Festool Basics :-)

[leakyroof]

Plus1 on what Tim has posted. If you're living in a house while you work on renovating it, dust collection to prevent troubles to your health and that of your family is important. Once you buy the dust extractor, then any Festool or OTHER tool that has a dust port that works with the hose sizes offered by Festool and others can be easily tamed to make your life better, less stressed.  Sander, plus one on the Rotex 90 DX. You're getting several sanders here in one package, so it's a great value even though it's smaller than its bigger brothers. Stairs don't need a large sander if you've got time, and it already sounds like you've done that with hand tools or hand sanding.
Having a powered sander, with EXCELLENT dust extraction will not only speed up the process, you've save on abrasive costs since you won't clog the sandpaper with crud like you would with just hand sanding. So you save several different ways.
While a table saw is nice, you already have a handheld power saw and guides. You would have to be the one to decide if that is your next large power tool purchase. [cool]

 

[Eli]

Yeah, CT22 or new, vac first. Then MFT. Nevermind the tablesaw.

 

[Chris™]

Staircase: Remove paint with heat gun and scraper.

                To replace the tread you need to access the underside and remove the wedges. then just remove the damaged tread 
                cut a replacement tread and wedges. (hammer, chisel, router to make bullnose on tread, cramps to laminate timber                         
                for tread and plane to tidy up.)

As for the other projects I don't see anything power tools you need other than a sander. The money you would spend on a festool sander/vac/table saw could be invested in cheaper tools and better finishes for your projects i.e quality paint for your staircase;  nice ironmongery for your wardrobe/furniture or quality timber/glass for you porch depending on its size.

Don't get my wrong I am a carpenter by trade and use my Festools (amongst others) daily, they are great tools but buying a vac, sander and accessories is a lot of money for some DIY  [tongue]

 

[peter halle]

Chris,

Welcome to the forum.  [welcome].  Curious about the use of the trademarked symbol in your screen name.  Was that intentional?

Peter

 

[Chris™]

Hey, I figured someone else would probably have Chris and I'm too tired today to think up a witty name so just trademarked it instead  [big grin]

Also going to post this because at first glance I thought he had a giant moustache  [scared]

 

[fisheye]

I'm in a somewhat similar boat to you, old house, also refubishing a boat... and want to do some woodworking.  Strong second to the RO-150 (new purchase, way more useful than I imagined).  I bought a CT-36 intending to use it only in my small workshop, but have already hauled it to the boat (hard) and the house to do various jobs.  If I had to do it over, would probably get a CT-22.  The Midi and Mini have less performance than the CT series.  Given that I already have the big one, I'm already dreaming of a Mini down the road for my rambling tasks.  I still love the 36 when I'm in my "shop".  This weekend, I did some sanding with likely lead paint.  You still have to do the lead mitigation stuff, but it is MUCH easier having the small particles sucked into the HEPA-filtered CT machines.  The big stuff still falls to the floor, but the dust is non-existent.

 

[Jesse Cloud]

Do you have layout tools - a square, a level, a good steel ruler, bevel gauge, protractor, a good tape, good pencils. etc?

 

[Kevin Stricker]

There is a reason that the tablesaw is considered by most professionals to be the center of their shop.  In my opinion an MFT is a poor excuse for a cabinet saw and I have both.

I would suggest finding some used tools that you need as the job requires and adding to your Festool stable as you get jobs done.  A Rotex is a nice bit of kit but hardly essential, you can buy 2-3 Festool sanders for the same price.  A CT22/26 is a great vac but you can buy a really nice Fein for 1/2 the price.

Many of the people on the FOG loose sight of woodworking in their quest to own the best tools.  If I was in your shoes I would focus on owning the nicest home.  Besides a tablesaw, jigsaw, and a good cordless driver/drill I think you have plenty of power tools to do most home renovations.  You probably want at least a finish nailer and compressor if you don't already have them.  You need clamps and work supports if you don't already.  Most important you need accurate layout and measuring tools so you can produce quality.

Dust collectors are nice but hardly essential unless you are a professional.  Hell if I had to guess I would say less than a quarter of the contractors in the states use anything but a shopvac for cleanup.  Remember that an old house is like an onion, you peel back layers and find other things that need to be done.  It's easy to fall into the trap of thinking you "NEED" that new toy/tool and spend your time and energy acquiring tools instead of working on your house.

 

[davee]

Dust collectors are nice but hardly essential unless you are a professional.  Hell if I had to guess I would say less than a quarter of the contractors in the states use anything but a shopvac for cleanup.  Remember that an old house is like an onion, you peel back layers and find other things that need to be done.  It's easy to fall into the trap of thinking you "NEED" that new toy/tool and spend your time and energy acquiring tools instead of working on your house.

I am not a professional woodworker, but I have purchased and completely remodelled several homes, the last being over 100 years old.  I found my allergies slowly growing worse over time until I figured out it was the dust from remodelling.  Dust control is one of the primary reasons I have as many Festools as I have.  I am considering replacing a radial arm saw that I've had for 30 years simply because it has such bad dust control.  Fein might be perfectly acceptable, but my old shopvac wasn't close to sufficient.  The CT26 is fantastic.

 

[tiralie]

There is a reason that the tablesaw is considered by most professionals to be the center of their shop.  In my opinion an MFT is a poor excuse for a cabinet saw and I have both.

I would suggest finding some used tools that you need as the job requires and adding to your Festool stable as you get jobs done.  A Rotex is a nice bit of kit but hardly essential, you can buy 2-3 Festool sanders for the same price.  A CT22/26 is a great vac but you can buy a really nice Fein for 1/2 the price.

Many of the people on the FOG loose sight of woodworking in their quest to own the best tools.  If I was in your shoes I would focus on owning the nicest home.  Besides a tablesaw, jigsaw, and a good cordless driver/drill I think you have plenty of power tools to do most home renovations.  You probably want at least a finish nailer and compressor if you don't already have them.  You need clamps and work supports if you don't already.  Most important you need accurate layout and measuring tools so you can produce quality.

Dust collectors are nice but hardly essential unless you are a professional.  Hell if I had to guess I would say less than a quarter of the contractors in the states use anything but a shopvac for cleanup.  Remember that an old house is like an onion, you peel back layers and find other things that need to be done.  It's easy to fall into the trap of thinking you "NEED" that new toy/tool and spend your time and energy acquiring tools instead of working on your house.

I couldn't agree more Kevin, well other than dust control. A pro I know wish he had paid more attention to dust collection as his asthma continued to worsen contributing to his giving up on the trade. While this doesn't mean his existing condition wouldn't have gradually gotten worse, but I am sure it didn't help.

As a hobbyist/enthusiast if you want to own the best, Festool is right up there and woodworking is sometimes secondary. The tool is the art just as a the rarely driven Ferrari becomes.

Depends on your (conscious or unconscious) objectives I suppose.

I was always fascinated with the band saw my grandfather (dutch) built  from plans in popular mechanics. It had a plywood case. He would always say it's a poor craftsman that blames his tools, but then go to the hardware store and buy the best brushes available and tell whom ever was listening that he had to buy the best because he wasn't very good.

I have definitely inherited some of his tool buying traits other than being incredibly stubborn and a perfectionist.
Tim

 

[Kevin Stricker]

I totally agree with you guys about the DC, I have 5 extractors and a cyclone.  You COULD just use a dust mask whenever woodworking though.  My point was that a $500 extractor is not necessary.  Unless you do a lot of site work a Fein vac will do just fine, and you can easily get by with a shopvac and tool activated switch.  I love my CT's for site work but would not recommend them to a hobbyist, they are after all just a very expensive vacuum.

 

[fdengel]

The adjustable suction on the CT's is essential for use with the sanders, and dust extraction while sanding improves the quality of the work.