Roberts Dual Air Glider. Photo: Ken Ballin.

If you got a chance to wander over to the QEP/Roberts booth, you may have noticed their new Roberts Dual Air Glider. A popular Robert's tool rejoins the product line with a couple of tweaks. They've added a locking hose connection, so say goodbye to loose hoses and inconvenient disconnects during the transport process. They've also modified the ports to accept the hose connection at an angle allowing more surface area of the paddles under the item being moved. With 1.75 horsepower and an 800 lb. weight capacity, moving appliances has never been easier and if you're a fan of the Roberts line of tools, this is a must-have addition to the arsenal. 

Rubi TK Tile Cutter. Photo: Ken Ballin.

At Surfaces this year, Rubi had the prototype of this cutter in their booth. It caught my attention then, so I was super stoked to see it in all its glory at Coverings. The new TK tile cutter is definitely one of the more robust cutters from Rubi. The main feature of this cutter is the offset guide, which differs from most other cutters I've seen and allows for perfect visibility of the cutting wheel. Speaking of the cutting wheel, the TK features their secure lock system which keeps the wheel locked in place. The table face, which is fairly solid from the start, is also foldable, allowing the cutter to take up a smaller footprint in storage and transport. The TK will cut tiles from 1/8" to 13/16" thick and is available in 33", 40", 51", and 63" options. Definitely a must-have for Rubi fans. 

Battipav Superlunga 3300 bridge saw. Photo: Ken Ballin.

Russo Trading Company (RTC) has gone big — and I mean big — with Battipav. Battipav has a wide range of products from diamond tools to tile cutters to thin panel tools and more. This year they showed up in a big way with their bridge saws. I don't think the last statement properly expresses just how big I'm talking about. The collection starts out on the small end with the VIP 260 and a 24" cut capacity. It then works its way up through the Class Plus, a few different sizes in the Supreme collection, and moves on to, possibly the largest wet saw I've seen available for job site use, the Superlunga 3300.  

Weighing in at just under 400 lbs., this monster definitely needs a few sets of hands to transport but its capabilities are truly unmatched by anything else I saw on the show floor. Specifically designed for thin panel installation/fabrication, this saw carries a cut capacity of 129.9" and comes equipped with a set of wheels, a fence, laser and four extension side benches, which have the ability to be connected to both sides of the saw or each other for more support on one side if needed.  

Versatility and integration seem to be a common theme with Battipav, as they put a lot of effort into making sure their products work well together. The Superlunga has a very nice set of clamps that not only work in the saw table itself but also the extension side benches as well as the mini multi bench, which can even take the place of the benches for making an already large working area even bigger. While the sight of this monster saw was impressive to say the least, what may be even more impressive is that by making this move with Battipav, RTC is bringing slab fabricators to the tile world, opening communication that has not previously been experienced in the industry. 

MLT wedge system. Photo: Ken Ballin.

I always enjoy keeping my eyes peeled for that little gem that we might not have expected to see or might not be as prominently featured as some of the other items or vendors and that's exactly what the one and only Mick Volponi brought to the show for us to see. Those who might not know Mick, he's the founder of MLT, a high-end lippage tuning system, and a master tile craftsman to say the least. He introduced his own version of a wedge system. 

Why do we need another wedge system you ask? Because the clips are super easy to remove but still have the incredible MLT strength that we're all used to, and the wedges are not only extremely durable but can also be flipped over to offer some scratch resistance when installing softer materials. I can't wait for these to be available for everyone to try.  

Coverings 2025 was a fantastic show, and I'm so thankful to have been able to attend once more. If you haven't made the trip to a Coverings show yet, I highly recommend it. There's so much to see with so many “great” networking opportunities, and so many “great” people from all around the industry. The trade show season may be coming to an end, but here's hoping I see you next year in Vegas for Coverings 2026. Have a “great” summer.