Which Rails Work? A Guide to Guiderails [video #403]

In this weeks video I talk about #guiderail #compatibility, explain why #Festool is the de-fecto standard, and discuss a few things to watch out for with bargain guiderailrail bundles. Enjoy!

NB: Excel is an own-brand of Tools4Trade. The Excel 1.5metre rail is compatible with Makita and Festool, but their own Excel saw seems to be a clone of the Lidl Parkside, so the 2x700mm rails bundled with the Excel saw, or available as accessories have all the same issues that the Parkside saw and rails have.
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Used/featured in this video:-

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Other useful gear…

[whomadethatsaltysoup]

Thank you Peter for that, informative as ever, tutorial. Having watched your previous series on the 'plunge saw wars', I kept my eyes peeled for the Evolution solution. I already owned the Makita plunge saw, which I bought as a package with two guide rails, the bag and two clamps for less than £400.
Initially, I was tempted by the 3m rail as the Makita rails don't seem to connect all that well. And whilst this has not really had any impact on the accuracy of the cuts - can't blame the rails for everything - there is a distinct clicking as the saw travels from one rail to the other. On top of this, they tend to gradually drift apart if you have to perform repeated cuts and are constantly moving the tracks. I really think there should have been an option for two joining strips, as there is on the Evolution, making alignment more reliable, and the connection more secure.
When the Evolution deal you mention came up on a special for £59, I just went ahead and bought them. I then did what your fellow YouTuber at The Strawbyte Workshop suggested, and cut one of the Makita rails into two lengths 800mm/600mm making them easier to use on kitchen worktops and in smaller spaces, where the 1400 was just a tad too long.

[gjwestonable]

Great video Peter. You just saved me a small fortune. I just ordered the Evolution Rails with the plunge saw.

[scalewarmachines]

Great video as ever Peter. Never had any problems with tipping on my Evolution track saw and rails. The set was great value for money. Really pleased with the saw itself and the set too.

[jayrenovations]

Peter, great vid as per usual. Followed your advice and got myself the Evolution 2800 set for my Titan saw. Couldn’t be happier, I can now rip full length 8 x 4 sheets accurately with ease. Many thanks for your help. Keep the vids coming!

[BKWarren]

I modified a Makita guide rail slightly to fit my Parkside. I cut off the anti-tipping lip with an aluminium cutting blade so the Parkside would fit in the channels. But then found the splinter guard ended shy of the blade, so replaced it with a 2mm x 25mm rubber strip and trimmed to size. Now I have a Makita guide rail that can use all the aftermarket jigs on my Parkside.

[ProfessorOzone]

I'm in the US and I purchased two of the Makita 55 inch (1397mm) rails for a new Milwaukee track saw because the Milwaukee tracks had bad reviews and the Makita rails were less expensive and supposed to be compatible. As I used them it became apparent as I used them connected that there was a bow in the middle across the center section of about 1/16" (1.5875mm). It was difficult to finally find the problem, but when I put a straight edge across the two rails, it was clear that the rails were not straight and it was enough to affect the product. I called Makita and the employee stated that i was difficult to make them straight and that I should return them to where I bought them (online) and then buy them locally where I could check them out. This did not instill me with confidence and of course, they are not sold at the stores he recommended and in fact, are not really available locally at all. Guess I'll try Milwaukee and live with the higher price and the rubber strips coming off, as that was the primary complaint.

[highgatehandyman]

I own the titan and now I own the festool .. yeah man .. what a difference. I'm using the evolution rail. It's great so far. Really happy.

[catfishsalesco]

Thanks for the tip on excel rails, I don’t need any more rail sections, but their joining bars are very good value at 10£ posted for 2 sets.. Makita ones are more than that for 1..

[raysmith]

You are the Tracksaw King, I love my Titan I am making a replacement roof cover for my friend’s pond equipment enclosure and needed to cut the fall for the 75x50 timber bearers. I set my table saw up only to find I couldn’t set out my angles so got my track saw out and it cut both bearers perfectly. Love the saw and the tracks think I might now need to replace the splinter guard as is was 50mm cut and there was lots of black bits in the sawdust and there was no burn out. Thanks for your advice on getting the Titan. Keep up the great work.

[geoffreycoan]

As I have a number of other Dewalt tools I bought the Dewalt track saw and rail and have been very happy with it. I realise its not the ‘standard’ rail; would have liked to have seen it covered in a bit more detail

[colinbateman]

I’ve enjoyed my festool but I find the spilter rubber peels off at the edges and is a pain to replace as cleaning the glue off to get good bonding for the new

[gmpster]

Great video. Really appreciate the details on the DeWalt. Maybe I can have my cake and eat it, too, by buying the DeWalt saw and using Festool rails. Something for me to ponder and research more... 👍

[allthegearuk]

Metabo have a rail that seems to be a love child between festool and mafell. It has the raised rib that the saw rides on in the middle but no t-slot on the outside. It does use the mafell joining bar though. I've heard that the metabo plunge saw doesn't snug up on the makita rail but it does on the festool and now I know why due t the difference in the width of the rib between the two. It is interesting that your festool saw also didn't snug up on the makita rail either.

[Pistol_Knight]

Another top video, Having now gone down the 'tracksaw' route when buying the Aldi kit for £29.99! fitted my first Kitchen with it this week, Impressed with it TBH, cut the worktops fine and the cutouts for the sink/hob, grip on the track is good impressive for the money! Having been looking at upgrading, Did I notice you using the Bosch rail in a previous video? I think I'm going to go for the Bosch as their Router works on the same rail and I like the way the rails 'join' (had a good look at the D&M tool show last yearish (I need a new mid range router as my Trend has died, Had it 20+ yrs) I think like you do yourself, pick a system and stick with it, it's not rocket science, Im a Makita fan but the Bosch kicks it ass on tracksaws IMO

[charlie-pu]

Has any after market company developed a replaceemnt ts55 base plate that can lock into the FSK rail?

[arinb]

What kind of blade did you have in your track saw to cut the guide rail? Also which is the most cost effective one that is compatible with a Makita saw?

[Geekolaus]

Well, as I already own a scheppach plunge saw my quest for additional rails is now over. I've made a decision against the Evolution set and for a pair of 1400 scheppach rails. I had the chance to buy two new KITY 1400 rails for 39 € each directly from Scheppach. KITY is a daughter brand of Scheppach. The glide strips are green instead of blue, but who cares. 39 € was a real hot deal, as the cheapest seller for scheppach rails here in Germany was the "Bauhaus" chain for 49 €, all others were way above the 60 € mark. When I randomly checked the original Scheppach store and saw the kity labeled rails for 39 € I made the decision in a split second, no pondering involved.
I've bought a set of bessey rail clamps to accompany the rails, but I'm still missing a rail bag - and perhaps a second rail connector for the second underlying T-track of the scheppach rails.

There's a disadvantage with those scheppach rails: the splinter guard is plain crap. The glue doesn't stick and the rubber is way too wobbly. Therefore I've ordered 5 meters of festool splinter guard as a replacement, that should do the trick.

[davidhonan]

Very happy with my Evolution rails matched to the Macallister track saw. Most of my work is on melamine coated chip board. Any ideas on the most "Grippy" cushion strips for the base. I would like to upgrade them

[davidhull]

I wish that festool hadn't changed the edge strip from rubber to harder white plastic. Whenever I pick up my rails now, I find the ends of the splinter strip sagging and threatening to unpeel themselves.

[dgw]

Evolution Power Tools ST2800-G2 Circular Saw Guide Rail / Track | Universal Fits Most Brands Makita, Bosch, Festool | 2.8m (2x 1400mm ) With Self-Aligning Connector Bars | Incl. End Stop Accessory....This is the new version of the Evolution Rails, comes with 3 glide strips . Ive just bought the new Festool TSV 60 With Scorer blade and I bought these to use with this rail as It needs a dedicated track due to the scoring facility . Ive yet to put them against my Festool equivelents but the T slots are right way up . Amazon price was £84.99 You get 2 x 1400 rails, Saw stop Jointing bars, Allen key with holder, 2 new type clamps and a carry case, all neatly packed in a sturdy box ....Im a Festool nut andf have been for yoears but I recon these rails will do the same job for a lot lower money or even as a back up rail set .