ETS Sanders

[Gary in Texas]

The ETS125 was the first Festool sander I purchased.  I was looking earlier today at the ETS150/3 and ETS150/5, and was kind of surprised at the price difference between the 125 model and the 150 models?  Can anyone explain the price jump from $195 up to $360 when going from a 5" to the 6" sander? 

Thanks,

Gary

 

[avrs22]

Your lucky your not in Canada because lee valley's prices are:
ETS 125 EQ Random Orbital Sander $257.00
ETS 150/5 EQ Random Orbital Sander $455.00

 

[DB10]

Your lucky your not in Canada because lee valley's prices are:
ETS 125 EQ Random Orbital Sander $257.00
ETS 150/5 EQ Random Orbital Sander $455.00

And down here you will pay $560 for the ETS 125 & $ 591 for the ETS 150. So although the ETS's are considerably more expensive, there is only a $31 difference between the 125 & 150 models.

 

[Gary in Texas]

Well, so far yes, I'm glad I'm not having to pay Canadian or Australian prices, but, still no clues on discrepancy of USA prices....

Gary

 

[peter halle]

I am not speaking for Festool here but based on experience I can tell you that Festool will not discuss marketing or pricing outside of their corporate walls.

Peter

 

[Gary in Texas]

Peter,

Understood. 

Wasn't really expecting Festool to chime in, thought some of the members here might help and speak to the differences effecting the price difference.  There has to be something significant (hopefully) besides the slight increase in the orbital motion and one inch difference in the pad OD!

 

[avrs22]

The Mirka Dero is a expensive sander but comes with both the 5" and 6" sanding pad

 

[Holzhacker]

I think if you look at both sanders the ets line and the 150/ line a fair amount of price difference would seem fairly obvious. While the ets is a great little all around sander it is nonetheless a fairly basic entry level sander. My guess is the 150/ series are meant to be more high end professional finishing machines. I have an ets125 and a /3. I wouldn't expect the ets to reach the finishing level of the /3

 

[Cheese]

I have an ets125 and a /3. I wouldn't expect the ets to reach the finishing level of the /3

Actually, theoretically speaking, the ETS 125 should produce a finer surface than the /3 because it has a sanding stroke of 2mm vs 3mm for the /3 variant.

That's the reason I bought into the Festool 125 system. The fine finish of the ETS 125 2mm stroke with the coarse wood removing properties of the RO 125. I consider it the best of all worlds. If I need something larger, I grab the RS 2.

 

[AlexThePalex]

In Holland the price difference between the 150 and 125 is about €50.

Prices are not always based on a realistic production cost. They are based on marketing decisions, and especially in America Festool runs an adapted scheme. Festool is still working hard to get their foot between the American front door to become an accepted mainstream brand. Therefor they are willing to sell some tools for a lower price than elsewhere. If they see a certain tool is not as popular as others, they lower it's price to make it more appealing.

 

[rst]

The ETS 125 was my first Festool and I truly believe it is priced low to suck customers into that increasingly rapid spiral of buying to see if the next tool is truly that much better than the last purchase.  It is genius as in almost every circumstance we are never disappointed.

 

[Gary in Texas]

[member=44099]Cheese[/member] - I agree with your comments, the ETS125 having a 2mm stroke should leave a better finish than would the ETS150/3.  With a top speed of 14,000 rpm vs 10,600 for the ETS150, would also lead (in my view) to a better finish as well.

The ETS150/3 does have a stronger motor and weighs significantly more than the 125, 4# vs 2.6#, so apparently it is beefier beyond just the pad. I haven't held the larger ETS so haven't been able to do a side by side physical comparison.

[member=5277]Alex[/member] and rst - I would have to agree as well that product intro and luring buyers with the lower pricing may be a valid point.  With the two models closer in price in other global markets, even with a bigger motor it's still quite a stretch to make the jump in price in the U.S. Market based on technical differences.

Thanks all for your input.  Was looking into the ETS150 and the price differences led to questions I couldn't rationalize.

Gary

 

[HDClown]

If you look in EKAT, you'll see that the ETS125, DTS400 and RTS400 share the same housing, armature, field assembly brush holder, and cam.  In fact, I counted only 3 or 4 parts different between them, and all of them are related to the different plate size (plate, collar, etc).  Nothing movement related is different.  When you compare the critical parts of the ETS125 to the ETA150's, you'll see that they are ALL difference.

So really, the ETS 125 is the same sander as the DTS400/RTS400 (only difference being pad/plate size), and those are cheaper than the ETS150 to begin with..

The ETS125 should probably be called ETS400, which would cause a lot less confusion when people look at pricing.  That being said, the ETS125 is $60 cheaper compared to the DTS/RTS, and that difference isn't made up in the plate/pad cost differences.  In fact,  the backing pad for the ETS125 is $10 more than the pad for the DTS/RTS! (all prices based on US prices)

So, ultimately, I say it's purely a marketing thing.

 

[Cheese]

Some very interesting information here. I never looked at the individual pricing before because I just focused on my sanding system needs/wants, but the ETS 125 does appear to be a loss leader in the US. It is the least expensive Festool sander in the group, a veritable bargain in the Festool sander product line.

Also interesting is that with the last price increase the ETS 125 only went up $10 while the basically identical DTS & RTS increased by $20.  [scratch chin]

 

[leakyroof]

Some very interesting information here. I never looked at the individual pricing before because I just focused on my sanding system needs/wants, but the ETS 125 does appear to be a loss leader in the US. It is the least expensive Festool sander in the group, a veritable bargain in the Festool sander product line.

Also interesting is that with the last price increase the ETS 125 only went up $10 while the basically identical DTS & RTS increased by $20.  [scratch chin]

  I think Festool might be trying hard to lure Drywall and Paint Pros to getting the RTS and DTS sanders. So, they hold the line on price increases for those two sanders.  Just my guess though..

 

[jaguar36]

My daddy always said its because that's what people are willing to pay.

Keep in mind however that the 150 may only be an inch bigger, but it has 40% more sanding area. Assuming it scaled linearly (which it probably doesn't) that would take a 40% bigger motor, 40% stiffer housing, and cost at least 40% more.  That would work out to $370.

 

[semenza]

      To put it simply ....... the ETS150s are quite a bit more sander than the ETS125. If you have seen them side by side , held, or used them , the difference becomes quite apparent.

Seth