OK, here's my impression of the planex after using it on a high end level 5 smooth finish job.

On the walls- Stock pad, using Brilliant 150 paper.  Vac at max along with the ac interval at max.  Motor speed was at 2 1/2- 3.  Suctioning number 3-4 and inside pad extraction.  Flew through the walls and made them slicky smooth.  Really.  Four rooms in 30 mins. 

Ceilings was a completely different story.  The wall configuration made some deep swirls and was somewhat hard to control.  So, I switched it up to this:  Used the soft pad backer with the sponge insert.  Used 180 Brilliant and left the vaccum as is.  The settings on the planex was motor 2, suctioning was 4, and inside pad extraction.  Still left some swirl marks, but was taken care of in the final touch up. 

Really worked the shoulders though.  Almost like running a bazooka for the day.  But again, flew through the ceilings, approx. 1250 sq ft in 30 mins.  Just things to watch for is when bringing the planex away from the work, make sure you still have the head on the work.  If you bring it off too soon, you'll just be flouring the room with the uncollected dust.  Noise wasn't bad at all.  Also, you have to time it where the auto clean function fires off, don't be sanding.  The suctioning stops and the head slightly lifts off, putting a cant on the pad and digging in.  As I use it more, I'll fine tune it to where I can start saving my shoulders.

this is quite exciting, as my wife and I want to remove all the popcorn off of our ceilings. There is a lot! and I've been dreading doing the water/drywall knife method that will take me all summer.

I already have a CT26, so that's 1/2 the battle. Next to convince my dear wife that this is the only solution bwahahahahahaha

Has anyone tried it? I'm not sure. But, that's not it's intended purpose. So I would probably recommend against using it for that.

Here's a technique to save your shoulders when sanding ceilings.  Instead of having the whole planex parallel to your body, try having it perpendicular to your chest.  The Planex head would be over your head, but I tell you, my shoulders could take that much more than sanding across my chest.  Sure your head is going to be on full tilt, but I could hold it all day and not tire out.  Course, when you get into corners and edges, you'll have to do the best you can, but man that saved my shoulders a ton!

Hey Budu,

I bought a 27mm connector hose from Bob Marino...its a 27mm AS hose (about 1.5 ft long) with a 27mm connector on each end.  Works great.

Are you guys using Brilliant 150 for final sandings? I exclusively use Brilliant 220 with my RO150. Thanks Eric

 Hey Eric,

I use 150 to 180 for my rough sand and 220 for my final sand on drywall. It will give you a smooth finish.

Awsome tool! Enjoy

Johncarlo

I just did the math. 51 sheets of drywall. How many 150s and 220s would i go through? Festool Products takes 29 hours to ship stuff to me and I dont want any down time. Thanks Eric

I am wondering how does one know when to stop sanding? my purpose will be to remove the popcorn from the ceiling of our home, and if that works I will add it to the services that I provide, (crown, baseboard etc)
would it be easy to sand through the drywall paper? and how do you know that you've sanded enough, so that you don't have to get up on a ladder with a light to examine every square foot to see if all the popcorn etc is gone?
We have heard from friends that they are getting estimates anywhere from 4 to 7k to have a crew come in to remove the popcorn ceilings. This involves the water/scraper method and it's associated mess.
How big is that sanding pad? it looks like it's about 9" or so?
How do you avoid damaging adjascent walls/crown when you remove the guard? I wouldn't want to have to go back and touch up paint due to damage from the sander.
I've looked at the utube videos, they seem nice, but I would like to see a video by someone that is an end user, sort of "real life" conditions.

Thanks!

So does the support strap harness come with the Planex?

Adding another $150 for the Planex hose and CT36 AC, then the extras like the caddy that holds the planex $40 dollar pad etc. Whew. Why don't they just do a complete package Planex/CT36AC and all the extra accessories ?

I own the Planex and CT AutoClean and can not imagine living without either. The Planex has allowed me to take on larger drywall projects that I had been subbing out, mostly because I didn't want to do the sanding. Now I can wipe out a room in no time. After just a few jobs the tool has paid for itself and I can actually way away when finished without looking like a ghost.

Now for the question. I purchased the AutoClean to replace my older CTmini and I am pretty happy I did. The only problem I am having is switching from sanding drywall using the liner bag to using my other tools and using the self cleaning bag. When you open the top of the AutoClean the entire undercarriage is completely caked with drywall dust. I have tried many different ways to clean the inside of the vacuum but truth be told it is very difficult and time consuming. the last couple of times I just took the whole thing outside to an open area and used my compressor. I am hoping someone has a better way to clean the inside of the vacuum so that you can switch from the liner bag to the self-cleaning bag quickly.

Thanks,

Scott

Could you just ignore it, put the other bag in, and go?


Tom

I don't see any reason you couldn't reach that ceiling. I would certainly want the harness though.


Tom

I guess it depends on how tall you are but it reached mine fine and I'm slightly under 6'.


Tom

That sure sounds like a job that would be better for Cristal, or atleast a paper that is heavier then Brilliant, as many of those popcorn ceilings have some form of paint on them.

Since I also sand painted walls that are to be skim coated.  Do you have any idea when the Cristal will come to North America?  As I use the Planex for general contracting, not just drywall, I find it very limited without the Cristal paper. (I didn't find out the Cristal was available until after the expiry of the 30 day period, otherwise I would have returned it).

I'm actually trying to decide if I should sell the Planex as I find it's use too limiting without a proper supply of paper.