years in college and getting other degrees after high school. We all make choices.


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## MarkDavisson

Rockne, it's not up to anyone else to determine what represents value to you. It's up to you. Only you know the importance to you of the various aspects of any purchase.

Personally, I've tried several of Festool's products and, knowing what else is available, haven't found enough "magic" to warrant the extra expense (though I do acknowledge there *is* some magic there). But that's me. I'm sure you can find other things I've paid a premium for because of aspects extremely important to me but not at all important to you.


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## timbertailor

Congratulations on your new acquisition. Festool makes some great stuff. Kind of like owning a Mercedes\BMW. It is the small, every day things that set it apart from the others.

People complain about the prices. Kind of silly really. We would have to pay the same prices if it were made here in the USA (i.e. Woodpecker Tools). Funny what happens to the price of a product when you have to pay a fair wage to an adult, pay taxes, workman's comp., insurance, social security, holiday's, jury duty, military time, health care, meet EPA regulations, health and safety codes, maternity leave, severance, and the list goes on.

Yet, Germany has one of the strongest financial positions in Europe. Go figure.


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## woodenwarrior

Rockne, I apologize if you think I was insulting you and your choice of saw. I didn't mean for it to come out that way. I think Mark stated it much better in regards to price point versus value. For the record, I too can afford that saw. I have served 23 years in the US Army and also have two degrees….don't believe the hype that all enlisted Soldiers do what we do because of a lack of education…..we all make choices.


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## Dutchy

You wrote;

Now, it could just be that the Festool blade is so much better than the Bosch blade that it made the cutting easier

This is where your sawblade is made:

http://www.leitz.org/startseite.html


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## TimberMagic

I've got the Kapex on my list, but it is pretty far down right now. With a table saw for rips, a radial arm saw for crosscuts, and a decent CMS for miters, I feel like the Kapex can wait a bit. (That, and we are paying for a wedding this summer, which makes tool purchases pale in comparison!)

I have a Festool track saw and consider it to be the finest tool I've ever used. At this point I'm just using it for breaking down sheet goods, and it excels at that. I could use it for crosscuts and miters on my homemade "MFT" style of workbench. Now I'm on a quest to add a Domino, some sanders, a CT dust extractor, and a router to my Festool collection.

I like the analogy about Festool pricing being consistent with what one would pay for American tools. I have numerous Woodpeckers tools in my shop, and currently have two more on order, including a $200 framing square. I'm at a point in my life (retired) where I will pay top dollar to add tools to my arsenal that are the best I can find, and not be overly concerned about price. Heck, I don't smoke (and only drink for medicinal purposes …) so all that extra money needs to be spent somewhere!


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## LJackson

I would be curious to know if swapping the blades on the Festool and the Bosch results in the Bosch powering through the cut just as well as the Festool, and if the Festool would bog down as much as the Bosch.


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## zebrastealer

I was tempted to go for the Kapex last month too, but it was a laguna 14/12 bandsaw or the Kapex and I already had a new DeWalt DWS780…if I hadn't plunked $400 down on the DeWalt I would have gone for the Kapex. Festool tools are stupid expensive, but I keep buying them….


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## RockneLaw

> I would be curious to know if swapping the blades on the Festool and the Bosch results in the Bosch powering through the cut just as well as the Festool, and if the Festool would bog down as much as the Bosch.
> 
> - LJackson


That's a good question, but of course the blades couldn't be swapped (blade sizes and arbor sizes are different). I guess my underlying point is that there was absolutely no sag/bogging down by the festool which was, quite frankly, surprising. One would think that the physics of it all, with the momentum of the 12" blade (Mass X Velocity - with outside blade velocity being presumably much greater for the 12" if the rotational speeds of the motor are the same) it would be an easy win for the Bosch . . . but it wasn't. Having said that, when I put the Forrest WWII in my table saw (replacing the stock Sawstop blade), I was impressed, so I know blades can make a difference. I guess it comes down to Manageability and precision.

As I mentioned above, I'm a Tier III (I'm making up these tiers, with Tier III being the lowest) hobbyist - I can recognize tool features and quality, but that doesn't mean that I'm good with them! But, it also means that I don't have to move my tools to different jobs. I can't imagine having to lug the Bosch around. It's a beast, which may be a good thing. But it's also a beast, which could be a bad thing (you read that correctly).

I own several other Bosch tools and am generally pleased with them. I'd buy Bosch over dewalt any day, but go out of my way to try to find the ones made in Germany (not many left). So, I'm not hating on them at all. But, in this case, I much prefer the Festool.


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## RockneLaw

> A Double Hold down can be nice if you want to hold the board on the left instead of the right without haveing to remove the hold down to change sides. But useing both at the same time , not such a good Idea.
> 
> - Richard


I've been thinking about this, and I don't think it makes sense. If a hold down is good on one side of the blade, it should be good on both. On a table saw, I would absolutely agree with this since the stock is moving, but I just don't think it makes sense on a miter saw. What am I not seeing?


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## dhazelton

If they were just a LITTLE more than Hitachi or DeWalt or Bosch I'd have one myself. It's like you can buy a Chevy or a Mercedes Benz. They both get you there - but how quickly, how comfortably and how safely?


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## Racer2007

> A Double Hold down can be nice if you want to hold the board on the left instead of the right without haveing to remove the hold down to change sides. But useing both at the same time , not such a good Idea.
> 
> - Richard
> 
> I ve been thinking about this, and I don t think it makes sense. If a hold down is good on one side of the blade, it should be good on both. On a table saw, I would absolutely agree with this since the stock is moving, but I just don t think it makes sense on a miter saw. What am I not seeing?
> 
> - Rockne


Well it is possiable to get kickback on a mitersaw as well as a tablesaw. If the blade binds for any reason you can have a problem. On a slideing mitersaw the stock may not be moveing but the blade is.


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## BurlyBob

When my Makita finally kicks the bucket that Festool is definitely at the top of my list. It would be nice to change angles and not have to break the electronics to make sure I'm on the mark.


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## a1Jim

Enjoy your new saw,I'm glad it works well for you.


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## UpstateNYdude

> A Double Hold down can be nice if you want to hold the board on the left instead of the right without haveing to remove the hold down to change sides. But useing both at the same time , not such a good Idea.
> 
> - Richard
> 
> I ve been thinking about this, and I don t think it makes sense. If a hold down is good on one side of the blade, it should be good on both. On a table saw, I would absolutely agree with this since the stock is moving, but I just don t think it makes sense on a miter saw. What am I not seeing?
> 
> - Rockne


If your using stops and a hold down just cut through and don't pull up let the blade come to a stop once through and you shouldn't get any kickback, at least that is what I've always done and what I see most pros do, with the teeth through the cut there will be little to no friction to grab and throw the material.


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## UpstateNYdude

I love the Kapex as well I just got mine this winter, I had the Dewalt 718 12" DB slider and while that was a good saw the Kapex blows it out of the water in terms of accuracy, dust collection, and shear ease of use setting it up for a cut is so much easier then my Dewalt.

Oh and the hold down Festool makes I'm not sure if they work in other miter saw setups, but they are so much freaking easier to adjust then the screw type ones that come with anything else. I'd have gladly paid the $80 for one had I'd known how much easier they are to use. Do yourself a favor if you need a hold down for your miter saw spend the $80 on the Festool one.


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## zzzzdoc

I bought a second hold down on my Kapex, and here's what I do.

I clamp it down tight on one side, and just have it resting on the other. Clearly the torque of the saw will move it as opposed to getting pinched since one side isn't clamped. But it should prevent kickback (at least I've never seen any doing things this way. And it is very convenient not having to take out and switch the hold down all the time.


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