Festool Kapex KS 120 User manual

Festool Kapex
Brice Burrell, copyright 2008 Page 1
The Festool Kapex KS120, sliding compound miter saw.
Review by Brice Burrell

Festool Kapex
Brice Burrell, copyright 2008 Page 2
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 it’s 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

Festool Kapex
Brice Burrell, copyright 2008 Page 3
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).

Festool Kapex
Brice Burrell, copyright 2008 Page 4
The saw also has a plastic sleeve on the one of the rails to prevent the saw’s 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 MFT’s top.
Release the saw’s 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.

Festool Kapex
Brice Burrell, copyright 2008 Page 5
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 saw’s base, tighten the clamp.

Festool Kapex
Brice Burrell, copyright 2008 Page 6
The crown stops with base extensions part # 494 369 (sold as accessories) can be mounted to the “V”
grooves in the Kapex’s 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 CT’s 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 saw’s 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. I’m satisfied that this saw’s fences are at a right angle to the saw bed.
It’s important for the saw’s 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

Festool Kapex
Brice Burrell, copyright 2008 Page 7
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 didn’t check out. Both
were off by 1/32". Since other
Kapex owners abroad have
commented that their saw’s lasers
were perfectly set at the factory I
was a little surprised by this. This
isn’t 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 didn’t 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. I’d suggest
storing them in a safe place while off of the saw. I don’t know if this is going to be an issue in the future,
I’ll just keep an eye on them just to make sure a problem doesn’t develop.

Festool Kapex
Brice Burrell, copyright 2008 Page 8
Some of the items we’ll be looking at in this review.
Kapex
MFT/Kapex Accessories Dust Extractors
I’ll 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, I’ll be including them also.

Festool Kapex
Brice Burrell, copyright 2008 Page 9
MFT/Kapex
It may seem out of order, but I want
to start with the MFT/Kapex since
you’ll see it in almost ever picture.
It’s 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. It’s 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 Kapex’s 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).

Festool Kapex
Brice Burrell, copyright 2008 Page 10
The Kapex KS120
I’ll be separating “the Kapex” section into a number of sub-sections to better organize the
information in this review. I will go over the saw’s capacities/specifications first.
The Kapex: By the numbers
Standard
Package
Includes:
60 tooth Universal Saw Blade , Angle Transfer
Device, Hold Down Clamp, Allen Wrench
Power
Consumption
1600 Watts (13 Amps)
RPM
1400-3400 RPM