Advice on new sander

[Spartawood]

[eek]I have been an amature woodworker for over 30 years. With my tax refund I bought some new Festools and sold old ones on eBay. One of the new tools I bought was the ETS 125 EQ. I love the sander since it replaced my old Makita. I restore old furniture and have build bookcases, tables, wall units etc. I was thinking of buying the RO125 FEQ Rotex to compliment the ETS125 EQ.

The question is....it is worth it or should I get something else.

Please remember, I am an amature. Thanks in advance.

Frank

 

[ear3]

The more the merrier is what I say.  But then you knew that already, asking whether you should buy another Festool on the Festool forum.  ;D

The Rotex has incredible power, and will certainly come in handy for any stripping operations you might have.  You can also redo floorboards with it.  At the same time, it can also function as a finish sander -- though you mostly have this covered with the ETS 125.

The only question is size.  If you want to combine resources on abrasives, then the RO125 makes sense.  I recently decided to get the ETS150/3 rather than the ETS125 for that very reason.  I have the 90 and 150, so I can't speak about the 125, but I will tell you that the 150 makes really quick work of most sanding projects.  I know that some people actually prefer the balance of the 150 to the 125.  Or you could go small and get the RO90, thereby adding detail sanding capabilities with the delta pad.  The RO90 is probably my most used sander -- outfitted with the interface pad, it can handle curved objects and depressions pretty handily.

I think it's always better to have a variety of tool sizes at your disposal, all things being equal.

[eek]I have been an amature woodworker for over 30 years. With my tax refund I bought some new Festools and sold old ones on eBay. One of the new tools I bought was the ETS 125 EQ. I love the sander since it replaced my old Makita. I restore old furniture and have build bookcases, tables, wall units etc. I was thinking of buying the RO125 FEQ Rotex to compliment the ETS125 EQ.

The question is....it is worth it or should I get something else.

Please remember, I am an amature. Thanks in advance.

Frank

 

[TheTrooper]

The RO150  is pretty awesome so far. I also have the RO90 and back everything up that Edward A Reno III says about it.  I originally bought the 90 to do stair treads with and found it slow because of the pad size. I really really really wanted to return it but I feel weird inside returning things.  But after unexpected task on job sites it's my goto sander. It stays in my truck. I use it to sand drywall patches, railings, detail edges, rounded things like the tops of newel posts, Polish stuff. Don't know what I did without it.
The next sander I purchase is the ETS 150/3

 

[Brent Taylor]

I have the RO 125, the ETS 125 and two Makita 5" sander. I also have a  RTS 400 and a RO 90. I use them professionally,  I would stick with the 5" sanders, unless you are doing larger pieces it should serve you well. The 400 and the 90 are both great sanders for detail work, especially the 90. The main reason I use the 125's is that I'm older and have arthritis in my hands, I've found that the bigger sanders harder to use.  Good Luck   

 

[jacko9]

I have the ETS 125, the RO90, the LS130 and the ETS150/3.  I would have to say that the 150/3 is the most useful for me and I do the same kind of work you do.

Jack

 

[Ed Bray]

I too am an amateur woodworker and whilst I have purchased three Festool Sanders (RO90, RO125 & DTS400) I was quite surprised at the cost of outfitting all of them with a good selection of sanding media. In particular the RO90 needs 2 sets of media one for each configuration, so four sets of media for three sanders. This has to be taken into account.

Unless you are specifically wanting to combine your sanding media, I would probably go with an sander that increases your options so would suggest probably the RO90 or RO150 with the RO90 being the most versatile.

 

[Tayler_mann]

http://thedovetailjoint.squarespace.com/storage/Festool%20Sanders%20Manual%20R1.2%20reduced.pdf

Read that document by jerry works. It will help you pick the best sander and the best abrasives for what you want. It also explains why dust collection is a must if you don't use it now.

The rotex 150 was the best purchase I have ever made except the domino.

That is just my opinion.

 

[Stevec717]

Great article- best review I have seen of the Festool Sander line up.

Thanks!

 

[Staniam]

I have the RO 125 and it is simply incredible. If you have the ETS 125 it makes sense to stay in the 5" range but many will suggest the 150. I've never used the 150 but I'm sure it's as advertised.

The 125 has served me well and turned sanding into an enjoyable part of the project.

 

[avrs22]

I call my RO 125 "the beast"
Great sander for stripping, flattening surfaces or fast material removal in rotex mode.
As a random orbital sander.....ehhh

 

[Shane Holland]

Frank,

If you're on the fence, remember that Festool offers a 30-day money back guarantee on its tools. So, you can always get it and try it out risk-free to see if it meets your needs and expectations.

If you get the Rotex 125, I would suggest that you hang on to it with one hand near the dust port. It allows better control of the sander, especially in aggressive mode.

Shane

 

[avrs22]

I agree with Shane about learning how to properly hold the beast.
It takes a bit of time to get the hang of it but after you get used to it you can use it with one hand.
One thing, if the piece your sanding is not firmly held down the ro 125 will have a tendency to jump on you so try to keep the piece your sanding firmly held down.
Its a great aggressive sander.

 

[Spartawood]

Thanks all for the great advice. I went with the 125. Just got it today and can't wait to use it. However, I have to finish staining the deck and mulching before I can play with my new toy.

 

[Staniam]

I call my RO 125 "the beast"
Great sander for stripping, flattening surfaces or fast material removal in rotex mode.
As a random orbital sander.....ehhh

I actually think it's a very good random orbit sander. Sure it's not going to be as good as an ETS but in my opinion it's above average in random orbit mode.

Just my opinion.

 

[Holmz]

The question is....it is worth it or should I get something else.

Frank - I have never been overly exited about sanders, but I cannot rave enough about the Mafell UVA 115.
It uses screens instead of paper, and the CT26 hose went right onto it.


The section from 1:00 to 1:10 I can confirm.
I sanded for rough an hour and a half and I could still feel thing with my fingers.
It still vibrates a bit, but that was more the sander working against the wood as when it is off the wood it is smooth.
I was going at a relatively low speed because I was removing varnish and was concerned about the pad clogging, and changed the pad out after about an hour.

However I running it on 230v and cut the Eu plug off and put an Aussy one on.
In the US maybe a 220v drier plug if you have 220v - or I suppose you would need a dryer plug 220v extension cord if you are using it on-site.
Or this http://timberwolftools.com/tools/protool/converter.html

My second sander is a Festool DX93 so I am pretty much covered for light work.
But an RO90 may make sense for things that are not flat.

No matter what you get the dust collection is paramount, so some vacuum should be assumed.
If you do not have a vacuum, then maybe a package deal with a Festool sander and CT-?? vacuum makes the most sense.

 

[leakyroof]

Buy a Festool Dust Extractor/Vac if you don't already own one.
It will improve any Sander you end up buying, and stretch the life of your Abrasives.
Not to mention keeping you cleaner and safer... [big grin]