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- Nov 3, 2007
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Alex said:
Huge guffaw!
Tom
Dissapointed in Domino - Resolved
- Thread starter youralive
- Start date
Huge guffaw!
Tom
- Joined
- Jan 22, 2007
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- 1,641
It's not supposed to happen, but from your description, my first thought is that you accidentally received a used or demo machine. Someone at your dealer could have grabbed a demo machine that was shiny enough to accidentally think it was new inventory. The easiest way to determine if it is an older Domino is to see if it has "Stop Pins" instead of "Paddles". When the fence was redesigned for the paddles, one of the changes was to use a coarser grind on the clamping surfaces. The original surfaces were ground finely, and the low friction of the polished surfaces is what permitted the fence to sometimes slip.
Oh, by the way, if you thought the bit was dull, it is common for first time users switching from a biscuit joiner to a Domino to plunge too rapidly. You need to plunge a little slower than what you may have been accustomed to with your biscuit joiner. An unfortunate side effect of this transition from biscuit joiner to Domino is that many new users have broken their 5mm bit in the first couple of "test" plunges without ever realizing it. Broken bits can happen to anyone, but the majority of the times when it gets mentioned on the forum, it is from new users that break the bit shortly after opening their new tool.
Oh, by the way, if you thought the bit was dull, it is common for first time users switching from a biscuit joiner to a Domino to plunge too rapidly. You need to plunge a little slower than what you may have been accustomed to with your biscuit joiner. An unfortunate side effect of this transition from biscuit joiner to Domino is that many new users have broken their 5mm bit in the first couple of "test" plunges without ever realizing it. Broken bits can happen to anyone, but the majority of the times when it gets mentioned on the forum, it is from new users that break the bit shortly after opening their new tool.
Just a follow up on my dissatisfaction w/ my Domino. I received a new 5mm bit on Tuesday ( in incredibly bombproof packaging), and used the machine quite a bit today. The new bit made all the difference, exceptionally clean mortises and smooth to operate. I tightened up the depth lever and had no more wandering depth issues either. Thanks to Festool and Shane Holland for getting back to me so quickly and taking care of this. Honestly, I find their service and warranty to be a substantial part of the value I see in Festools. Thanks to all who replied.
ShawnRussell
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- Sep 2, 2011
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Shane Holland said:
This is why I love the green and the people here... Doubtful I will ever see this level of service with any other tool company... and the distributors all have the same level of service... good luck finding that same service or product knowledge at a store..
Just had to post.. Every time I login I always see some post that constantly reassures me that I made the right choice in tools. You can whatever you want for a tool, but you can never pay enough for good service.
Glad to hear it is now working as designed. Enjoy your new tool, and I hope you find it just as wonderful as I do. Truly my favourite shop tool! [smile]
To MODS/ADMIN: At the risk that the title may set some off from getting the Domino without reading thru the entire thread, maybe the title should be amended/changed with a suffix "Resolved"?
To MODS/ADMIN: At the risk that the title may set some off from getting the Domino without reading thru the entire thread, maybe the title should be amended/changed with a suffix "Resolved"?
- Joined
- Jan 22, 2007
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- 8,426
Kevin D. said:
Good suggestion. Done.
I have had pretty much the same problem with my domino, I took to dealer on wednesday and he said the turn around would be three days. Friday I went to get some paper and the machine was still sitting there. Not happy I kindly asked him to get it going I needed it. I hope it is back or a replacement in hand by mid week. I love the design and idea.... just need to get one working properly. I hope they come thru for me.
John
John
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- Jan 22, 2007
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SRSemenza said:
Email already sent. [wink] At midnight on a Saturday. Will your other power tool manufacturers do that?
jmbfestool
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- Jan 9, 2009
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- 6,646
Shane Holland said:
Ours dont [sad]
barnowl
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- Feb 14, 2008
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- 252
youralive said:
Great to hear.
One suggestion when using it.
Hold the knob/fence tightly against the work surface, and just use the fingertips of the other hand placed at the rear of the machine where the cord is, and gently push the tool into the work.
It assists in cutting, and chip removal.
I actually go into and out of the mortise a second time to insure total chip removal.
FWIW
I think you're doing the right thing sending it back--for a replacement, if you want to try again. I had to send mine back, because the side stops were not registering accurately. The problem turned out to be that the cam that controls the side-to-side oscillation of the cutter was out of adjustment. My replacement unit works fine. Now as for your problems: The lever that locks the height adjustment should be adequate to maintain the height, because the pressure should be on the adjustable plate--the lever has but to hold against the weight of the tool. If the adjustment is slipping, there's a problem. I would not sand anything, but I would clean the post real well, to make there was no oil of some kind on it. The mounting rods, on the other hand need to be absolutely free of dust or dirt, and very lightly lubricated. I think a wax is better than oil or grease for this, so I use a product called Waxlit. Butcher wax would probably work too. With this little bit of TLC, my Domino slides on the rods smoothly. The dull cutter is a problem--you need a new one. Since you're in the kitchen business, I think it's worth some effort to resolve. The Domino works in many place where we would normally use pocket screws. It's not as fast or easy, but it's not bad, and those pocket holes are sometimes a little tough to justify to customers.
ShawnRussell
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youralive said:
I hope all the new folks who ask about sanders, saws... are reading this.. If you ever wonder if the price is too high... take that quote into consideration and know that this is certainly not the first nor the last time you will hear it!
i did get my domino back. i looked at it with my supplier in his shop and he ran the domino. i can say the domino's were not a loose but did not need to even think about tapping them in with a hammer as what was posted earlier. it was in the festool shop for the one day turnaround time and no i do not get emails from others with there tool repair. I love the design of the tool. i wish i was tapping my domino's in with a hammer like many have posted. maybe it is the hard maple i am using and that we used at the suppliers shop. i did use a very slow feed speed know that it was hard wood.
i busy for the next few days but early next week i will break the tool out and test it in many ways to see it is any better. maybe i need a different bag of domino's or new cutter head. i will share my results soon.
john
i busy for the next few days but early next week i will break the tool out and test it in many ways to see it is any better. maybe i need a different bag of domino's or new cutter head. i will share my results soon.
john
- Joined
- Jun 24, 2007
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- 10,356
jvang said:
So the Dominos slip into the mortises easily? The tolerance is very close on them. It doesn't take much change in humidity to go from sliding in easily to being nearly impossible to push in. Has it been dry where you are?
Seth
I've seen the opposite problem.
We used dominos in a class that I attended and we had to hammer some of them in so hard it split the wood.
We found out that once the bag is open the dominos start absorbing humidity and expand. We switched to a fresh bag of the dominos and the problems went away.
I think it has been suggested already to stick them in a microwave for a while to get the humidity out of them.
We used dominos in a class that I attended and we had to hammer some of them in so hard it split the wood.
We found out that once the bag is open the dominos start absorbing humidity and expand. We switched to a fresh bag of the dominos and the problems went away.
I think it has been suggested already to stick them in a microwave for a while to get the humidity out of them.
jvang said:
Hard maple shouldn't be the issue. Maple is my favorite wood and I've used many domino in this wood. You mention slow speed, but that is what influences the tolerance the most in my experience. The other is technique - holding the domino steady as you plunge. Good luck, it is really a great product.
when i cut for domino in the actual size it is the norm for me to maybe tap domino in. when i use the next cut for slip for edge gluing is when i can put the domino very easy and about 40% of time they can fall right out plus after glue up the face of the two pieces are not in line. so you know i even clamped the head with two c clamps and cut the slot so i could see if it was the way i was doing.... the results were the same as without the clamp. plus keep in mind the rep from the supplies did the check before he sent in and after it came back.
it has been dry here all winter and i have been inside here in east central illinois. i also keep the dominos in the plastic bag so they would not dry out or absorb moisture. the rep and i used both dominos the ones i used and the ones he has at his shop with the same results.
about the only two things i have not done is purchase a new bag of dominos and have not tried another 5 mm bit. plus keep in mind we had the same results with the 8 mm bit.
if anyone has another suggestion to try i am more than willing. i truly believe it is a wonderful system. the domino is the fifth tool i have purchased since september.
thanks
john
it has been dry here all winter and i have been inside here in east central illinois. i also keep the dominos in the plastic bag so they would not dry out or absorb moisture. the rep and i used both dominos the ones i used and the ones he has at his shop with the same results.
about the only two things i have not done is purchase a new bag of dominos and have not tried another 5 mm bit. plus keep in mind we had the same results with the 8 mm bit.
if anyone has another suggestion to try i am more than willing. i truly believe it is a wonderful system. the domino is the fifth tool i have purchased since september.
thanks
john
