Gemini Revolution XT

I bought the XT for cutting glass bottles quick and easy. It was an expensive purchase for what I wanted to do with it. I have the tray kit with it. When I unpacked the saw, the inspection date was well into the future signed by Duncan. Fingers crossed, he'll show up at my door sometime next year and tell me the saw is a pile and take it back.In assembly, everything went together alright until I put the belt cover on which did not fit. When I checked it, it had already been ground down via dremmel but they didn't go far enough. So I sanded it down so that it fit. The top work surface was all scratched up which I can deal with but when I put it on, it didn't fit. The blade slot was too narrow in the back and was not long enough so that the work surface jammed into the blade and would not slide all the way in. Filed that down and extended the slot. The blade was still pinched in the back by the plastic but at this point I was about ready to chuck the thing out the window so I left it. Filled it up with water and ran a bottle through it and the blade chattered so much I could have cut it nicer with a spoon. Got in contact with the reseller and company and they thought the blade was bent. Sent me a new blade and installed that and now it cuts beautiful... just crooked. It had cut crooked before but the cut was so poor I could barely tell. The saw blade is not straight in the body so all of my cuts turn out with fantastic quality at a 5 degree angle. Contacted the reseller and company again. No response from Gemini. Reseller simply said "it's not adjustable." I requested the center keel in hopes that it would hold my blade straight only to find out that it's discontinued. So now I have a lovely $2000 chunk of plastic and metal that I can't even use for a paper weight because water goes everywhere. If I ever need to cut a 5 degree bevel in something hard though, I've got a great tool for the job (until the belt wears out and the custom sized bearings go)I've had the thing for months now and I'm still to ticked to go down and take the thing apart so I can redesign it and make it work. I'm sure I can make a relatively useful tool out of it at some point but no thanks to Gemini. Honestly, even if it worked, it's about an $800 saw at best. Quality and design is far below asking price.I was weary of buying it in the first place but it was really the tool I wanted. Sorry I did.

$1,400 a year in parts on a $1,300 saw.The concept is good but the parts are low quality leading to an average of 5 belts, 2 blades and 4 parts kits on average per year (1-2 weeks use per month -4 hours a day) I only use it to cut travertine and slate. nothing else. This is with using a separate water filtration system that flows lots of clean water thru the bearing cover.TIPS1- WATER SYSTEM dont use the water tray its sold with. Buy a pond pump and sit the saw in a regular tile saw tray. Have water drain to containers with foam pad filters such that water pumped back up is free of tile grit.2- BEARINGS: Tile muck is what blows apart the bearings. Must use black caps- fill them with gear grease. Dont use felt pads on back sides- it strains the saw motor. The bearings rarely blow out of the back side anyway.check bearings often by turning each one by hand to see if its turning freely. Replace any that stick. Some stuck bearings can be salvaged by removing from saw and using WD 40- rolling back and forth.3- BELT: keep belt tightened -not too tight but not at all loose. Loose belt will jump track if a chip of tile drops into saw. This breaks the belt. I had to extend the adjustment slot 1/4" to keep belt snug when blade wears down.4- BEARING PROTECTION: take a green scrub pad and trim to fit around the blade between saw body and cover plate. make it L shape with just a slit for the blade. prevents chips from falling in as easily. if a chip starts to fall in- turn saw off and fish the chip out. any weird sound- turn saw off and find out what it is. All weird sounds are bad.This is an art saw. If your willing to deal with the up keep- it will get the job done. I look forward to them using better quality parts.

The XT is an excellent tool, no question! I've done months of very intricate work with both large and tiny tiles. Though heavy, this tool requires careful handling. Be super careful not to bend the blade during transport. This is not an every-day type cutting tool, that can be lugged about and "thrown into the pick-up", so to speak. It is meant for delicate tile-cutting work, and the price alone should remind the user to treat it with great respect. Yes, it's a bit pricey...yes, it is delicate, and things can go wrong if it is abused. If you are an artist-type contractor, as I am, this is for you. If, on the other hand, you are a production-type tiler, this tool may not be right for you.

That's quite a machine. And it's not cheap. But I had an order for a ceramic tile mosaic for in front of someone's fireplace and this is the only way to cut floor tile without taking hundreds of hours. The finished product was breath-taking, with inside and outside curves that would have been impossible using any other method - and I've worked with tile for years - and beautiful smooth cuts. This machine is not for a beginner and, yes, you can break the blade and hurt yourself if you're in a rush and not paying attention. But I think that can be said for any machine. I gave this machine 5 stars and would have given it 6 if I could. Get one. You'll love it. I certainly do.

I bought the Revolution XT to do custom tile work. Being a tile contractor I wanted to expand my capabilities into custom tile inlays. Workes great for that. Made some cool stuff. BUT the quality of the saw is a pile of junk. Looks like I bought it at harbor freight, not just paid $1500 for the silly thing. Then the $200 blades that it uses last about a week, if that. The last blade was the final straw! I was cutting in a straight line with little pressure on the blade and it suddenly broke, tore off the "tin" shield, smacked my safety glass and put a 4" gouge in my forehead! Never using this thing again and I would stay far... far.... far away from it!!!!!!