Best Place to Purchase

[DrD]

+1 on Uncle Bob. 
Started buying Festool a couple of years ago when living in Chicago burbs, & Bob had everything I wanted, er ..needed, whereas local B&M stores did not.  B&M stores had no one who could talk intelligently re Festool performance, Bob does.  Stuff from Bob arrived within 1 to 2 days, ALL in perfect order.  Have since retired to Mississippi & continue to order from Bob; still get it within 2 days, and still is protected beyond belief.  While I'm sure there are other good dealers, have found no reason not get green kool aid fixes from anywhere else - in the last week have received 3 separate orders from Bob.  I appreciate his service, his attention to detail, and his willingness to answer questions from a hobbyist like myself.
DrD

 

[Len R]

Another plug for Bob Marino.  I ordered from him based on recommendations in this forum, and his advice and personal service are so good I've ordered all my other Festool items from him, including track saw, mft/3, 1400 router, 150/3 sander, CT36, and many accessories.  All came double boxed, bubble wrapped to withstand shipping abuse, and nothing was damaged.  He also returns phone calls, and is very easy to work with.

Len

 

[Cort]

I cannot imagine buying Festool tools from Amazon.  With the really great board sponsors and vendors already mentioned, it's just worth the effort to support the smaller guys.  They are much more knowledgeable about the product.

 

[batcave]

Tom and Bob, Bob and Tom.

 

[jaymon5]

Bob and Tom are the folks I buy from.  It always amazes me how Bob either answers the phone or quickly calls back.  I live on the west coast and at times he has called me back, even though it was in the late evening on his side of the coast.  Sorry Bob.

I had some concerns about a newly purchased Kapex, and Bob helped with getting things sorted out.  Systainers come extremely well packaged in bubble pack. 

simply the best.

 

[Daver]

I meant to chime in on this the other day.
As these things sometimes happen, I found myself at my local green outlet earlier today.

I've bought a number of tools from and can highly recommend Tools for Working Wood in Brooklyn/NYC.
I brought in a defective rail this afternoon and it took all of two seconds for them to look at it, make their assessment, and then go ahead and swap it out at no charge to me. That's awesome.

I live in the city and look forward to visiting Tool Nut and perhaps Tool Town at some point but I like the fact that I can take an express subway train two stops from lower manhattan and be at TWW. They have a demo area up front and are definitely nuts- in a good way- about woodworking and Festool.

Bob is fantastic and I have nothing but good things to say about his operation. Peter and Sean at Tool Nut also run a great ship.
I scoured the country last fall during Prohibition and found the last TS75 in the warehouse at Hartville Tool. They were great to deal with as well.
We have an embarrassment of riches when it comes to sales and service.

Thanks to all for their commitment to making Festool products a pleasure to find and use.
Thanks again to Joel and the gang at Tools for Working Wood for helping me out (again) today.

Dave [smile]

 

[Bob Marino]

I guess it's a small world in a way. Or simply the way things are. I have had the pleasure of meeting or speaking/emailing with just about all the other dealers mentioned in this thread - Sean and Peter, Tom, Joel Moskowitz and Phil.

Funny thing was, I met Joel many, many moons ago when his store was in Chelsea, NYC. I was there to buy some Japanese chisels. I also brought along some Festool catalogs and suggested to him that he may want to start taking on the line - (talk about being a real rookie/idealistic Festool fanatic!). He looked at the catalog and said, "no, I want to concentrate on what I have" or something to that effect. At some point later, Joel, being the good businessman he is (and a damn nice guy too boot) changed his mind and carries the line.

Point is, glad people have choices and glad to be amongst those mentioned.

Bob

 

[ElCabong]

A shout out to Beaver Industrial Supply, a Festool Online retailer (got it from Festool USA website). They are great to deal with.

I ordered my TS-55REQ, CT-Midi, Domino 500, Domino systainer kit, and ETS-150/3. All of them were shipped fast and arrived undamaged and all packaged extremely well. They have been really good (for me). Another reason I ordered from them was the option of purchasing the Track saw with a different length guide rail (rather than the standard 55"). I opted to purchase a 75" and 42" so I would have room to work with 4 X 8 sheet goods. Also, you get a free Festool T-Shirt or Cap with a purchase of the track saw, Domino or Sander too!  They also have an award program (Gold Points) to apply on your next purchase - nothing really huge but when you lay down $$$$ for Festool products it adds up and a little discount takes some of the sting out of the next purchase!

 

[stphnlwlsh]

+1 for Bob

You could make a bounce house with all the left over bubble wrap from his packaging skills.

Agreed.  I got my Domino XL last week and it took me more time to unwrap it from the bubble wrap than actually read the whole instruction manual and make my first test mortise.

Bob Marino FTW

 

[icecactus]

I have ordered most of my stuff from Ryan @ shopfestool.com and Tom @ tool-home.com. Both have given really good service and been great to work with. I get stuff from Tom in 2-3 days since hes closer to me. He also does a variety sand paper packs!

 

[JSlovic]

I'm blessed to be in Atlanta with access to Highland Woodworking- I've been a customer for over 30 years and they're my first choice for anything new and shiney.
I've also bought some stuff from Bob Marino and will echo others- he's great- responsive and easy to deal with and as noted, you never have a problem with shipping damage on anything you'll get from him. 
I spoke to a guy a while back who liquidates Amazon returns on Ebay- he noted that with amazon you're at the mercy of the guy butting it in the box as to how well it's packed.  Spending the extra $3.99 for overnight service seems to be a good deal

 

[juststartingout]

burnstools.com out of MA has been very good to me since i started this journey.  Also woodcraft and amazon.

 

[jacko9]

Tom Bellemare at Tool Home has been an excellent supplier for me for many purchases.

Jack

 

[Slartibartfass]

The Tool Nut, Festoolproducts.com has worked well for me and many others
[/q]

Yup. I am one of the others....

 

[peter halle]

I missed this thread thinking that it was the thread about best place to buy around the London area.

I have NEVER been disappointed when I have purchased from Bob Marino.  I refuse to order online and always call him to place an order so that I can glean info from him.

I recently ordered a CMT blade from Tom Bellamare at Tool Home and got great service also.

One thing I would like to ask anybody who ever has a less than positive experience with a dealer - let them know before you switch over to another dealer.  In any transaction there are many steps and hiccups happen.  Many dealers are always trying to improve their customers' experiences and value their customers.  If they know about the bumps and bruises they can work on customer satisfaction both for you and also for others in the future.  In my mind that is only fair.

Peter

 

[wow]

...One thing I would like to ask anybody who ever has a less than positive experience with a dealer - let them know before you switch over to another dealer.  In any transaction there are many steps and hiccups happen.  Many dealers are always trying to improve their customers' experiences and value their customers.  If they know about the bumps and bruises they can work on customer satisfaction both for you and also for others in the future.  In my mind that is only fair.

Peter

Excellent advice Peter.

I have personally purchased from (in no particular order) Seven Corners, Acme Tools, Highland Hardware, Todd (Woodwerks Columbus), Tom Bellamare (Tool Home), Bob Marino, Phil (K119), and Sean (Tool Nut). Would not hesitate to recommend any of them to a friend. Well, except for Seven Corners - since their last day is Saturday.

 

[Wonderwino]

I've bought Festool from Tool Nut, Bob Marino, McFeely's and Festool Junkie (RIP) and had great experience with all.  Tool Nut is the only one still around that has a hands-on display which I kind of like.  I get there about once a year when I'm in NY.  I also went to Eagle Tools in L.A. with Joraft a couple of years ago and Jesse, the owner, took lots of time to show us anything we wanted to see.  In addition to Festool, he also carries a line of quality stationary tools, including Sawstop, Agazanni and General.  He also has the largest inventory of Inca parts I have ever seen!

 

[tbellemare]

I've bought Festool from Tool Nut, Bob Marino, McFeely's and Festool Junkie (RIP) and had great experience with all.  Tool Nut is the only one still around that has a hands-on display which I kind of like.  I get there about once a year when I'm in NY.  I also went to Eagle Tools in L.A. with Joraft a couple of years ago and Jesse, the owner, took lots of time to show us anything we wanted to see.  In addition to Festool, he also carries a line of quality stationary tools, including Sawstop, Agazanni and General.  He also has the largest inventory of Inca parts I have ever seen!

I beg to differ.

Not only can you try my tools, but I will bring them to you to use...

Tom

EDIT:
I also think that Sean & Peter and their crew are cool...

 

[Wonderwino]

[scared]  Tom, I meant of the ones I've previously purchased from.  [big grin]

 

[jimmylittle]

Well, I feel like an idiot.

I've been ordering Festool gear online for a year.  ToolNut, Woodcraft, Amazon, etc. 

I just realized that Tools for Working Wood is in a warehouse literally two blocks from my shop in Brooklyn.  I'm heading there this afternoon!