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The Festool TS55 EQ-Plus is high end throughout, including in performance. (The dust hose is separate) Click image to enlarge

Festool TS 55 EQ-Plus & FS 1400/2 Guide Rail

High-End Precision

Text & Photos by Tom Hintz

The Basics

At 9.9 lbs, the Festool TS 55 is a bit heavier than I expected but feels lighter than that in use. I suspect that is due to the placement of the handles and the overall balance they create.

The smaller 6.3"-diameter Festool blade laying on a standard 7 1/4"-diameter. The actual difference in maximum cutting depths is remarkably small. Click image to enlarge

Manufacture and fit of the plastic and metal parts is first rate. The function of all moveable parts is smooth and predictable right out of the box. The Festool TS 55 comes in the trademark Festool modular box that can be stacked and attached to other Festool boxes.

Most surprising is that the Festool TS 55 uses a 6.3"-diameter blade rather than the 7.25"-diameter versions we normally associate with hand-held circular saws. Also, the bore size of the Festool blade is 20mm, or 0.79".

Despite the 6.3"-diameter blade, maximum cut depths of 2.2" at 90-degrees and 1.7" at 45-degrees are only slightly less than attained on saws with 7 ¼"-diameter blades. This appears to be due to maximizing downward travel through careful engineering of the underside of the motor and drive case.

Power and Controls

Using the trigger lockout takes a little getting used to but really is not a problem. The speed control (arrow) is effective and necessary when cutting materials other than wood with special blades designed for those purposes. Click image to enlarge

As with most better circular saws these days, the Festool TS 55's 1200W motor has plenty of power for any reasonable cutting job. However, the Festool TS 55 goes further by including a dial-operated speed control with a range of 2,000 to 5,000 rpm that allows tailoring blade speed for specific cutting situations. Festool offers special blades for cutting aluminum and other non-wood materials where reducing blade speed is necessary. Special circuitry in the motor maximizes power at all rpm settings. A chart in the instruction manual provides suggested speeds for various materials and the recommended blade for cutting them. The Festool TS 55 also has soft-start circuitry and thermal protection built in.

A top-mounted lockout slider button must be moved before the on-off trigger can be depressed or the blade plunged. While this felt a little clumsy initially, it is a feature we should get used to as I suspect lockouts will be increasingly common on circular saws and other power tools in the near future. After using the Festool TS 55 a few times in the shop, using the lockout posed little problem.

A generous 13-foot-long power cord gives the operator plenty of freedom for cutting even large sheet stock. The cord is detachable from the saw but rather than simply plugging in, it has a rotating lock that means it comes out only when you want it to.

Cut Depth

A tool-free depth stop can be set anywhere along the 0 to 55mm metric scale. Click image to enlarge

The Festool TS 55 is a pure plunge-type saw that automatically retracts the blade into the full shroud when the operator is not pushing down on the handle. A tool-free slider is used to limit the depth of cut anywhere on the 0 to 55mm scale. The adjustable depth stop replaces the blade exposure locking mechanism found on most circular saws. Having the blade automatically retract inside the housing is another safety feature.

The down side for those not proficient with metric measurements is that no standard equivalent scale is provided. When setting a specific cut depth is necessary, you will have to convert standard dimensions to metric or keep the tape measure handy. Plunging the blade, measuring the depth and moving the limiting mechanism will make you wish for a third hand. Adjusting blade depth to slightly exceed a sample held against the baseplate is much easier for the lone woodworker. Overall, learning to convert the needed depth to metric may be the easier alternative.

The flip-out lever (arrow) locks the spindle and the plunge mechanism for easy blade changing. Click image to enlarge

Blade changing is easy thanks to a pull-out lever on the handle (labeled "Fast Fix") that automatically engages a special depth lock and a spindle lock at the same time. In this position, the blade-securing bolt is centered in a window on the side of the shroud.

Automatic Riving Knife

A nice safety feature is a riving knife that extends to the correct position automatically as the blade is plunged from the shroud. Provisions for adjusting the knife position are provided but the Festool TS 55 tested in this review was set correctly as it came from the box.

The automatic riving knife (Left) is a very nice safety feature. Bevel settings (Right) are easily done without tools and hold fast. Click images to enlarge

The riving knife is a major safety feature that helps prevent kickback, one of the more common injury-producing accidents with circular saws. Throughout our testing, the riving knife worked perfectly and never hung up or snagged on the material being cut.

Bevel Settings

The Festool TS 55 has a 45-degree bevel range with an easy to read indicator scale at the front of the shoe. Finger-operated release knobs at the front and rear release and lock the tilt mechanism anywhere along the scale. There are no detents or preset angles.

The tilt mechanism is very smooth, easy to operate and locks securely when the knobs are tightened. Cut line indicators are cast into the baseplate for the 0 and 45-degree blade positions.

Dust Collection

The dust control on the Festool TS55 is nearly 100-percent and worked with our full-sized dust collector and a 6 hp. shop vac. Click image to enlarge

As long as a circular blade cuts wood, total dust collection will not be possible. The Festool TS 55 comes very close though. The full blade enclosure, along with the strategically placed port sends nearly all of the dust into the hose rather than on the floor. The angled dust port swivels a full 360-degrees, allowing the hose to be directed where it is least restrictive.

We used the Festool #452877 hose to connect to our Delta 50-760 dust collector and a 6 hp shop vac. At 12-feet-long and 1 ¼"-diameter, the hose provides plenty of free movement. Dust collection was close to 100-per cent when connected to either of our vacuum sources.

Guide Rail

The two foam strips (Right) hold the Guide Rail firmly without clamps. The zero-clearance strip (Left) is trimmed before use to be sure it is exactly aligned with the inside edge of the blade. Click image to enlarge

The FS 1400/2 (#491498) Guide Rail is essentially a high tech version of a wooden jig woodworkers have been making nearly as long as there have been circular saws. Made from a quality aluminum extrusion with ribs designed to mate with the baseplate of the Festool TS 55, this rail is extremely accurate and stays that way, something we can't say about the wooden jigs. At 55 1/8"-long and 7 ¼"-wide, the Guide Rail handles most shop needs easily.

A zero clearance strip along the blade side of the Guide Rail makes aligning it to a layout line easy and accurate. The zero clearance strip must be trimmed before use, insuring a perfect fit to the inside edge of the blade.

Along the underside, a pair of foam rubber strips, combined with the weight of the saw, hold the Guide Rail in place without clamps. This is another feature that takes a little while to get used to. The strips are very effective but not having clamps holding the Guide Rail down is a little disconcerting until you use it a few times and your confidence builds.

In the Shop

Throughout our evaluation, the Festool TS 55 and Guide Rail performed perfectly. It is easy to handle even without the Guide Rail when making sizing or shorter cuts and leaves a very clean edge.

The soft start feature takes a little getting used to as there is a short delay between when the trigger is depressed and the saw starts. Once you know about it, this is no problem. Getting used to the lock out switch took a few uses but quickly becomes second nature.

The Festool TS55 and Guide Rail made perfect cuts each time. If you align the Guide Rail with the layout correctly, it will cut exactly where you want. Click image to enlarge

Setting a measured blade depth remained a hassle for those of us who are not metric-savvy. However, these situations are rare for most of us and we probably should get on the metric bandwagon anyway. Personally, I'd like to see a standard measurement system added to the depth scale.
The instruction manual packed with the Festool TS 55 includes English, French and Spanish text. While all necessary information is provided, having all three translations grouped on each (open) page, can make finding specific information a bit more difficult. Festool certainly is not alone in the use of this type of manual formatting.

Dust collection is one of the features veteran Festool owners tout most so I decided to quantify that capability by comparing it to my current Porter Cable MAG423 saw. Both saws were connected to the same dust collector using the same (Festool) hose to be sure there was no difference in airflow before the ports.

My Porter Cable saw did well but the Festool did much better. Click image to enlarge

My Porter Cable did pretty well but the Festool TS 55 wins this round hands down. The Festool TS 55 dropped a very small amount of sawdust, all of which appears to come from the exposed portion of the blade in and below the wood being cut.

Cut quality is the other often-mentioned capability attributed to the Festool TS 55 so I did a comparison, again using the Porter Cable saw. Both saws were equipped with brand new blades identical to the ones they come with. The Festool TS 55 uses a 40-tooth ATB (Alternate Top Bevel) and the Porter Cable a 20-tooth ATB blade.

A 4-foot-long strip was cut from the same sheet of ¾"-thick Luaun plywood with each saw. The Festool TS 55 was installed on the Guide Rail with the anti-splinter foot installed and adjusted as per the instructions. The Porter Cable used a clamped-on piece of wood as a fence.

Again, the Porter Cable saw did a respectable job but the Festool TS 55 produced a near perfect cut with only a tiny amount of fraying of especially weak wood fibers. This hair-like fraying is common with Luaun plywood and sands away with one or two light passes with fine sandpaper.

Click this image to enlarge so you can see the difference in the cuts made by the Porter Cable (Top) and the Festool TS55 (Bottom). The Cut edges are facing each other in the middle of the photo. Click image to enlarge

The Festool TS 55 also produced a very clean edge across the thickness of the Luaun plywood with no tooth marks anywhere along the 4-foot cut. I made a similar cut with the Festool TS 55 in solid oak and it was smooth enough for a glue up. The Guide Rail is certainly doing its job.

While the Festool TS 55 and Guide Rail insure a perfectly straight, ultra clean cut, it will make that cut wherever it is set. It remains up to the woodworker to position the Guide Rail and saw correctly. To make full use of this level of accuracy, precise layout and alignment of the Guide Rail is key.

Conclusions

The Festool TS 55 and Guide Rail make up a top-shelf combination that performs as expected and better. The dust collection and cut quality are first rate, surpassing any other circular saw I have tried. The trigger lockout and always-on plunge take a little getting used to but that learning curve is short while the safety they bring lasts forever.

The design and manufacture of all components is exceptional. The power and performance of the Festool TS 55 itself when combined with the Guide Rail make this an extremely clean-cutting system that promises a very long life.

I suspect the biggest obstacle will be the cost. The $395.00 (12-27-2005) introductory price (good through 1-31-06, then goes up $35, does not include the dust hose) represents a sizeable investment, especially if your circular saw needs seldom go beyond breaking down large stock for finish cutting on stationary equipment. However, there are a growing number of woodworkers who lack permanent shop space, and a table saw. The ability to make finish cuts on a pair of sawhorses could make this investment hard to pass up.

Visit the Festool web site.

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