Festool Sander

[gary porter]

Just looking at the Festool 6" Random Orbit/ Orbital sander. Does anyone here have any experience with this sander or other Festool products. I'm very familiar with Fien sanders etc. but am looking to add another 6" or 8" that can be straight orbital.
Thanks
Gary

[gary porter]

Just looking at the Festool 6" Random Orbit/ Orbital sander. Does anyone here have any experience with this sander or other Festool products. I'm very familiar with Fien sanders etc. but am looking to add another 6" or 8" that can be straight orbital.
Thanks
Gary

[gary porter]

Just looking at the Festool 6" Random Orbit/ Orbital sander. Does anyone here have any experience with this sander or other Festool products. I'm very familiar with Fien sanders etc. but am looking to add another 6" or 8" that can be straight orbital.
Thanks
Gary

[WFK]

I had the chance to use the festool random orpit sander last summer,......what a treat! it's so darn quiet and smooth it was tough to give it back. If I had a complaint it was that it's a little bulky using the portable vacume system in tight places because you're dragging a cord plus a hose, but that's certainly not a reason to not buy it. I tried the power plane as well,....very nice!!
Bill

[WFK]

I had the chance to use the festool random orpit sander last summer,......what a treat! it's so darn quiet and smooth it was tough to give it back. If I had a complaint it was that it's a little bulky using the portable vacume system in tight places because you're dragging a cord plus a hose, but that's certainly not a reason to not buy it. I tried the power plane as well,....very nice!!
Bill

[WFK]

I had the chance to use the festool random orpit sander last summer,......what a treat! it's so darn quiet and smooth it was tough to give it back. If I had a complaint it was that it's a little bulky using the portable vacume system in tight places because you're dragging a cord plus a hose, but that's certainly not a reason to not buy it. I tried the power plane as well,....very nice!!
Bill

[Mrleft8]

I have a Festool hand saw. Excellent tool. I've used the sander, and ALMOST bought one last November. I didn't buy it for one reason. I needed a sander instantly, and didn't want to wait the 5 days it would take to get the Festool.

[Mrleft8]

I have a Festool hand saw. Excellent tool. I've used the sander, and ALMOST bought one last November. I didn't buy it for one reason. I needed a sander instantly, and didn't want to wait the 5 days it would take to get the Festool.

[Mrleft8]

I have a Festool hand saw. Excellent tool. I've used the sander, and ALMOST bought one last November. I didn't buy it for one reason. I needed a sander instantly, and didn't want to wait the 5 days it would take to get the Festool.

[gary porter]

Mrleft8 & Bill ,, Thanks for the info, looks like I'll have to try one in the near future.
I like the idea of the smoothness and quiet.
Gary

[gary porter]

Mrleft8 & Bill ,, Thanks for the info, looks like I'll have to try one in the near future.
I like the idea of the smoothness and quiet.
Gary

[gary porter]

Mrleft8 & Bill ,, Thanks for the info, looks like I'll have to try one in the near future.
I like the idea of the smoothness and quiet.
Gary

[JimConlin]

The Festo and Fein sanders are, as a certain convict would say, 'a good thing'.
Let's all keep a sharp lookout for affordable prices on 'em.

[JimConlin]

The Festo and Fein sanders are, as a certain convict would say, 'a good thing'.
Let's all keep a sharp lookout for affordable prices on 'em.

[JimConlin]

The Festo and Fein sanders are, as a certain convict would say, 'a good thing'.
Let's all keep a sharp lookout for affordable prices on 'em.

[Phoenix]

Hi guys,
If you are looking at the RO 150 E I can tell you that this is an heavy duty sander that has given me over 5 years of wonderful service, yes the added hose for the vacuum is annoying but the benefits far out weigh this small annoyance, the dual mode of this sander is also great for fast material removal as it locks the random rotation and becomes more of a flat disk sander which I use to remove any high spots quickly with out the usual problem of sanding the “high spot” into a smooth bump?
And the German quality and support is as expected.
The only down side to this great sander is its initial price (ouch)
Colin smile.gif

[Phoenix]

Hi guys,
If you are looking at the RO 150 E I can tell you that this is an heavy duty sander that has given me over 5 years of wonderful service, yes the added hose for the vacuum is annoying but the benefits far out weigh this small annoyance, the dual mode of this sander is also great for fast material removal as it locks the random rotation and becomes more of a flat disk sander which I use to remove any high spots quickly with out the usual problem of sanding the “high spot” into a smooth bump?
And the German quality and support is as expected.
The only down side to this great sander is its initial price (ouch)
Colin smile.gif

[Phoenix]

Hi guys,
If you are looking at the RO 150 E I can tell you that this is an heavy duty sander that has given me over 5 years of wonderful service, yes the added hose for the vacuum is annoying but the benefits far out weigh this small annoyance, the dual mode of this sander is also great for fast material removal as it locks the random rotation and becomes more of a flat disk sander which I use to remove any high spots quickly with out the usual problem of sanding the “high spot” into a smooth bump?
And the German quality and support is as expected.
The only down side to this great sander is its initial price (ouch)
Colin smile.gif

[Bob Perkins]

I just had some training on it a couple nights ago. It is a very nice sander, very powerfull. I think you could stand on it and ride it around...

I liked the rubber gasket between the pad and the motor. Keeps all of the dust out of the motor. The vacuum air pickup is very well designed.

These dual mode of the sander was very impressive. You can go Random orbit, or just orbital. Straight orbital cuts faster.

You should use it with vacuum hose, otherwise the paper loads up very fast. I can't ever see a reason to sand w/o dust collection.

My experience.
Bob

[Bob Perkins]

I just had some training on it a couple nights ago. It is a very nice sander, very powerfull. I think you could stand on it and ride it around...

I liked the rubber gasket between the pad and the motor. Keeps all of the dust out of the motor. The vacuum air pickup is very well designed.

These dual mode of the sander was very impressive. You can go Random orbit, or just orbital. Straight orbital cuts faster.

You should use it with vacuum hose, otherwise the paper loads up very fast. I can't ever see a reason to sand w/o dust collection.

My experience.
Bob

[Bob Perkins]

I just had some training on it a couple nights ago. It is a very nice sander, very powerfull. I think you could stand on it and ride it around...

I liked the rubber gasket between the pad and the motor. Keeps all of the dust out of the motor. The vacuum air pickup is very well designed.

These dual mode of the sander was very impressive. You can go Random orbit, or just orbital. Straight orbital cuts faster.

You should use it with vacuum hose, otherwise the paper loads up very fast. I can't ever see a reason to sand w/o dust collection.

My experience.
Bob

[Venchka]

Is the RO 150 suitable for boatbuilding? Is it good enough to justify the expense in a non-professional (not earning it's keep) situation? Would you need any other sanders for boatbuilding? Do you really need something like the RO 150 for boatbuilding?

[Venchka]

Is the RO 150 suitable for boatbuilding? Is it good enough to justify the expense in a non-professional (not earning it's keep) situation? Would you need any other sanders for boatbuilding? Do you really need something like the RO 150 for boatbuilding?

[Venchka]

Is the RO 150 suitable for boatbuilding? Is it good enough to justify the expense in a non-professional (not earning it's keep) situation? Would you need any other sanders for boatbuilding? Do you really need something like the RO 150 for boatbuilding?

[Ian McColgin]

Festool and Fein are both awesome tools and it's a close call as to whether one is better. My friends in the cabinet and countertop business (who use lots of Corien) give a slight edge to the Festool in dust collection. The guy who demonstrates them wears a black suit.

My favorite Cape Cod boat yard uses Feins. They stand up to all day hard duty outdoors. Makes the environmental issues of bottom sanding so much easier.

They are both excellent. Being a large boat type, I'd give the current edge to the 8" Fein, which has no Festool equivalent yet, I understand.

There's a Fein guy at the MBBS each year.

[Ian McColgin]

Festool and Fein are both awesome tools and it's a close call as to whether one is better. My friends in the cabinet and countertop business (who use lots of Corien) give a slight edge to the Festool in dust collection. The guy who demonstrates them wears a black suit.

My favorite Cape Cod boat yard uses Feins. They stand up to all day hard duty outdoors. Makes the environmental issues of bottom sanding so much easier.

They are both excellent. Being a large boat type, I'd give the current edge to the 8" Fein, which has no Festool equivalent yet, I understand.

There's a Fein guy at the MBBS each year.

[Ian McColgin]

Festool and Fein are both awesome tools and it's a close call as to whether one is better. My friends in the cabinet and countertop business (who use lots of Corien) give a slight edge to the Festool in dust collection. The guy who demonstrates them wears a black suit.

My favorite Cape Cod boat yard uses Feins. They stand up to all day hard duty outdoors. Makes the environmental issues of bottom sanding so much easier.

They are both excellent. Being a large boat type, I'd give the current edge to the 8" Fein, which has no Festool equivalent yet, I understand.

There's a Fein guy at the MBBS each year.

[Paul H]

While I would certainly have liked to go with top of the line tools when I started building my boat, I would have spent more money on tools then on the raw materials for the boat! So far, I've been using a Ryobi 5" r/o, and a 7/9" DeWalt sander/polisher fit with an 8" 3M pad. Both those tools, and a goodly supply of abrisives were had for less than 1/2 what the festool cost. I can hook the Ryobi up to my shop vac for dustless sanding, or roll the hull out in the driveway and have at it with the DeWalt.

I find that both tools have their place. The 5" r/o would give me fits if I tried to sand large areas due to the time requireed. The 8" discs are simply too big to get into tight spots.

Originally posted by Venchka:
Is the RO 150 suitable for boatbuilding? Is it good enough to justify the expense in a non-professional (not earning it's keep) situation? Would you need any other sanders for boatbuilding? Do you really need something like the RO 150 for boatbuilding?

[Paul H]

While I would certainly have liked to go with top of the line tools when I started building my boat, I would have spent more money on tools then on the raw materials for the boat! So far, I've been using a Ryobi 5" r/o, and a 7/9" DeWalt sander/polisher fit with an 8" 3M pad. Both those tools, and a goodly supply of abrisives were had for less than 1/2 what the festool cost. I can hook the Ryobi up to my shop vac for dustless sanding, or roll the hull out in the driveway and have at it with the DeWalt.

I find that both tools have their place. The 5" r/o would give me fits if I tried to sand large areas due to the time requireed. The 8" discs are simply too big to get into tight spots.

Originally posted by Venchka:
Is the RO 150 suitable for boatbuilding? Is it good enough to justify the expense in a non-professional (not earning it's keep) situation? Would you need any other sanders for boatbuilding? Do you really need something like the RO 150 for boatbuilding?

[Paul H]

While I would certainly have liked to go with top of the line tools when I started building my boat, I would have spent more money on tools then on the raw materials for the boat! So far, I've been using a Ryobi 5" r/o, and a 7/9" DeWalt sander/polisher fit with an 8" 3M pad. Both those tools, and a goodly supply of abrisives were had for less than 1/2 what the festool cost. I can hook the Ryobi up to my shop vac for dustless sanding, or roll the hull out in the driveway and have at it with the DeWalt.

I find that both tools have their place. The 5" r/o would give me fits if I tried to sand large areas due to the time requireed. The 8" discs are simply too big to get into tight spots.

Originally posted by Venchka:
Is the RO 150 suitable for boatbuilding? Is it good enough to justify the expense in a non-professional (not earning it's keep) situation? Would you need any other sanders for boatbuilding? Do you really need something like the RO 150 for boatbuilding?

[fair&fair]

I have the Festool rotex sander and it is by far the best orbital sander out there. Having used all the major brands as a professional boatbuilder, the festool is far and away the best, not only in function, but ergonomically as well. The quality of the whole range of festool products is just amazing. I also have the Jigsaw, the vacum and the cordless drill. All products are incredible tools that do their jobs flawlessly. While I really love the cordless drill, this is the one area where some of the other brands can compete...most notably the panasonic cordless.

[fair&fair]

I have the Festool rotex sander and it is by far the best orbital sander out there. Having used all the major brands as a professional boatbuilder, the festool is far and away the best, not only in function, but ergonomically as well. The quality of the whole range of festool products is just amazing. I also have the Jigsaw, the vacum and the cordless drill. All products are incredible tools that do their jobs flawlessly. While I really love the cordless drill, this is the one area where some of the other brands can compete...most notably the panasonic cordless.

[fair&fair]

I have the Festool rotex sander and it is by far the best orbital sander out there. Having used all the major brands as a professional boatbuilder, the festool is far and away the best, not only in function, but ergonomically as well. The quality of the whole range of festool products is just amazing. I also have the Jigsaw, the vacum and the cordless drill. All products are incredible tools that do their jobs flawlessly. While I really love the cordless drill, this is the one area where some of the other brands can compete...most notably the panasonic cordless.