Can’t find the Vac clamping system

[yellowtruck75]

I have had the Vac clamping system for 18+ months and love how it works.  I am in the market for a second module/clamp to add to the pump.  I can’t seem to find them anywhere.  Are the out of stock again or discontinued?

 

[Cheese]

I have had the Vac clamping system for 18+ months and love how it works.  I am in the market for a second module/clamp to add to the pump.  I can’t seem to find them anywhere.  Are the out of stock again or discontinued?

Everything has been discontinued except for the different sized vacuum cups.
https://www.toolnut.com/festool/festool-vac-sys-clamp.html

 

[yellowtruck75]

Any idea why?  It’s such a good system.  Hopefully they are upgrading it and not just eliminating it from their offering

 

[ChuckM]

Since they no longer use the Vac Clamping Sys in any of their videos, my guess is that they've decided to leave that part of product line.

 

[Cheese]

Any idea why?  It’s such a good system.  Hopefully they are upgrading it and not just eliminating it from their offering

Festool officially acknowledged the obsoletion of the Vac-Sys in the late fall of 2021. In the interim, all of the miscellaneous pieces have been gobbled up and it will only be a matter of time before the set of 3 different sized vac cups will also be MIA.

The individual vac cups are no longer available and are also no longer listed in EKAT.

[attachimg=1]

Until about 3-4 months ago the 580063 foot valve was still available, but alas...no more.

[attachimg=2]

 

[SoonerFan]

I have had the Vac clamping system for 18+ months and love how it works.  I am in the market for a second module/clamp to add to the pump.  I can’t seem to find them anywhere.  Are the out of stock again or discontinued?

Unfortunately it’s discontinued as others have noted.  When I heard it was binging discontinued I bought the second clamping unit.  I had a specific need and now that I have it, I seem to use it quite a bit.

 

[Brian Livingstone]

I bought the demo unit at my local Lee Valley after seeing it there on display for years.  I like the system a lot.  I wish I could find a SE2. 

With so much love for this product I am surprised Festool discontinued it.  I wonder if they would consider bringing it back ?

 

[DynaGlide]

The problem is the love wasn't there until it was discontinued. So many people had it on their 'nice to have someday' list and didn't actually buy it until they found out it was going away.

 

[Aux2496]

The Barth vakuuSYST 3.15 system can be gotten for about $3k.  I'm seeing the Festool VAC-SYS system being purchased on ebay for about the same amount.  Why would people do this when you can get a better system for just as much, lol.

Workbench clamping device vakuuSYST® 3.15 SET

 

[Cheese]

The Barth vakuuSYST 3.15 system can be gotten for about $3k.  I'm seeing the Festool VAC-SYS system being purchased on ebay for about the same amount.  Why would people do this when you can get a better system for just as much, lol.

Workbench clamping device vakuuSYST® 3.15 SET

I'm guessing it's portability and storage. The Barth needs to be mounted to something and really can't be "stowed away" either, it's more of a production piece of equipment.
I've taken the Festool vac pump, pedal and one vac head outside and set them up on a table. When I was done, took the 3 pieces and stored them away downstairs.

 

[Chainring]

The Barth vakuuSYST 3.15 system can be gotten for about $3k.  I'm seeing the Festool VAC-SYS system being purchased on ebay for about the same amount.  Why would people do this when you can get a better system for just as much, lol.

Workbench clamping device vakuuSYST® 3.15 SET

You're comparing an out of production and highly desirable unit to something that's currently in production. Compare the VAC SYS published retail price from Festool before it was discontinued ($1375) and the Festool was a no-brainer. Now, if you snoozed, you lose (money).

 

[4nthony]

The Barth system (sans workbench) looks similar to the vacuum clamping system made by Doscornio.

I drank the VAC-SYS kool-aid after it was discontinued, missed out on a Recon offering, then opted to go with the Doscornio Mono S. I'm happy with it though customer service is a bit hit and miss. There's no dealer network here in the US so everything goes through Germany. It is also more expensive than the VAC SYS.

When the VAC SYS was sold at retail, it was really a great deal compared to the quality alternatives out there.

 

[Aux2496]

I'm talking about people who are buying the Festool system used at these prices (within the last 2 months):

https://www.ebay.com/itm/266195634009

https://www.ebay.com/itm/275730634624

I understand the original retail of the Festool system is $1300, and at that price point, it's a very nice system.  But not so nice at $3k price points.  The Barth system has been noted to "feel better" for part quality, etc.

 

[Chainring]

I'm talking about people who are buying the Festool system used at these prices (within the last 2 months):

https://www.ebay.com/itm/266195634009

https://www.ebay.com/itm/275730634624

I understand the original retail of the Festool system is $1300, and at that price point, it's a very nice system.  But not so nice at $3k price points.  The Barth system has been noted to "feel better" for part quality, etc.

Oh, I know about those 2x (and more) for the VAC SYS. It boggles my mind, too. At the end of the day, someone has placed a value on that item and they've decided whatever crazy price is worth it. Maybe the buyer just has to have Festool. Maybe that person already has a VAC SYS and wants more or needs to replace a broken part. Who knows.

 

[MikeGE]

If anyone in Germany, or nearby, is interested, here is a VAC SYS SE1 available from a music company on eBay Kleinanzeigen for €900 or best offer.  I have no reason to doubt the listing is genuine, but it's likely the seller doesn't know what he has.
https://www.kleinanzeigen.de/s-anze...mit-vakuumpumpe-vac-sys-vp/2426775145-84-6993

I've bought and sold several shop machines and accessories on eBay Kleinanzeigen without any issues.

 

[jeh]

The Barth vakuuSYST 3.15 system can be gotten for about $3k.  I'm seeing the Festool VAC-SYS system being purchased on ebay for about the same amount.  Why would people do this when you can get a better system for just as much, lol.

Workbench clamping device vakuuSYST® 3.15 SET

You're comparing an out of production and highly desirable unit to something that's currently in production. Compare the VAC SYS published retail price from Festool before it was discontinued ($1375) and the Festool was a no-brainer. Now, if you snoozed, you lose (money).

While the base price was $1375 it was originally in the $1800 or so range. Add to that you will need some of the accessories and it with those it gets pricey. Nonetheless I bought one and all the accessories at the end after having looked at for a long time. I do think prices will subside over time.

 

[Brian Livingstone]

Us Festool Fans should demand that Festool bring back the Vac Sys.  Let’s agree to a boycott until Festool agrees to bring this back.  There is a Festool Live event tomorrow in Toronto, and I am not going, and will be letting my Festool rep know what they have to do before I ever say yes to any future events.  The fact it is 3000 kms away is of no relevance.

 

[ChuckM]

I'd join the boycott if the protest mandate also includes demands on Festool to release a new product, dubbed by me as a DF600, that combines the best features of the DF500 and DF700! [tongue]

 

[Cheese]

The problem is the love wasn't there until it was discontinued. So many people had it on their 'nice to have someday' list and didn't actually buy it until they found out it was going away.

It also had a relatively short availability time for an expensive product. It was introduced in the US in 2016 and was gone by late 2021.
As JimH2 mentioned, at first release, 2 vac heads and a pump totaled $1800, a pair of clamps to mount to a MFT added $500 and a 3-set of vac cups added another $350...it wasn't cheap. I only bought into the program after they reduced the pricing in 2019.

 

[Chainring]

While the base price was $1375 it was originally in the $1800 or so range. Add to that you will need some of the accessories and it with those it gets pricey. Nonetheless I bought one and all the accessories at the end after having looked at for a long time. I do think prices will subside over time.

Yep, very true. I didn't want to touch on the $1800 initial release price since the final retail price was $1375. Thinking about that, how often does Festool decrease a price? They must have seen almost zero movement on the VAC SYS to do it.

Glad I bought into the final shipment of pump and the two heads. I went a bit crazy with the vacuum pods though.