The Festool Kapex KS 120 Silding Compound Miter Saw.

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

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).

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.

Setup

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.

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