Festool Kapex

The Festool Kapex KS120, sliding compound miter saw.

Review by Brice Burrell

Brice Burrell, copyright 2008

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Festool Kapex
The Festool Kapex KS120 sliding compound miter saw, with its dust collection capabilities, light weight,
compact size and accurate cuts, will set a new standard for miter saws. Any one of these features would be a
welcome addition on any new miter saw, all of them, well, now you have a saw that is head and shoulders
above the competition.
As a residential remodeler my work takes me inside occupied homes almost everyday, the job site needs to be
safe, well organized, and most of all, clean. This is where the Kapex's dust collection comes in, there is no
other saw that compares to the Kapex is this regard. Collecting dust isn't just for inside work. With more and
more synthetic materials, like Azek and Trex, being used its a good idea to collect the dust at the saw rather
than leave it in a pile on the lawn.
I've struggled to get my old 12" slider up small stairwells and through narrow doorways. The Kapex is
smaller and lighter; now, I don't bang door frames and railings nearly as much when moving the Kapex to job
site. The smaller size is partly because it's a 10" slider, but, I don't have to sacrifice cutting capacity. Its
cutting capacity is virtually identical to my old 12" saw.
If you have ever done remodeling work in older homes you know nothing is square, level or plumb. With every
miter needing some tweaking to get a perfect fit, trimming out an older home can sometimes be a real
challenge. A miter saw that can produce accurate, repeatable cuts is a must, the Kapex does this.
Festool has come up with some unique features on the Kapex, for example, the micro bevel adjustment. No
other saw on the market has anything like it. Festool has long a standing tradition of leading the power
tool industry with innovation and the Kapex is no exception.
I hope you find the information in this review helpful and the reading enjoyable.
-Brice Burrell, Renovation Contractor, Pittsburgh, PA

Packaging

Brice Burrell, copyright 2008

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Festool Kapex
My Kapex was shipped from the Festool warehouse on a pallet along with the MFT/Kapex and
accessories via a freight carrier company. All three boxes were well packaged. The Kapex was
delivered in two boxes, the outer box a plain cardboard and the inner box pictured below.

One of the opening ends is taped shut and the other is not taped, nylon straps wrap the box and hold
both ends closed.

Once the straps are cut, the un-taped end opens,

inside the saw is held in place with Styrofoam.
There is a cutout in the foam to form a handle to
pull the saw out of the box easily. If you have ever
fought with getting large tools out of the package,
you'll appreciate the extra effort Festool has taken
to make this so easy.
The saw's handle is zip tied down with a piece of
foam in between it and the saw's base to hold it
tight. An Allen key is stuck in the foam so
remember to retrieve it before discarding (or
keep the packaging in case your saw ever needs to
be shipped back to Festool for service).

Brice Burrell, copyright 2008

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Festool Kapex
The saw also has a plastic sleeve on the one of the rails to prevent the saws head from being able to
moving during shipping.
The MFT/Kapex was packaged in a cardboard box with Styrofoam also. I give Festool high marks for
the packaging; you can expect your saw will arrive with no shipping damage.

Set up
The MFT/Kapex is the first thing to set up; I set the MFT on its edge to loosen the knobs for the legs.
Unfold the legs, they will sort of snap into the open position.

Stand the MFT upright, if the floor is uneven the front right foot can be adjusted to take the wobble
out.
The saw goes on the table next, there are four round
rubber feet; these feet are spaced to fit into the holes in
the MFTs top.
Release the saws carriage pulling the locking pin outward,
releasing the saw from its downward position. Now, loosen
the locking knob to allow the carriage to slide on the rails.

Brice Burrell, copyright 2008

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Festool Kapex
To set the saw to 90 degrees, lift up on the
miter lock handle, press down the detent
override and rotate the saw to 90 degrees.
Pressing the miter lock handle down will
lock in the miter setting.

The Kapex also has two recesses for bolts

to mount the saw to the MFT or any other
table/saw stand. Festool offers the
clamping kit part # 494 693, (sold as an
accessory) kit includes two bolts and two
locking knobs. Drop the bolts down
through the recess and screw on the knob
from under the MFT.

Festool clamps can also be used in addition to or in place of the clamping kit. Place the clamp in from
below the MFT, there is a space for the clamp on the saws base, tighten the clamp.

Brice Burrell, copyright 2008

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Festool Kapex

The crown stops with base extensions part # 494 369 (sold as accessories) can be mounted to the V
grooves in the Kapexs base to cut crown molding in position or nested. Attach the vacuum hose to
the dust port on the saw. Unwrap cord and plug it into the CTs outlet, turn the power switch to the
auto setting. The saw is ready to cut.

Out of the box

With the Kapex unpacked I wanted to check the
quality of the saw right out of the box. I wanted
to check to see in the Kapex had any of the
common quality control issues that other brand
saws seem to have. After a basic function test, I
began my out of the box test. I wanted to check
the fence for square and to see if the saws bed
was completely coplanar (all on the same plane),
the lasers and how accurately the saw would cut.

I used my 7" Incra guaranteed square, with

bright sunlight backlighting the square to check
the fence for square. As you can see in this photo there is a small amount of light visible. After
checking both fences all along entire range of travel this gap was relatively consistent. The picture
makes it look like there is much more of a gap then there really is. Without the strong backlighting
the gap is undetectable. Im satisfied that this saws fences are at a right angle to the saw bed.

Its important for the saws bed to be perfectly coplanar for accurate cuts. I checked the saw bed by
placing a 2' Stabila level to act as a straight edge. No obvious gaps, so I tried to slip a piece of paper
under the level, it would only slide under the rounded edge of the level. I continued checking with the

Brice Burrell, copyright 2008

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Festool Kapex
saw mitered to 20, 30, 45 degrees in both directions, 60 degrees on the right side and 50 on the left.
All surfaces were coplanar.
Now for the real test, how does it
cut? First up, 90 degrees cut in a
piece of 4/4" pine. The cut was a
perfect 90 degrees. Forty-five
degrees miter and bevel cuts were
also spot on. Compound cuts will be
discussed later in this review.
The lasers didnt check out. Both
were off by 1/32". Since other
Kapex owners abroad have
commented that their saws lasers
were perfectly set at the factory I
was a little surprised by this. This
isnt a big deal, a few minutes of adjustment and the alignment was corrected.
The last thing I wanted to check was the machining on the fence extensions. I removed the fences to
have a look at the quality of the machining, it was fine, but there was a burr left from the process. These
burrs was very thin and extended part of the length of the both fence. I was able to easily remove it with
my fingernail. The burrs themselves didnt interfere with the operation of the fences. However, if the
burr was to break loose of the fence and lodge into the slot, perhaps then, the fence could bind. I believe
the real culprit may have been damaged fences from their being mishandled while off of the saw. Since
the fences are a relatively soft alloy they could be damaged if dropped on a hard surface. Id suggest
storing them in a safe place while off of the saw. I dont know if this is going to be an issue in the future,
Ill just keep an eye on them just to make sure a problem doesnt develop.

Brice Burrell, copyright 2008

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Festool Kapex

Some of the items well be looking at in this review.

Kapex

MFT/Kapex

Accessories

Dust Extractors

Ill be giving you a close look at the Kapex, all of its related accessories and since dust extractors
are an important part of the Kapex dust collection, Ill be including them also.

Brice Burrell, copyright 2008

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Festool Kapex

MFT/Kapex
It may seem out of order, but I want
to start with the MFT/Kapex since
youll see it in almost ever picture.
Its used as the stand for the saw; it
can also be used as a work platform
for smaller projects or for a stand
for other tools. Its light weight so it
can be easily carried to or around
the job site. The MFT/Kapex can do
pretty much everything its big
brother, the MFT/3, can but only on
a smaller scale. Use it for clamping,
cutting, routing and so on.

The MFT/Kapex has an MDF top, 525 mm x 815 mm with 20 mm holes spaced on 96 mm centers;
two extra rows of holes are to mount the Kapex. The total height of the MFT is 790 mm tall. The
height allows the Kapexs bed to be the same height of the MFT/3
(900 mm). It has the same V-groove profile as the MFT/3. The
profiles have slots for Festool clamps allowing work pieces to be
clamped to the side of the MFT. The guide rail hardware from the
MFT/3 can be attached to the MFT/Kapex. Soft, non-marking,
rubber feet on the MFT keep it from sliding around on the floor, the
front foot can be adjusted to level the MFT on an uneven floor.
MFT/Kapex is sold as an accessory (not included with the saw).

Brice Burrell, copyright 2008

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Festool Kapex

The Kapex KS120

Ill be separating the Kapex section into a number of sub-sections to better organize the
information in this review. I will go over the saws capacities/specifications first.

The Kapex: By the numbers

Standard
Package
Includes:
Power
Consumption

60 tooth Universal Saw Blade , Angle Transfer

Device, Hold Down Clamp, Allen Wrench

RPM

1400-3400 RPM

Brice Burrell, copyright 2008

1600 Watts (13 Amps)

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Festool Kapex
Cutting
Capacity
90/90
Left/Right
45/90

12 x 3 15/32
305 mm x 88 mm
8 15/32 x 3 15/32
215 mm x 88 mm

Left 45/45

8 15/32 x 2 1/8
215 mm x 55 mm

Right 45/45

8 15/32 x 1 3/8
215 mm x 35 mm

Special
Cutting Depth

4 23/32 x
120 mm x 20 mm

Crown Nested
Capacity

6 5/8
168 mm

Max Bevel

47/47

Miter Range

Left 50/Right 60

Dust Port

27/36 mm

Weight

47 lbs.
21.5 kg.

Brice Burrell, copyright 2008

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Festool Kapex
Some of the other specifications, miter detents at: 0, 15, 22.5, 30 and 45. There is a marking
for 31.6, but, no detent. Saw blades are 260 mm diameter (about 10 ) with a 30 mm arbor
bore. The Kapex is covered by Festools 1+2 warranty. The official designation of the US version
is: Kapex KS 120 EB.

The Kapex: Features.

The Kapex has all of the features that youd expect
in a miter saw and some unique to this saw. In this
section Ill give a brief overview of the features and
how they work and go into greater detail we get to
the The Kapex: In use. section.
The Kapexs base is made a magnesium alloy, the
base has V-grooves cast in both ends, and these
grooves are where the crown extensions attach.
The miter lock is the handle shown here, pushing
the handle down locks the miter setting and pulling
it up releases. Also on the handle is the detent
override button. The saw can miter 60 to the right and 50 to the left, this much range in the
miter settings means the saws bed is going to be smaller.
The pointer on the miter gauge
is green, with two lines on either
side to set the miter to a half
degree. In this picture the miter
angle is set to one half degree to
the right. The screw above the
gauge is to adjust the pointer.
Moving the saw back and forth
setting the miter angle is a bit
stiff, that may just be because of
the tight tolerances and the fact
the saw is new. The detents lock
in solidly, but, I have no trouble
setting the saw degree out of a
detent. One quarter degree is my
standard and I can repeatedly
achieve that with the Kapex.

Brice Burrell, copyright 2008

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Festool Kapex

The bevel lock is a flip lever located on the top rear of the saw. Its pretty easy to reach and
adjust. With the bevel flipped up the bevel selector knob and the bevel of the saw can be
adjusted.

With the bevel selector set to 0-45 the saw can be set 45 to the left only with a stop at 0

Brice Burrell, copyright 2008

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Festool Kapex

The 45 setting allows the saw to be beveled to 45 both to the left and right with no stop at 0.

The 47 setting, the saw can be set to 47 to the left and right, no stop at 0.
Once the bevel adjustment lever is unlocked the bevel can be set like any other miter saw, by
pushing it to the desired angle. I like the fact that the saw doesnt just flop over, it stays where I
put it when I let it go. There are two things that set the beveling feature of the Kapex apart from
the others, first are the large bevel gauges and the second is the micro adjustment feature.

Brice Burrell, copyright 2008

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Festool Kapex

A unique feature on the Kapex is the rack and pinion micro bevel adjustment. The right rail has
a handle on the front that turns the bevel adjustment gears to fine tune the bevel angle.
Heres a picture of the back of the Kapex with the
cover removed to show the gears that adjust the
bevel.

I noticed the sound of metal to metal when

adjusting the bevel, so took the back of the saw
off to see what was making the sound. Its the
bevel locking device that makes this sound. The
bevel lock rides along a steel flange (that also
acts as the stops for the bevel setting); in this
picture you can see a small line where the lock
rides along the flange. I dont see this doing
damage to the saw, but time will tell.

Brice Burrell, copyright 2008

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Festool Kapex
The micro bevel adjustment is one of the
features that Im excited about, with the
large scale and this micro adjustment in is
possible to set the bevel to degree
repeatedly. This feature will come in handy
when it comes time to tweak a miter on a
baseboard.
The Kapexs power
switch (trigger) is
two stage like the
TS plunge cut
saws, with one
difference. The trigger must be pressed part way to lower the saw
blade, then the safety button then the trigger can be pressed all the way
to the On position. At first I found this very awkward. The Kapex has a
vertical handle that sits high on the saw, reaching up this high and
depressing the trigger was the issue. It sort of bent my wrist in an
uncomfortable angle. However, by the end of the first day of use I settled in on a method that
worked well for me. My method is to not wrap my index finger around the trigger, but rather
keep it straight. The Kapex is set up to be used with right or left handed, notice that Im using my
left hand, normally Im a righty and I have no problems using either hand.
The dual lasers, well I dont consider
myself a laser kind of guy, Ive
always used the blade to align the cut
and that has always worked well for
me. My other miter has a laser on it,
but I didnt use it much.

Like I said, my method works, why

change it now? Well, efficiency, the
lasers can help align cuts when the
saw blade cant be placed on your
measurement marks; that can speed
up the process and increase accuracy.
The lasers are easy to adjust, follow
the directions in the manual and you
have the lasers setup perfectly in no
time.

Brice Burrell, copyright 2008

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Festool Kapex
The Kapex comes with the angle transfer device, angle finder.
The angle finder can be used on both inside and outside corners.
Once the angle is set, take the angle finder over to the saw, align
one of the lasers with the line on the angle finder, now you have
perfectly bisected angle. The angle stores in the saws base, in the
slot in the left side of the base, shown in the photo here.
The two sliding fence extensions give the saw another 90 mm
(about 3 ) for a total fence height of 120 mm (about 4 9/16).
The fences slide to move out of the way for bevel cuts and they can
be removed entirely. They
have a locking lever in the back and a set screw to prevent
them from being removed, the screw can be adjusted
(screwed in) to allow the fences to be slid off the saw. Fences
have holes to attach a wooden sacrificial fence. The fences
are made of the same material as the base, a light weight
magnesium alloy.
Also included is a hold down clamp. What I really like about
the hold down is how easy it is to use, so easy in fact, I have
actually used it. The hold down from my last saw was so inconvenient that I never used it. I took
it out of the box, tried it and then placed in on a shelf somewhere and havent used it since. The
Festool hold down has cam like clamping action that the Festool Clamping Elements have. No
time consuming screw clamp like the old saw. This is a small thing that can make a big
difference in time savings and safety. Ill now enjoy the added safety that a hold down clamp
provides. In the picture above, Im using the hold down clamp to secure an acute angle jig.

Brice Burrell, copyright 2008

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Festool Kapex
The special cutting position fixes the carriage so the saw acts like a chop saw; this holds the saw
in the perfect position to maximize the cutting height. This position can used when cutting
crown nested or in position. To set the saw to the special cutting position there is a lever that
folds down, this engages in the back carriage to lock in place. There is a small green button on
the back of the carriage to release the lock; you can see it in this picture.
The Kapex uses the Fast Fix blade changing system. The green knob behind the handle is the
Fast Fix; turn it to lock the spindle and lockout the power switch (its still a good idea to unplug
the saw). First, with the Allen wrench located on the back of the saw, loosen the bolt move the
arbor bolt guard out of the way. Then remove the arbor bolt and outer flange, it is a lefthand
thread, turn it clockwise to remove. Depress the power switch to move the blade guard out of
the way to remove the blade. Reverse the process to install the new blade, remember to turn the
arbor bolt counterclockwise or anticlockwise to tighten. The saw and blades have an arrow
printed on them to indicate the proper orientation.
On the back of the saw is a place to wrap the cord and store the Allen wrench, and a handle for
carrying the saw is molded in. Again, its small details like this that users appreciate.

Brice Burrell, copyright 2008

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Festool Kapex

Trenching (dados & rabbets),

most SCMS have this feature.
On the Kapex the trenching
depth of cut is pretty precise
and easy to set. While it wont
produce furiture grade
results, it can make field
expedant dados and rabbets
for paint grade work or rough
framing. This photo to the left
the green trenching
knob/lever (green arrow),
push it down and twist it to
set the depth of cut.
The motor on the Kapex is
controlled by MMC eletronics,
this keeps the saw at speed while under load, controls the soft start, thermal overload
protection and variable speed. The MMC eletronics are also responsible for the somewhat
unusual sound of the Kapex, sort of a growling sound. If you happen to own one of Festools TS
plunge cut saws this sound will be quite familiar. In the picture to the right is the variable speed
control, on/off switch for the lasers, dust port and at the bottom of the picture is the trenching
lever.

The Kapex: Accessories

Brice Burrell, copyright 2008

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Festool Kapex
With the MFT/Kapex out of
the way well look at the
other Kapex accessories, the
saw blades, crown stops and
clamping kit. With the
Festool extension wings not
yet released in North
America Ill show you the
Sawhelper extension wings.
The clamping kit is used to
secure the Kapex to a MFT or
any work table. The kit
includes two bolts and two
fastening knobs. The bolts fit
the recesses in the saws base
and the knobs screw on from
below the MFT or table.
Crown stops, used to hold crown molding in position or nested. The crown stops attach to the Vgrooves in the saws base. One locking knob mounts the crown stops and a knob lock the stop to
set the distance of the stop to match the crowns spring angle. Without the stop portion one the
crown stops act as small extensions.

Saw blades, the heart of any miter saw. Festool offers four saw blades for the Kapex, two for
wood, one laminates and one for non-ferrous metals.
Brice Burrell, copyright 2008

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Festool Kapex

One nice thing Festool has done is stamp the specs right on the blade (tooth design and count,
rake angle and gullet spacing). This information is needed for the sharpening service to bring
the blade to specs and to produce the best possible finished cuts.

Universal Blade, # 494 604

For wood/soft plastic, 60 tooth, ATB.
(included with the Kapex)

Fine Tooth Blade, # 494 605

For wood/soft plastic, 80 tooth, ATB.

Laminate Blade, # 494 606

For Laminate, 64 tooth, TC.

Aluminum/Plastic Blade, #
494 607
For non-ferrous metal/acrylic/hard plastic, 68
tooth, TC

Festool has a color code for its saw blades for different materials. Each blade has a colored ring
on it to designate the material it is intended to be used for. Yellow is for wood/soft plastic, red is
for laminate and blue is for non-ferrous metals/acrylic/hard plastic.

Brice Burrell, copyright 2008

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Festool Kapex
All of the Kapexs blades are 260 mm diameter, 30 mm arbor bore, 2.5 mm kerf; carbide tipped
and come in a reusable cardboard sleeve for storage.
Universal blade: for wood/soft plastic, 60 tooth alternating top bevel saw blade, teeth have a -5
rake. This is the blade that comes with the Kapex, its a nice general purpose saw blade for both
soft and hard woods. Cut quality is good with little tear out. Good results with soft plastics.
Recommended speed setting 3-6.
Fine tooth blade: for wood/soft plastics, 80 tooth alternating top bevel saw blade, teeth have a 5 rake. This blade is sold as an accessory, for high quality cuts in all woods. Cut quality is
excellent with very little tear out. Very good results with soft plastics. Recommended speed
setting 3-6.
Laminate blade: for laminate, 64 tooth triple chip saw blade, teeth have -5 rake. This blade is
sold as an accessory, used for solid surface, laminate flooring and other composite materials.
Varying cut quality depending on material. Recommended speed setting 3-5.
Aluminum/plastic blade: for non-ferrous metals/acrylic/hard plastic, 68 tooth triple chip blade,
teeth have a 0 rake. This blade is sold as an accessory. Varying cut quality depending on
material. Recommended speed setting 2-4.

The Sawhelper brackets and extensions wings

for the Kapex are not Festool products. Tim
Moncur, owner of the Sawhelper company, sent
me the brackets to mount my extension wings to
the Kapex. The brackets mount to the Kapexs Vgroove with two thumb screws.
The Sawhelper extension wings are extruded
aluminum. This forms a continuous work surface
to completely support the stock. The rig sets up
quickly and easily, breaks down just as easy. The legs on the wings can be repositioned to store
flat making transport a breeze. The wings come with a flip stop to make repeatable cuts, setting
the stop is done with the measurement tapes on the wings. I have wooden extensions on my
wings in this photo. Wings are available in 50, 84 and 100 lengths.

The Kapex: Dust extractors

One of the key features that makes the Kapex such a valuable tool is its dust collection. At the
heart of that capability is a Festool dust extractor. Im sure other brand vacuums will work with
the Kapex; I prefer the CT vacs with their variable suction, anti-static hoses, auto start, Sys-dock
platform and hoses are a perfect fit on the Kapex. Both the D27 and D36 hose hoses will fit on
Brice Burrell, copyright 2008

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Festool Kapex
the Kapex, however, Festool recommends the larger D36 hose. My experience bears that out. I
use the AS hoses because I cut a lot of Azek, PVC trim, the dust has a charge to it and it sticks to
everything unless I use my AS hose and CT extractor to collect the dust. In the shop I use my CT
22 with boom arm, on the job site its my CT mini.

Here is my standard jobsite setup for the Kapex, notice the CT mini with the D36 AS hose. The
minis small size makes it convenient to take to the job, while the 22 is well suited for both the
job site and the shop. The 33 may best used for the shop use only. The CT 22 and 33 has HEPA
filtration, the CT mini and midi filter to 1 micron.

The Kapex: In use

Let me set the scene, its 95F with high humidity in Pittsburgh. We were redoing dormers four
stories up, replacing the wood with Azek. The dormers are a frame and panel design; that means
cutting Azek sheets, trim and moldings on acute angles and then getting them up the scaffold.
For those of you that have worked with Azek before you know the dust sticks to everything
because of the static charge from the friction of cutting.

Brice Burrell, copyright 2008

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Festool Kapex

Now,
with the Festool tools, vac and AS hose the dust is in the vacuum bag, not on me, the tools or on
the ground. Its not just the dust collection, its the speed and accuracy of the TS55 and Kapex
that made a difference that day. When we finished with the dormers and it was time to clean up,
I spent one minutes with the mini, vacuuming both saws, the MFT/Kapex and a very small
amount of the ground behind the Kapex. At the end of a long hot day the last thing I wanted to do
was chase dust all over the parking lot with a broom. Had I been using another brand circular
and miter saw Id have had to stop a couple of times during the day to keep on top of the dust,
that would have meant staying late to finish the job. These tools made a real difference; they
kept the job on time and budget; thats what allows me to make money in this business.
Accuracy and dust collection, these are some of the things I considered when thinking about
what makes the Kapex a better saw than what the competition was to offer.

Accuracy, well, its subjective, to each person the word means something different in regards
to power tools. As for my take, well, I dont own precision measuring tools to check run out
down to .001 or if the miter is off by .05. To me a miter saw should be able to produce quality,
repeatable cuts even after the saw has been banged around in the back of a pickup truck and
carried up four flights of stairs, day after day. Maybe you work in your shop making fine
furniture and your definition of accuracy is different.
Most saws are capable of producing great finished results. The difference is in how long it took
to achieve them. A low budget or poorly adjusted saw simply takes more time to produce a
quality finished product.

Brice Burrell, copyright 2008

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Festool Kapex
The Kapex is manufactured with relatively tight
tolerances. The good part is that the saw is precise, with
almost no slop or deflection, this produces great cuts.
The other side is the saw is a little stiff in the mitering
and beveling of the saw. I expect these to break in over
time and move more smoothly. Miter and bevel angles
can be easily tweaked to 1/4. The detents have no slop
and the saw bad and fence are coplanar making cuts
predictable and repeatable. Overall Ive been pleased
with the results it terms of accuracy and cut quality.
Compound miter cuts in hardwoods; this is a good test
for any miter saw. The Kapexs rails have very little
deflection, this produces pretty accurate cuts. How you
push the saw carriage can influence the accuracy, in a
good or bad way. The Kapexs handle is in the center
over the blade helping to apply the pressure evenly to
help reduce deflection. With an offset vertical handle and worse yet, a horizontal handle, the
handle can act like a lever applying torque to the rails causing more deflection.
Of course the blade can deflect also, some people prefer full kerf blade for bevel cuts compound
miters. I like thin kerf blades, but my first choice is to use a full kerf on a thicker, stiffer blade for
mitering (bevel cut) tall hardwood baseboard. The Kapex blades are 2.5 mm (around 3/32)
they fit into the thin kerf category. The Festool blades do pretty well on bevel and compound
angle cuts. They are surprisingly stiff, heres one you can try at home, take Kapex blade and tap
it with a coin, what do you hear? The answer is very little; whats missing is the distinctive
ringing found on most other saw blades. The Kapex blades dampen vibration incredibly well. In
general, the less vibration the better the
cut will be, that goes for any angle, not
just compound angle cuts.
Another factor that plays a role in cut
quality is how well the work piece is
supported. If the piece isnt properly
supported it can move, twist or slide
during the cut, spoiling an otherwise nice
piece of wood. Extension wings like the
Sawhelper models are a perfect for
continuous support. The picture on the
left has a piece with saw marks on it, this
is what happens when the work piece
isnt held properly on the saw. Even a
small amount of movement can cause
these saw marks in the cut. (See photo on
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the bottom of page 25) With the correct
blade, a well supported work piece, clamped
down will produce a high quality cut every
time.
My thoughts on the Kapexs accuracy, I can
sum it up like this, the Kapex is as accurate a
miter saw that I have ever used.

Dust collection, this is one most people

want to know about. So, how well does the
Kapex collect dust? What percentage of the
dust does it collect? As most things in life, its
just not that simple to answer. Sure, I could say it collects the dust well or that it does a better
job that any other miter saw and it collects between 75% -95% of the dust (and thats all true).
But it doesnt really tell the whole story. The questions above werent really the ones I wanted to
know the answers to. I wanted to know what kind of and how much dust the Kapex doesnt
collect and why.
There are two key items to the dust collection for the Kapex, the black rubber dust shroud and
the D36 hose (you need a vac also). The dust shroud can be removed if it gets in the way of a cut,
when removed the dust collection drops off sharply. I leave it on as much as possible. There isnt
a big difference between using the CT mini/midi or CT 22/33. However, the difference is
enormous between the D27 and D36 hoses.
The back of the Kapex is
rounded over to prevent
the hose from hanging
up. Ive experienced no
problems with the hose
hanging up or otherwise
becoming an issue, on
any type of cut.
I plug in the Kapex to
one of my CT vacs and
use the auto start
feature. When cutting, I
wait a second after the
saw gets to speed, this
lets the vac get to full

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speed before starting the cut.
This question seems comes up often,
can you make cuts with the Kapex
inside an occupied home or do you
still have to set up outside? My take is
this, it depends. I know, thats not the
answer you wanted to hear, but its
the truth. It depends on what type of
material youre using, the type of
cutting needed and what the standard
of cleanliness is for any particular job.
Ill be more specific, if youre doing a
trim job, base, crown, and so on, yes,
the Kapex can be used inside. On the
other hand cutting 8/4 Spanish cedar inside is probably not a good idea. (Although Ive done it
inside my house with the Kapex, see the photo on the above.) Another way to put is youll have
more dust to clean up after make a few cross cuts in thick stock than cutting shoe mold all day.
Keep this in mind when deciding to set up inside or out. Of course some clients dont want any
dust inside their home so no matter what saw you have youll be setting up outside.
I prefer to set up my saw inside whenever possible, even if it means spending time moving stuff
out of the work space and more
clean up at the end of the job.
Nothing has a more detrimental
effect on the quality of a trim
job than a carpenter that has to
walk too far to the saw for
every cut. Think about
installing large crown in an old
house, its going to be hard and
even harder if you have to walk
to the garage or driveway to
make every cut. I think its
worth the time to cover things
well with drop cloths or plastic;
Im not going to stop doing that
now that I have the Kapex. Ill
just worry less about the dust
getting out of the work area
and spend less time cleaning up at the end of the job.
So just how much dust isnt collected by the Kapex? The perfect cut is on wood about 2 square
at 90, the Kapex collects very close to 100% of the dust. Because of the size of the wood the dust
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Festool Kapex
is thrown off the blade at a steep angle, this angle throws it right into the dust shroud. Two inch
stock wider than that produces more dust and some of it can swirl around on the top surface of
the wood and not get sucked up. The percentage drops to around 80%-90%. Cutting miter and
compound angles more stock is being removed, so while the percentage may stay about the
same, youll have more dust left behind. With quarter round or shoe the 10%-20% not collected
doesnt amount to much, where as 10-20 of the 8/4 stock does.
Its the airborne dust that causes the biggest problems when using a saw inside. Different
materials produce more or less dust. The good news is most of the fine dust gets collected be the
Kapex. MDF when cut produces a fine dust, most of it is collected, but, since it is fine, more of it
goes airborne than with wood. Again, thicker MDF, like stock will produce more dust than
cutting MDF crown since much less material is being removed per cut. The point being, take look
at the type of material being used and weigh it against the
standard of cleanliness for the job. I think youll find you will be
able to set up the Kapex inside for more than with your old saw.
If most of the dust not collected isnt going airborne, where is it
going? On the top of the stock, on the saw and on the MFT for the
most part. Yes, some ends up on the floor, but not much. Its pretty
well confined to these areas so clean up is easy.

Here are some other

things discovered during use. When cutting stock
standing up in the saw, using the portion of the blade
above the arbor, youre limited to about 7/8
thickness. You can see from the picture part of the
saw gets in the way of thicker stock being cut on a 45
miter to the right.
With the saws fences extensions on the saw wont
bevel to 45, this is the case with all miter saws. The bevel gauge (scale) also can get in the way
of the fence extension
when mitering to 60.
Sometimes the dust
shroud can interfere
with aligning and
making a cut, moving
the saw back a little
gets the shroud out of
the way and chopping
through the cut
works.
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Cutting on a bevel the hold

down may not be able to
be used so Ive used a
Festool clamp in the crown
extension to hold the stock
in place.
Im slowly getting used to
the lasers; there are times
when the laser speeds
things up. When the saw
blade wont reach your
measurement mark, the
laser is the way to go.
The Kapex has great visibility on both sides of the blade. The blade guard move out of the way
reasonably well.
There is one thing I dont like about the blade guard: it can get hung up on the long point of a
miter. This is only an issue when the miter is already cut and
you are trimming it. Otherwise the guard can ride up on the
stock on the cut off piece. The same thing was true with my
other saws.
When changing the blade for the first time be aware it comes
from the factory very tight, youll need to apply some force to
get it off, remember turn the arbor bolt clockwise to remove
it.
To get the trenching to cut all of the way through the stock
youll need to put shim behind the stock to get it out far
enough for the blade to cut all the way through.
The saw can be set to a lower speed for cutting different materials, like aluminum. The Kapex
makes very nice cuts in aluminum, it sure beats a hacksaw.

Conclusion
The Kapex is a quality tool, well designed and manufactured. However, I cant comment on its
durability, Ive only used my saw for a few weeks. This is a key factor in determining the value of
any tool. Overseas it seems to have a good track record for durability.

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Festool Kapex
A miter saw like the Kapex teamed with an experienced user can be a money maker. The speed
and accuracy a skilled user can get from the Kapex can help get a trim job done on time and on
budget. With less dust in the air and on the ground, the job site is cleaner and safer. A clean, safe
work site means more productivity (and happier employees and clients). You dont have to
work in your clients homes to value the speed, accuracy and clean work area the Kapex offers.
Or maybe you are the client, building furniture for your own family, youll appreciate the Kapex
too. The tool works as advertised, its small, accurate with dust collection unlike any other saw
available.

If you have any questions about this review feel free to e-mail me,
brice@burrellcustoncarpentry.com Check out my website for more photos and videos of the
Kapex in action. www.burrellcustomcarpentry.com
Design, layout, photos and text by Brice Burrell, copyright 2008.

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Brice Burrell, copyright 2008

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