# after 7 years of use my festool ts75 is still a work horse money maker.



## devann

It sounds like money well spent Blaine. When we invest in tools we invest in ourselves. I had been thinking about purchasing one of these but my job description has taken a slight turn in the last couple years. Maybe I'll find a job to justify getting one. Thanks for the review, it's always refreshing to get a review after the tool as had extensive use.


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## vonhagen

thanks devann, it is still in like new condition and never a problem, the systainer keeps it safe as it bounces around in the back of my truck.


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## michelletwo

I luv my 55. very versatile tools


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## waho6o9

You purchased value and are now enjoying the benefits.

Excellent review vonhagen.


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## 85497

I have a TS 55 and love it. Thanks for the tip about using spray 90.


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## ScottKaye

I still cant personally justify the HUGE Mark up on these tools that Festool gets away with. Yes they are better than most. but really, it doesn't cost them any where near the $1300 they are charging for a domino system. They know their tools are superior, and they know they can get away charging an exorbitant price for them. Id love to own a piece of that company. Here's a for instance , on April 1st almost every tool is going up 5-10% in price and they do this almost EVERY year. Talk about a windfall.


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## vonhagen

well scott i have used almost all the festool products except their sanders and you can even get better and more expensive power tools from the parent company of festool called mafell and they are really spendy and very nice tools and like festool they are built to last a lifetime. what you are paying for is precision, build quality and longevity . so you can buy a dewalt, makita, porter cable power tool every couple of years after they die or buy a high quality tool and be done. the very best woodworking machines in the world are made in germany and they are very expensive but the precision and longevity of these tools simply pays for itself by saving you time and your end product will be dimensionally correct time and time again and your customers will come back time and time again along with new referrals.


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## Woodendeavor

There is only one thing bad I can say about the TS75. Not all of the blades are the same width so if you put in their nice ripping blade it cuts back the plastic strip so it will not line up with your other blades. Other than that I have been using mine hard for 4 years cutting a lot of 2" thick oak and walnut. one thing not mentioned in the initial review is how well the dust collection works. I have taken this saw into a customer's home to cut down doors after they had new carpet installed. There was so little dust left they told me I did not need to clean up at all


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## vonhagen

oh yea woodendeavor the dust collection is excellent.


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## chem

I used my 55 to cut a 1 cm from the bottom of a 1950s veneered door with lovely color form age. No splintering at all. In my mind this paid for it in one use (the math may work out a bit differently).


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## vonhagen

exactly chem when i am out in the field installing i can do modifications on finished panels that are sometimes double sided that would usually require a trip back to the shop and put on the sliding table saw with scoring blade and palin attachment for tapers but both the ts 75 and ts 55 will not blow out because the bottom cut the teeth are going up and on the top the rubber strip and green hold down are pressing down on the material as the teeth are coming up just like using a back up block when crosscutting as when the teeth are going thru the rear of the cut. also a negative rake tooth atb is my blade of choice on veneers when crosscutting. i have found that the amana and forrest blades that are designed for the festool and mafell saws are imo better than the festool blades. one thing to keep in mind is the kerf and plate dimension as the kerf must be larger than the riving knife and the plate smaller than the riving knife. custom riving knives can be made by any machine shop and surface ground out of tool steel to any thickness.


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## vonhagen

in the first image my son burned thru the veneer in the top left corner and i set the saw depth just a few mm deep and cut the bad perimeter out then with my festool router i used a amana 1.5 inch morticing bit set at the thickness of the veneer and with offset foot set at the same depth i routed out the veneer and in the corners a little chisel work. then went back to the bundle of veneer and found the bookmatch and stitched it up then made a paper pattern and used it to cut out the new veneer. the second and third pics i used the ts 55 and stack cut all 48 pie pieces all at once then stitched them up and hot pressed them onto mdf for the ebony starburst.


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## Dj1225

You know it is funny. I have friends that go out every year and buy some golf club or set for 300 to 500 bucks or more, and they will give me a hard time about spending 500 bucks or so on a Festool saw or whatever. I don't see their games improving but my work does seem to be. And I have never felt the urge to throw my tools in a lake 

I own tools that are light years ahead of my ability now, but my goal is to catch up.


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## vonhagen

lol dave that is so true and women are the the worst, they complain about men buying tools that are expensive and then go buy expensive clothes or shoes and tell you they were on sale and give you a cheap price but not realizing how pissed off they would be if you were to divorce them and you go to court and the judge says, mr. vonhagen since you own the house and everything in it and you kicked mrs. vonhagen to the curb because she was a lying cheating whore and you barbecued all her clothes and shoes i order you to pay her for what they cost. and my reply would be, well your honor i wrote down what she told me what each item cost and she didn't pay all that much so that sounds good to me.


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## lj61673

Just a few comments on your post. I'm not a Festool defender, but if you are going to debate their products, some fairness and accuracy needs to be applied…

*"I still cant personally justify the HUGE Mark up on these tools that Festool gets away with.*

Festool is clearly not for everyone. However you have no personal knowledge of their cost per unit, therefore you have no knowledge of their markup.

*Yes they are better than most. but really, it doesn't cost them any where near the $1300 they are charging for a domino system.*

I'm not sure where you live but the Domino tool is $850.00 US, not $1300. Even including the Systainer with hundreds of Dominoes it still is about $1050.00 US

*They know their tools are superior, and they know they can get away charging an exorbitant price for them.*

Their customers also know the tools are superior, hence the enormous popularity and sales figures.The market sets the price. Too high and sales drop. Sales drop far enough and either the price comes down or Festool goes away. Simple.

*Here's a for instance , on April 1st almost every tool is going up 5-10% in price and they do this almost EVERY year. Talk about a windfall."*

Not sure where the news is here. Prices of goods and services don't go up every year where you live?


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## vonhagen

right on lj61673 , some people just don't know why festool is so expensive and you explain it well. festool has made me a lot of money and the tools are a joy to work with. as with any trade if you want to do certain specialty work that requires special tools and want to profit get the right tool and don't try and improvise and cut corners. you will have less competition and your work will shine. i will however make my own tool if one does not exist and make jigs as needed but i will not compromise my quality by using a tool or a jig that i know will possibly destroy my work and that is just plain gambling.


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## Dj1225

I will say this. This year Festool is a little bit a thief with this increase. The euro to the dollar is down about 25% in the last few months and is likely to stay around 20% less. So in essence they are going to have a heck of a year profitability wise. They are going to make about 20% more just on the exchange rate, plus with the price increase it will be more.

I am sure this was planned long ago, but they DO NOT have a need to raise the price with the strong dollar.

I know, I wholesale Italian shoes and next year I will be able to give China a run for their money…..finally.


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## eldercop

I'm sure Stradivari, Chippendale, Krenov and the Hall Brothers were very grateful for their Festool machines. Don't know how they could have done their masterpieces without them.


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## anile8tor

THanks for the review. I have a very small shop and havea very small table saw that is not the best. I am debating getting rid of the table saw and go for the Festool Track Saw in its place. THanks for posting your review.


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## vonhagen

well eldercop didn't you know electricity was not invented yet when those guys were working? i guess your referring to my comment about how i could not work without my festool saw? well my job is building and installing european style cabinetry and that could not be done without electricity. if i wanted to i can break out all my hand tools and build anything that they built.


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## vonhagen

anilea8tor, having a small tablesaw would be necessary for ripping multiple pieces of hard wood because that is one thing the festool saw is not good for but with both it would be a great combo. something like the bosch portable


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## Dj1225

Not sure I agree with that. I can clamp something with a straight edge to a table, then use this as a guide. Then lay the piece I want to rip down measure and use the track saw to cut.Then I use that piece as the measure to set the track saw to make additional pretty consistent pieces. I have done some really thin pieces this way.

That being said it is faster on a table saw


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## vonhagen

VERY GOOD INFO


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## Bampei

> well scott i have used almost all the festool products except their sanders and you can even get better and more expensive power tools from *the parent company of festool called mafell* and they are really spendy and very nice tools and like festool they are built to last a lifetime. .....
> - vonhagen


Where in the world did you get the idea that Mafell is the parent company of Festool?? NOT!!
Festool's parent company is Tooltechnic Systems. They run Festool, Protools (being completely merged into the Festool name and colors now), Schneider, and Tanos, as well as partial ownership of a number of their parts and accessory suppliers. Mafell is an entirely different company.

Festool products are a long-term investment that those who have purchased their products don't ever expect to have to upgrade or replace. I have completely bought into the Festool "System" and couldn't be more pleased. I expect these tools to carry me through my retirement, and has been an investment well purposed while I have a working income and won't be able to afford after retirement. I'm set!


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## vonhagen

well bambie you better do some home work as hol zer in germany owned mafell and mafell designed and owned festool and now festool owns protool. please don't copy new festool pics that are marketing tools.


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## vonhagen

also bambie where is your festool push pull saw? not here in the usa? but mafell has one here.


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## Bampei

> well bambie you better do some home work as hol zer in germany owned mafell and mafell designed and owned festool and now festool owns protool. please don t copy new festool pics that are marketing tools.
> 
> - vonhagen


That picture is mine and taken in MY driveway. Not marketing pictures.

Would love to see your reference for Mafell owning Festool! LOL!

Go to this history of Festool…. Began as Fezer & Stoll….not Mafell!
https://www.festool.com/About-us/Pages/History.aspx










Here's another shot from my shop during rebuild…. Think THIS is marketing shots from Festool??! NOT!









No question that Mafell also makes excellent tools, but they are not related to Festool, and never have been.

Cheers


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## vonhagen

yes and where is the push pull, you better do some home work and look at hol zer a bit closer and pro tool. i have been in the trade for a bit and no one that i know goes out and buys that much unnecessary tooling in one shot and that said good luck as a beginner.


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## vonhagen

my review is on the ts 75 for SAWING.


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## Bampei

> yes and where is the push pull, you better do some home work and look at hol zer a bit closer and pro tool. i have been in the trade for a bit and no one that i know goes out and buys that much unnecessary tooling in one shot and that said good luck as a beginner.
> 
> - vonhagen


Not really sure what your hangup is about a push-pull saw? I have neither the need nor the desire for one, but if I did, I would be working to purchase one.

I am not "IN THE TRADE" as you state, but I've been woodworking for about 35 years as a serious hobbyist. 90% of the Festools that I have switched to have replaced existing tools that were inferior and that I knew I would want to eventually replace. These Festools have been purchased both in the USA and in Germany where I was for a couple years while my wife was stationed there. These were not an instant, one-time purchase. My first Festool was a CXS and it sold me on the Festool system. The more Festools I purchased, the more convinced I became that these were the tools I wanted to take into my eventual retirement. I've been building out what I call the "Lifelong Woodshop"; one that I can spend my retirement years in building things for myself and others. At that time, I won't have the income to purchase high-end equipment anymore, so now is the time to plan, and that's what I've done.

I too own a TS75 and find it an incredibly valuable saw. Along with my TS55, the power, accuracy, and functionality are perfect for my needs. I would suggest you try their sanders as well along with a CT dust collector. I think you would find that they are as great as your TS75.

As for Mafell….I stated in my earlier post that Mafell makes great tools as well. The problem in the USA is there is only ONE dealer in the whole country. That worries a lot of people about long-term support and efficiency of repairs. That is probably the only reason I have not really considered their products here in the USA.

You make a subjective statement about what YOU feel are "unnecessary tooling". Who are you to decide what is NECESSARY? To each his own. No one is forcing you to buy any tools, but you really shouldn't disparage others because they have what THEY consider NECESSARY tools.

Frank


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## vonhagen

no sense arguing with a idiot that has never even done a single project on here and just post brand new festool boxes.


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## RGtools

I recently bought the TS55…it's changed the way I feel about what power-tools can do. I am a hand-tool guy, and I bought the saw because I had a LARGE project in cedar (the dust from cedar and my lungs just does not play well together). I simply have never used a power-tool that gives me the level of sensitivity that this tool did. It was easy to set up, well thought out and did what I asked it to over and over.

And about that dust collection…I think my drill put more sawdust on the floor then my saw did. That was worth the money right there.

Oh and Krenove liked his power tools…if you care to look at chapter 2 of The Fine Art of Cabinetmaking, you will see what I mean. In general, it's not the tool, it's how it's wielded, but a good tool helps a good hand.


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