Metabo has announced a new 18V cordless plunge-cutting track saw, model KT 18 LTX 66 BL. This is a 6-1/2″ saw intended to be used with guide rails.
Metabo’s marketing materials emphasize the new saw’s one-touch depth adjustment.
Looking deeper, one of the interesting features is a “double display” that shows the cutting depth with and without a guide rail. The saw’s blade guard allows for sawing close to walls up to 14mm.
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It has an adjustable dust port for connecting vacuum hoses, and also comes with a removable dust bag.
Features & Specs
- 6-1/2″ blade size,
5/8″ bore20mm (thanks, Paul!) - Brushless motor
- 2250-5000 RPM (no-load)
- Max cutting depth 66mm (2-19/32″) at 90°
- Max cutting depth 1-11/16″ at 45°
- Max cutting depth 2-13/32″ at 90° with guide rail
- Blade brake
- Undercut function for custom-fit transitions
- Guard with viewing window
- Weighs 9.5 lbs without battery
- -1° – 46° bevel angle adjustment
The saw ships with a “precision cut wood-classic” saw blade, dust bag, blade change wrench, and metaBOX 340 tool case.
I could only find the bare tool KT 18 LTX 66 BL – there doesn’t look to be a kit version at this time – and so users will have to source their own Metabo 18V battery and charger. The saw also works with Metabo 18V-compatible “CAS” batteries.
Guide rails are also sold separately.
Street Price: $469
Discussion
I find this to be an interesting release, although I wish Metabo would go into greater detail explaining its benefits.
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There are a number of cordless track saws presently on the market – what makes this model competitively compelling?
It’s notable that this is a single-battery 18V cordless plunge-cutting track saw. Presently, Bosch also has an 18V ProFactor track saw, but with a reduced-size 5-1/2″ blade size.
Festool has a 2-battery saw where you can use a single battery for reduced performance. Dewalt has a FlexVolt 60V Max track saw. Makita has two 36V options, one with 2x 18V batteries and one with an single XGT battery.
So, it looks to me that Metabo has the industry’s only pro-grade “full-size” single-battery 18V cordless track saw.
At this time, it looks like only the bare tool version will be available in the USA. Users will need to source a battery, charger, and guide rail separately.
Metabo launched this saw in Europe around a year ago, and so while it’s only now launching in the USA, there are a couple of (non-English) reviews on YouTube and possibly elsewhere if you’re interested.
Plain grainy
I don’t see a riving knife or anti reverse protection.
Dcl
These sorts of features are not as common on European tools. There are far less half witted DIY guys and they sort of assume you know how to safely use the tool. Anyways a correctly adjusted track saw will only kick up and back. If you are holding it correctly there isn’t much concern there as the blade retracts while that happens. You’d have to be doing something wildly irresponsible to hurt yourself with one. Mafell and Bosch do use a mechanical clutch to stop the blade if it starts to bind, and I believe Festool has gone to a similar system now, although in older models do have a riving knife.
Cowtoes
That must be why dado blades are legal all over the EU?
Ray
That may all be true, but my festool track saw has a riving knife, and I believe most, if not all, European table saws have one too.
atomic
I’m not very familiar with track saws so o don’t know if they really are lower risk, but table saw kickbacks can be reduced by good technique but never eliminated just due to the nature of the cut. Using a riving knife completely eliminates one of the things that can cause a kickback and is therefore part of not being an idiot, not something to protect idiots from themselves (although naturally it helps it that case too). Not that I agree with not adding safety features because the user should know better.
Ben
Electronic kickback protection is now a think. I think the new 40v Makita track saw option has it, some you tubers were doing reviews of it.
Stacey Jones
Wouldn’t an 18v be underpowered?
Stuart
It’s hard to say; Metabo’s higher capacity batteries are quite powerful.
Rafe
No. Makita and Festool standard track saw runs on 12A, and they are fine for track sawing applications. Festool has a 15A also. A 5AH battery in a brushless skilsaw has plenty of power. If for whatever reason it felt underpowered a 6AH or 8AH would deliver as much power as you could possibly need for a track saw.
The fact that this saw is cordless and comes with a dust bag and looks to not use proprietary blades could be a good reason to buy. I often have a cut I want to make on mine where I don’t want a hook up a vac, but also don’t want dust blowing everywhere.
Matt the Hoople
So, how much voltage does one need? Is there something about a track saw that makes it need more power than a standard circular saw? Forgive me if I seem ignorant but have never owned one but would love to have one.
If all one is doing is ripping sheet goods, my brushed 20v max dewalt 6.5” saw does just fine as did my 18v nicd Makita before it. Why would a track saw be any different? Especially when going to a brushless motor with increased runtime.
Please, enlighten me.
Doresoom
I think track saws are often used for ripping hardwoods, and regular circular saws more for dimensional lumber? That’s the only halfway coherent answer I could think of for most tracksaws needing greater than 18V for a 6.5″ blade.
Plain grainy
If someone is already in the Flexvolt system, they will probably opt for a Dewalt track saw. Regardless of what they are cutting. Cutting maximum depth in solid hardwood doors or tabletops in a single pass? I think you will find your power requirement rather quickly. Perhaps in the near future we will see sheet goods with much harder to cut bonding agents. Extremely hard composite materials for added strength, and to offset the high prices of solid lumber. We don’t know what materials we will be cutting in the future. That could sway the buying decision toward a higher capacity saw.
MM
I think one thing worth mentioning in the context of power is that some of the cordless systems today are capable of significantly more power than a corded equivalent. You’re getting about 1500 watts tops out of a 110v corded tool, while cordless doesn’t have the wall socket bottleneck. I don’t know where the Flexvolt track saw stacks up (I’ve never used it), but I know the Flexvolt 7 1/4″ circular saws absolutely spank corded models in terms of power, so I could see a nice cordless track saw being similarly more capable than a corded model.
Kent Skinner
The vast majority of cordless circular saws are 18v; that’s plenty of power for most jobs.
Paul the Builder
I have one. Its plenty powerful. Metabo has very power 21700 based batteries.
Jim
I wonder if it shares the Festool / Makita track form factor? Unless there are specific benefits introduced it seems like another proprietary track type would be the worst possible outcome.
lava
no – it uses the Mafell & Bosch style track, although I suspect there is cross compatibility to the Festool Makita style. But if you buy Metabo track it will be the Mafell – Bosch profile and the nicer connectors they use.
Ron
Incorrect, it uses Festool-Makita style track, but Mafell-Bosch style track connector.
LK
They lost me @ $469 bare tool.
The very celebrated Makita bare tool, while requiring 2 batteries, is still only $350.
Ben
The only advantage this might have over the Makita is the plunge mechanism. This looks like a straight down whereas Makita is a hinged pivot.
I’ve read that the straight down is safer, but I don’t know why.
Paul the Builder
I have the Metabo plunge saw. It is single axis hinge mechanism that pivots the blade down, same as the Makita.
fred
I’m waiting on the Makita 40V XGT kit that I ordered from Acme during a New Year’s Day 10% off sale. $522 for the kit – plus $179 for an extra battery. I had planned to gift one for Christmas – but couldn’t find an applicable sale. Got the spare battery already – and hopefully the saw kit will arrive before the intended recipient’s Springtime birthday.
If I were buying for myself – it probably would have been an 18V x2 saw – not to switch to another battery platform.
LK
That’s a great deal on the new XGT track saw!
I’m already on the LXT line and I made the mistake of not jumping on a x2 track saw deal last week when the price dipped to ~$320 on Amazon.
fred
I’m afraid that in this age of COVID – we’ve come to think of 10% off as a great deal. Sad that the 15% to 25% off deals of the past – may stay a thing of the past – but who knows as sometimes the market has a funny way of correcting itself. I’m just glad not to be in the market for a new car.
Plain grainy
The big thing is most prices have jumped 30%~40% on many items. That really puts the 10% off discounts as being negligible.
Chris D
Mafell’s cordless track saw also runs on a single 18 V battery. It’s also a “full size” track saw.
I believe Mafell is part of the battery alliance, too, so the Mafell would run on the Metabo batteries.
Lumpy Idle
I’m with LK on this
Gordon
Bare tool only is pretty much a deal breaker. That adds a minimum $150 to the cost, plus whatever guide rails cost. That’s well above the Makita and Dewalt Kit prices and getting close to the Festool Kit price.
I know Metabo is part of the Cordless Alliance battery System, which I fully support. But it seems weird to me that they aren’t even compatible with Metabo HPT batteries. Also No other CAS battery brands are sold in the US so it’s not really a bonus for us.
John Banister
When Hitachi bought Metabo, the Hitachi branded tools were renamed “Metabo HPT” in the North American market. The battery compatibility probably goes back to when they were two different lines of tools from two different companies.
Jeremiah Ducate
I wonder what peoples current opinions, suggestions are regarding tracksaws. Which systems share compatible tracks?
Would a corded even be worth getting if most usage is within reach of power?
My current primary platform is m18/m12 with some ryobi.
Jeremiah Ducate
Ive got a fair idea of whats out there but curious from user perspective.
Peter
Off the top of my head Makita and Festool are compatible maybe also Bosch since I also use a Bosch router rail attachment with them.
John E
If you just want to accurately and safely break down sheet goods at home, get the Makita corded and a couple of tracks. If you are looking to expand a home shop you might look at Festool a little more closely. They have a very good “system” setup; albeit a ‘walled garden similar to Apple. Also, their resale value is better than any brand other than Mafell, which for some reason never get resold. Ask me how I know that.
James
My Mafell’s won’t leave me until I am dead.
Chris D
I went back and forth on cordless vs corded. In the end, I couldn’t convince myself to go cordless because, for me, a high quality tracksaw is a lifetime tool. I didn’t want to ever worry about having a hard time finding replacement batteries in 20-30 years. Someone that uses one more often or needs the mobility may feel differently, but that’s what drove my decision.
Stuart
Here’s my take on it, which still holds true – https://toolguyd.com/festools-corded-track-saw-obsolete-vs-cordless-2020/
I use my corded on occasion, but cordless is a bit more convenient. I still have to drag around a vacuum hose, but I use Festool’s wireless activation remote, and so automatic AC sensing isn’t very important to me anymore.
Corded is less expensive and you don’t have to worry about batteries, but cordless has an occasional convenience factor.
I recently bought a Makita XGT and plan to pass along my X2. It’s a hassle to deal with two batteries, but I’ll wait to see how the XGT compares performance-wise.
With cordless, you have to choose a system, and there’s the added expense of batteries and a charger. With corded, you could buy any brand, and that holds a certain level of freedom.
Regarding guide rails, Festool and Makita are fairly close, but there are subtle differences that I’ve read can affect certain operations. I use them interchangeably for 90° cuts. I prefer Festool’s splinter guard strip over Makita’s.
Juergen
One of the main advantages of this track saw compared to the competition is its deeper cutting depth (check where the center of the saw blade is. Very close to the bottom).
The tracks are Makita or Festool compatible. It is a very good saw,according to some reviews here in Germany.
Matt the Hoople
Does cutting depth make a big difference on a track saw where the primary use is sheet goods. It seems that 3/4” is going to be the normal max thickness one is cutting with these.
Or… am I missing something?
Just trying to learn more about these things.
Thanks.
Leo B.
Cutting stacked sheet goods, countertops, or slabs are all good use cases for a deeper depth of cut. It’s nice to have it if you need it!
fred
Maybe if your application is for cutting butcher block countertops or something like decks made from thicker planks – then you might appreciate a larger saw. Like you say – for many of us the 160mm or 165mm (6.25 to 6.5 inch) diameter blades, on many of the saws, provide more than enough cutting depth for sheet goods breakdown. I have a TS55REQ – that is a bit underpowered – but also just fine for the plywood that I’m normally cutting – so I never thought to move up to something like a TS75 (210mm – 8.25inch) saw – cutting the heavier stuff on my Unisaw or bandsaw.
Prior to buying my track saw – I was using a 4.5-inch Rockwell-Porter Cable 9314 worm-gear saw and a shop-made track for breaking down sheet goods.
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0000222WY/
John E
That depth of cut is impressive. I don’t know of another 165~mm track saw that will cut a 2×4 at 45°, although this isn’t their intended purpose.
Would have expected it to be compatible with the Mafell/Bosch rails since it shares battery compatibility with Mafell. The 18V Mafell track saw has tons of power. More so than the corded Festool.
If $469 is too much for a cordless track saw then you are definitely not in their intended audience.
Damo
It is compatible. Albeit it’s 3mm or ~1/8″ off the cutting strip. I Use the Bosch/Mafell tracks with the cutting strip registered to my corded Mafell track saw. If the cutting strip is new you could register it to the Metabo with no issues.
John E
Good to know. I’m pretty much maxed out on track saws these days at six so I don’t see the Metabo in my future.
John
5/8” arbor is quite odd considering almost all other track saws from many brands are 20mm arbors allowing blades of multiple manufacturers to be used.
John E
I actually like the 5/8″ arbor. Wish everyone used it. You can always reduce a 20mm blade to 5/8″ with a blade bushing for a dollar or two
Paul the Builder
It actually has a 20mm arbor (I have one). Metabo has it listed as 5/8″ on their website – not sure why.
Just to double check, I put a 165mm x 20mm Makita plunge saw blade on it and it fits like a glove.
Stuart
It might be possible that the USA SKU has a 5/8″ arbor instead of 20mm.
Unless you have the USA SKU, in which case I don’t know why Metabo would explicitly list it as having a 5/8″ bore.
Paul the Builder
I’m based in the USA.
I actually won the saw from a Facebook contest on Metabo’s page, so I didn’t technically buy it, but I would assume that they sent me the USA version of it. It shipped out of their USA warehouse.
I’m not sure why they would list as 5/8″ either. I sent them an email saying they had an error on their webpage.
Interestingly enough, the other Metabo 18v saw that is compatible with their tracks, but is not a plunge saw (KS 18 LTX 57) has a reversible arbor that fits both 5/8″ and 20mm saw blades. But they only list it as a 5/8″ arbor on their website, even though the Metabo blade that the saw comes with is a 20mm bore blade. The plunge saw only accepts 20mm blades, it doesn’t have the reversible arbor.
Stuart
Thank you! I updated the post.
Metabo’s email had limited information, and also said this had an “included guide rail” when it does not. It’s possible the 5/8″ arbor mention was a copy/paste error – these happen a lot in online product listings when the wrong tools are used for templates.
Strit
Milwaukee, will you please put out a track saw already. I really do not want to invest in non m18 batteries.
Ben
No kidding. I can’t believe they have held out this long.
Big Richard
There was a potential leak back in August that a track saw is on the way. Model 2831-20. Haven’t heard much since, so no idea where it stands.
AlexK
Has anyone here used or own the Metabo contractor saw that is combination battery or 110 powered? I only own a Hitachi corded grinder. Does anyone on this forum have HPT tools? I get a good feeling for this brand, but I’m stuck with red, neon green and a couple of orange batteries and chargers. Using a battery adapter means the tool won’t be balanced as designed. For some tools it might not make a difference. I do wish there was a belt battery and short cord option so the weight is on my waist, not wrist. Oh, and an all connected heated socks, pants, vest, gloves and hat. And a heated sleeping bag. Santa? Anyone?
Paul the Builder
Keep in mind that the track saw in this post is from Metabo, the German company, and not Metabo HPT, the Japanese company. They are not cross compatible and don’t share the same batteries.
Brian Phillips
Mafell makes a similar tool that uses the Metabo or Mafell 18v batteries. I own the Mafell saw and it is awesome.
dartmouth11
if you look at the knobs and molds on this saw. Its literally a Makita unit… so is the track and the vaccum…
Morten Kleven
The 66mm depth is a bit unique. You should have a look at the metabo vacuum autostart kit. I have it and this saw and it works pretty good, but it might not have an american version.