Bob Marino of Festool asked if I would try the Festool ATF 55E circular saw in our shop and pass on a review. Since we use our DeWALT 364 circular saw with shop-made cutting guides and table as a "panel saw", I enthusiastically accepted the offer to work with the Festool circular saw and its precision guides and dust extractor.
In case you're not familiar with Festool tools, you're not alone. It is unlikely you will see a Festool tool lying on a shelf at the local home center or tool store and they don't appear to do a lot of advertising. I have read a few reviews of their tools and they always get high marks with one caveat: price. One thing for sure, Festool tools are unique in many ways. Let's take a look....
Manufacturer:
Festool USA
Tooltechnic Systems, LLC
140 S. Los Carneros Way
Goleta, CA 93117
Since you probably won't find Festool tools at your local retail tool store, your Festool purchases will be delivered to your door from one of two warehouses Festool runs here in the states. Consequently, it is important to note how the tools are packaged for shipment.
As shown at the right, I received four packages. One package contained the dust extractor. It was double-boxed and bubble-wrapped for maximum protection. It arrived without a scratch. Its hose was shipped inside the extractor and extra bags were shipped in a separate box.
The two aluminum guide rails were also packaged well. The longer of the two rails was packaged in a wood-framed, hardboard covered container. The smaller guide rail was shipped in a box and protected on the inside by 1/4" luan panels. Consequently, these tools arrived in perfect condition.
The circular saw and its accessories were boxed and bubble-wrapped but not double-boxed. Double-boxing was not necessary since the saw and the saw accessories were shipped in their own Festool "systainers".
The Festool systainer (system container) is a unique way of packaging a tool. A number of my portable tools came with fitted cases that do nothing but catch dust on the tool shelves. The systainer cases are a bit different.
Each systainer is a hard plastic box, which I am told meets European mail standards for shipping on its own. Systainers are designed to snap onto other systainers using a sliding latch arrangment. Consequently, you could keep all of your Festool tools (circular saw, sanders, router, jig saw) in their respective systainers, stacked one on top of the other.
The dust extractor is designed to serve as a systainer base, a feature we like in our shop. Since the dust extractor is on wheels, we can wheel it, the saw, and the saw accessories to any location in or outside the shop. This is a great feature for cabinet makers and finish carpenters working on site. They can simply wheel their set of tools into the work location and setup shop in a matter of minutes.
Festool sells a modestly priced systainer base and a standalone tool cabinet for those who prefer those options. Festool also sells the systainers in various sizes to provide a home for your non-Festool tools, accessories, and parts. The systainers are a rugged, attractive, and unique way of orgainizing ones tools. Though a feature I had overlooked prior to using the Festool tools, I am sure the systainer container system is a selling point for woodworkers who keep their shops organized and tidy and for those who work at a remote job site.
The depth stop of the Festool ATF 55 is one of its key features. To adjust the depth stop, simply push in its release and slide the stop indicator to the desired depth as indicated by the provided scale. Spent sometime with the ATF 55 and dust extractor this weekend. The system works beautifully and I have lots of notes. The saw is nicely balanced and is very light. The attention to detail in the whole package is probably what strikes me the most. For instance, the cord and vac hose provide just enough length to travel 8' +, in otherwords, the full length of plywood. The no-slip tape on the bottom of the guides works--I cut several sheets without using the clamps, which themselves are simple yet hold the guides without interfereing with the saw, the guide, or me! I quickly turned the saw into a fixed "sliding" miter saw and it surprisingly worked very well at a fixed 90 degrees. The smallest provided guide was little too long for this operation, but regardless, it allowed me to use the saw as a cutoff saw for pieces > 6" long and < 36" wide. I found one problem that I have not yet resolved. When adjusting the saw shoe/plate to 0 degrees, the blade is not exactly 90 degrees with the shoe. Before the shoe reaches exactly 0 degrees it hits the saw body. I'll try to look into it more tonight.
On its own the ATF 55E is a very good circular saw and has features not seen on typical circular saws. However, this saw is a definitely a case where the whole is greater than the sum of the parts.
Bob Marino of Festool asked if I would try the Festool ATF 55E circular saw in our shop and pass on a review. Since we use our DeWALT 364 circular saw with shop-made cutting guides and table as a "panel saw", I enthusiastically accepted the offer to work with the Festool circular saw and its precision guides and dust extractor.
