TS 55 – circular saw

**greenie512** · 21st March 2008, 11:27 AM

Late last year I received a rather good tax rebate, so as an early Xmas present (to myself) I bought the KAPEX Sliding Compound Mitre Saw – excellent. So last week was my birthday so decided I needed another Festool present – this time the TS55 plunge cut circular saw.

Just put it through its paces and I’m very “chuffed” – of course I b***dy well should be for the price. Now this replaces my EZSmart Guide System (sold - http://www.woodworkforums.ubeaut.com...ad.php?t=68776). The main reason for the purchase was dust collection, for a big rip up I’d go outside to avoid dust problems in the shed. Well as you’d expect the TS solve that issue – on this mornings rip it captured 90-95% of the dust. Obviously a small amount drops below the board but this could be up’d to 100% with a sacrificial table/board below the cut.

I’m impressed with the saw it’s self but the rail guides are not a patch on the EZ’s for strength. I’m sure they’ll do the job admirably but wouldn’t like to be throwing them around a building site. The EZ’s guides use much more aluminium and better extrusions but are heaver. But I suppose at near $200 for a 1.4m run of guide rail you are going to treat the Festool guide with a LOT of care. And I’m not too impressed with the jointers – the EZ’s are almost the same but I think they are to close together on the Festool but that’s because of the extrusion design. The “grippers” on the base are great and to a large extent you don’t need clamps (opps – health and safety). And the top plastic/Teflon runners make the saw glide easily along the track.

I know Festool haven’t put a plunge lock on the saw for safety reasons and walking the saw down the board during a cut the saw would spring back (slightly) as I repositioned myself but I’m sure I’ll develop a technique to overcome this. Power seemed ample, I forgot to “play” with the speed settings.

Check the floor in the last picture I’d done about 6 full length rips by then – can you spot the saw dust?? Actually there is some but the industrial fan I use blow it out of sight but it was b**ger all.

Final cut edges were a treat, very smooth with no apparent chip out.

Final comments – typical Festool ridiculous price and psychologically all that plastic extrusion irritates but once over that hurdle, it’s an excellent tool as usual from Festool!

Cheers - Phil

**blouis79** · 21st March 2008, 02:03 PM

I just got one too. Very surprised by the rattly gearbox noise, but I am reading it is normal!

Found a link on another forum to a supplementary US manual which is in full colour and a lot better than the supplied manual. It describes the noise problem on page 13:

http://www.waterfront-woods.com/festool/TS_55_EQ_US.pdf

"A Note About Speed Control

When you first turn on the saw and there is no load on the
sawblade, you may notice a slight “growling” sound from tsaw. This is normal, and is a result of the motor’s gears reacting to the speed control.

The electronic controller in the motor controls the motor speed
by turning it On and Off very rapidly. This form of speed control is called "Pulse-Width Modulation" (PWM), and is common in most power tools with a variable speed control. When there is no load on the sawblade, the pulsations of the motor cause the gears to rapidly engage and disengage (calledbacklash), and this is the sound you are hearing."

For the money, I was expecting more in terms of noise control, quality of manufacture (rough edges on aluminium castings), and feel of threaded locking parts (prefer solid aluminium/metal parts to softer plastic).

There is quite a lot of backlash in the gearbox when one jiggles the blade forward and backwards. Surely a gearbox with less backlash wouldn't generate the same awful noise.

**greenie512** · 21st March 2008, 10:10 PM

Thanks for the link to the manual - thats the one we should be getting.

I bought mine a C&L (sorry Ideal!) and sales guy there did warn me about the noise. He said Festool actually put an additional bearing into the motor but it didn't solve the problem.

I've started wearing ear muffs recently and when I switched the saw on along with the vac - they were the first thing I reached for.

Cheers - Phil

**Groggy** · 21st March 2008, 11:03 PM

How loud is the saw? I had hoped it would be quiet.

**greenie512** · 21st March 2008, 11:28 PM

Originally Posted by Groggy

How loud is the saw? I had hoped it would be quiet.

Groggy - Just by ear I'd say it was as noisy as any other saw on the market. My Hitachi is just a bit loader. I think what blouis79 is saying is that for the price you might expect a quieter machine.

Cheers - Phil

**nt900** · 22nd March 2008, 12:03 AM

Originally Posted by greenie512

Groggy - Just by ear I'd say it was as noisy as any other saw on the market. My Hitachi is just a bit loader. I think what blouis79 is saying is that for the price you might expect a quieter machine.

Cheers - Phil

Hi Phil,

As that US manual states, the noises are normal. The PWM and and 'backlash' are by design, and the growling noise is an unusual consequence of this design. The growl is normal for many Festool tools, embrace the growl.

That sound means the tools have had more R&D and designers focus on optimal performance than most others tools get to enjoy.

I am interested in you finding it not that quiet. Generally speaking I find most Festool tools relatively quiet because of the electronic speed control. No need for the tool to scream at high revs when not under load. But relative noise is one of those things and subject to personal interpretation, prior experiences and comparisons. I once did a test between the old and the new ROTEX using an SPL meter. My feeling was that the new ROTEX was 'much' quieter than the old version. But the measured test showed them so close I think there was only a single db quieter in the end. So my feeling did not match the measured result. Go figure.

Now one thing I think we can all agree on, that US version of the TS-55 manual is fantastic!

to the authour. Did you notice the US version is for TS-55 EB, they do not get the EBQ version over there.

P.S. Congratulations on your TS-55 purchase - that's one nice birthday present.

**blouis79** · 22nd March 2008, 09:35 AM

I read on the site showing the TS55 EB manual we are meant to link to a page before which has description and disclaimer:

http://www.waterfront-woods.com/festool/

(Can an admin please fix the link in the second post?)

I did notice the US saw has a different number, but Q apparently is just for plug-it lead. Model designations listed here:
http://festool-fanatics.co.uk/festoo...aw-review.html

TS55 noise recording here:
http://www.burrellcustomcarpentry.co...ound%20tip.wmv

FestoolUSA product page has a video demo - can't even hear the growl.
http://www.festoolusa.com/ProductDet...&prodid=561174

I do think the TS55 is quieter than most. In fact with no blade on, it sounds like a router with a big fan. It's just the unnerving nature of the "growl" sounds awfully like something is falling apart inside (like when a cheap tool's bearings have worn out completely) - which is where I hit the net to try to find out if I needed warranty replacement.

(Car designers know all about the psychoacoustics of a nice engine noise!)

Thread: TS 55 – circular saw

Thread Tools

Search Thread

TS 55 – circular saw

Similar Threads

What circular saw for around $200?

circular saw around $100??

First circular saw - what should it be?

Which circular saw

Which Circular saw

Tags for this Thread

Posting Permissions