Decoding the Festool
Catalog
Festool, like many tool
manufacturers who service a
world market, design their
tools around the metric
system. The numbers they use
are all in millimeters which I
will shorten in this manual to
“mm.” See “Using the Metric
System” on page 36.
As that note suggests, you
don’t have to think in the
metric system to gain all the
advantages of measuring in
the metric system.
But, to decode the Festool
catalog you will need to at
least understand that one inch
is a bit over 25 mm, and one
mm is a bit less than .040.”
Festool offers four different
combinations of templates,
guide bushings and cutters for
the VS-600 to allow you to cut
perfect half-blind and through
dovetails in stock of a range of
thicknesses.
In addition they also offer two
different templates, guide
bushings and cutters to allow
you to cut equally perfect box
joints in stock of different
widths, and even a doweling
jig to allow you to joint two
pieces of wood or man-made
materials with multiple
dowels if you wish.
The first time you look at their
catalog or web site, the section
on the “VS-600 jointing
system,” as they call it, will
appear to be a bit intimidating.
Let’s decode it.
The Base Unit
- The VS-600
(item number 488-876) is the
base unit. You need one of
these no matter which/how
many templates you also buy.
The templates are all sold
separately. None come with
the base unit and the base unit
cannot be used to cut any joint
without at least one template.
The 600 refers to the maximum
width of work piece that you
can mount into the VS-600.
600mm is a bit less than 24” so
you can work on very large
drawers, boxes and cabinet
carcasses.
Half-Blind Dovetail
Templates
- There are two
half-blind dovetail templates.
They are given model
numbers beginning with the
letters SZ followed by a
number which refers to the
diameter of cutter expressed in
millimeters that template is
designed to use.
11
To Next Page
Loading...
