CTL26 sooooo disappointing

[AlexThePalex]

Is this damage due to abuse by customers or is it, as appears to be suggested by this thread, a major design and manufacturing stuff up?

They simply chose the wrong kind of plastic, not up to the tasks required of a mobile vac. If you look at the pictures it's always the black plastic that's broken while the grey is just fine.

 

[Scott B.]

Be careful what you wish for, it could be heavier and more expensive!  [scared]

 

[CrazyLarry]

I spoke to festool uk about a year ago. I said it simply isn't strong enough for "sticky" 110v plug tops.

I thought it was just me ... but my CTL26 is always 'sticky', thought it might be specific to certain 110 plugs so tried them all directly in two different transformers, yes they are still a little stiff but no where near as bad as in the CTL, something else to be ginger with it.

 

[Stephen B]

Be careful what you wish for, it could be heavier and more expensive!  [scared]

[size=14pt]
Hi Scot,
From past posts yours appear to be often traveling up and down scaffolding. How are they travelling?

 

[Scott B.]

Be careful what you wish for, it could be heavier and more expensive!  [scared]

[size=14pt]
Hi Scot,
From past posts yours appear to be often traveling up and down scaffolding. How are they travelling?

I was thinking the same thing. On exteriors, we routinely put ours up on roofs, ladder bracket planks, staging and even strapped to ladders.

Oddly, the only hose garage we have broken was on an interior when a rack of staging walls leaning against a wall fell over onto it.

I agree that the hose garage plastic is thin, but if you have ever replaced one, it is obvious that it is not a structural vessel like the base of the unit is.

I can definitely see where constant exposure to cold would make that thin plastic brittle. I rarely leave them in rigs overnight, so I haven't probably had as much low temp exposure as some.

[attachthumb=1]

 

[Jason Kehl]

I would gladly have a little bit more weight and not have the hose garage break. Surely for the price we are already paying Festool should not have to charge more for a vac that doesn't break, after all Festool is engineered and built "for the toughest demands".

 

[NERemodeling]

Here's a result of cold weather and a bump! 

You gotta stop whipping that promaster around like it's a sports car!!

 

[jmbfestool]

Reply 24 

CTL 26

Oh dear lol don't know why I forgot about that I even replied to you lol

[embarassed]

 

[jmbfestool]

Hi, Iv been lurking for a couple of years- but this thread prompted me to join!

Add me to the list of broken hose garage! Just to echo what has already been said, the plastic is brittle and very delicate.

Photo attached of midi with broken garage. The control panel was replaced due to snapping on the 110v inlet- same as Deansocials. My mate also has a 110 midi which also has a broken control panel.

I spoke to festool uk about a year ago. I said it simply isn't strong enough for "sticky" 110v plug tops. They said they weren't aware of a wide spread problem - yeah right! They sent me the new part free as it was under warranty, but within a couple of months the new one had snapped again! I have since sold it and gone 240v, the new one is currently ok. The new t-loc midi top does seem to have more of a solid top. Time will tell!

Hi by the way!

Welcome to Fog.

Yes Dean said the 110v socket its weak and snaps of easily and what makes it worse the 110v socket is stiff.  I can't comment on that because all my tools are 240v but its good to know especially for Dean that he's not the only one who found the 110v socket poor.

 

[jmbfestool]

My mini and midi both broke. ( snapped the 110 plug off the mini and hose carriage on the midi )got new part off the web and I super carful now. Been thinking about a ctl 26.  What to do?

Another 110v socket broken well looking at it and from what Dean said and now you and Ginge seems like it's not just the Hoss carriage which is poorly made . The 110v socked doesn't seem upto the job either. 

I assume because the 110v socket is attached to the black plastic which is to brittle and isn't very thick to support a large protruding socket.

 

[jmbfestool]

I would gladly have a little bit more weight and not have the hose garage break. Surely for the price we are already paying Festool should not have to charge more for a vac that doesn't break, after all Festool is engineered and built "for the toughest demands".

So very true.

 

[jmbfestool]

Is this damage due to abuse by customers or is it, as appears to be suggested by this thread, a major design and manufacturing stuff up?

They simply chose the wrong kind of plastic, not up to the tasks required of a mobile vac. If you look at the pictures it's always the black plastic that's broken while the grey is just fine.

Very true the white plastic seems fine and I KNOW for a fact the white plastic has had just the same amount of knocks as the black plastic/dark grey and is holding up much better.

Saying that looking at the CTL26 hose carriage , it's not just about the brittle plastic, especially the front I find isn't supported enough or re-enforced enough for the span. I also think other areas could do with more plastic reinforcement

I had a look at my Mum CTL midi which is fine but that doesn't get used a lot because its my mums major clean up vacuum she uses the cordless vac for day to day..  Any way the hose carriage does feels solid at the front ALOT more solid than the CTL26

The plastic feels the same so I'm sure it's just as brittle and wouldn't hold up long with me using it I recon.

 

[jools]

My midi broke in the same place. Not abuse just a cold day and the hose tugging on it. Only a small piece but it no longer holds the hose when vacuuming floors. It's only two years old but was probably going to upgrade to the t-loc garage. Now asking myself if it's worth the bother

 

[galwaydude18@gmail.com]

Here's what my CTL mini looks like

 

[jonny round boy]

Not wanting to either boast or tempt fate, but both my hose garages are still 100% intact.

CT Mini which I've had for 8 1/2 years, and stays mainly in the van/on site, and a CTL26 (I *think* about 4 years old?) which stays in the workshop. That has a systainer permanently attached to the top for spare bags, so to be far the hose garage never really gets touched.

 

[JimB1]

My midi broke in the same place. Not abuse just a cold day and the hose tugging on it. Only a small piece but it no longer holds the hose when vacuuming floors. It's only two years old but was probably going to upgrade to the t-loc garage. Now asking myself if it's worth the bother

My Midi is over 3 years old now so out of warranty but that area the hose goes through is the spot I am always wary of, it always has seemed a brittle area. So far I have avoided any breaks but there were a couple of times that I thought it was going to. I have been thinking about how to either cut the opening wider so the unsupported area is less or reinforce it somehow, maybe epoxy and aluminum angle stock or something... It just seems like a poorly designed area just waiting to break to me...
-Jim

 

[jmbfestool]

Here's what my CTL mini looks like

Loving these 110v sockets hanging off. 

That would wind me up.  This weekend I'm going to remove my hose garage and fix a piece of plywood on top.  So at least I can use it as a small mobile work bench.  Like i do with my CT22.

This thread has been very interesting. 

 

[Deansocial]

The 110v socket is fine but the plastic that it is attached to is rubbish. I thought about having a 300mm lead permantly attached so not to stress the front of my ct22

 

[Davej]

So far my 110v midi is ok ( nearly 3 yrs old ) but I tend to hold onto the socket when pulling the plug out as the plastic flexes way too much and is a very tight fit and I am always expecting it to break at any moment . for the money at the very least the socket should have some sort of reinforcement.
Dave

 

[Deansocial]

I hold mine too but when a crack starts thats it