Industrial-grade panel saws often have a smaller blade, situated in front of the main blade, to pre-score the surface of what’s being cut before the primary blade cuts completely through it. It’s a highly effective means of eliminating splintering on the face of the panel where the primary blade teeth emerge.
This sort of technology is never off ered on conventional table saws for home shops, much less portable track saws! That is, until now, with Festool’s revolutionary new TSV 60 KEB-F-Plus Plunge-cut Saw with Scoring Function.
Typical track saws, including Festool’s family of other models, all rely on a flexible, replaceable splinter guard fixed to the edge of the guide rail to minimize splintering. There’s also often an appendage surrounding the front of the blade on the saw. Initially, the blade trims the splinter guard system so it forms a zero-clearance interface with the blade. That works great until the saw makes enough cuts to create ragged edges in the splinter guard. Then, splintering begins to happen anyway.
Diamond Precision
On the new TSV 60 saw, a 12-7/32″-diameter scoring blade with a single diamond tooth spins clockwise, just ahead of the blade. It creates a clean, shallow kerf that prevents the primary blade from lifting wood fibers or fragile melamine when the teeth rise up and out of the cut. This way, the bottom face of what’s being cut is cut cleanly by the primary blade as usual, and so is the more challenging top face. Festool aims this scoring feature at the most splinter-and-chip-prone materials, including plywood, chipboard of various sorts, high-pressure laminate panels and specially veneered and plastic-coated panels.
Other Standard Features
Festool makes the scoring blade function both adjustable and able to be deactivated when needed, such as when making plunge cuts.
This saw also incorporates Festool’s proven dust collection provisions and unique KickbackStop feature, which electronically detects a kickback the instant it begins to occur and stops the motor within a fraction of a second.
The scoring blade unit is integral with the saw’s main blade housing, so tilting the tool for making bevel cuts up to 45 degrees will produce splinter-free cuts on par with those made at 0 degrees.
Festool’s EC-TEC motor with constant feedback circuitry powers the saw to ensure consistent power delivery and blade speed regardless of the cutting load. It plugs into a standard outlet with a 13-ft power cord.
The TSV-60’s 6-5/8″-diameter, 42-tooth blade will cut through material up to 2-3/8″ thick, with the saw set to 0 degrees of tilt. And blade change-outs are easy, thanks to Festool’s FastFix spindle stop, which is found on all of the company’s track saw models. The saw fits other Festool guide rails as well, including the FSK Cross Cutting Guide Rail.
Nova Neptune
Motor: EC-TEC, 115-volt
Primary Blade: 6-5/8″-diameter thin kerf, 42-tooth
Scoring Blade: 1-27/32″-diameter diamond tooth
Maximum Cutting Depth: 2-3/8″
Power Cord Length: 13.12 ft
Weight: 13.23 lbs
