Festool Conturo: Advice on accessories and edge banding

[GregorHochschild]

Hi,

the conturo is on the way so I wanted to get advice on accessories and edge banding.

1) Do you recommend the Edge Bander Trimming Set? (500177) What parts do you use? What parts are less important? Without the kit, any recommendations for a trimmer that does not cost $215? Or is the edge banding trimmer worth the cost compared to other products?

2) I am mainly going to use wood veneer edge banding. What does everyone prefer in terms of thickness? 1mm seems more durable but I think they are made out of layers, which I am not sure about. I used 1.5mm wood veneer edge banding before the layers really didn't hold up well.

3) Where do you order high quality wood veneer edge banding?

Happy about any other recommendation!

Thanks!

 

[afish]

So I own both the conturo and the 500177 kit.  By far the 2 most used tools are the end trimmer and the carbide scraper.  I love both of those and consider them a must have but I do mostly PVC banding.  I wouldn't miss any of the other items if they disappeared.  I also recommend the bench mount for narrow parts. For real wood edge banding I would say a MFK is also a must or a very nice to have.   

 

[afish]

I will add one other thing.  It will matter how you build your cabinets too.  If you are using stop dado construction the festool end trimmer wont work.  Dowels or dominos = yes

 

[Crazyraceguy]

Most of the commercially available veneer edgebanding is made of layers. I assume they do that, with some somewhat flexy glue, so that it can be rolled up. I have seen/used it as thick as 3mm, still in layers. Other than that, you can cut it yourself and get any thickness you want.
I second the statement of MFK700, huge fan of those, but it's not going to hit your $215 number though. I have never seen a router of any brand which works horizontally that will.
The MFK is brilliant though, you can control it well enough to climb cut, which will save you sanity when trimming veneer or solid wood edges. PVC is far more forgiving, you can do pretty much anything there.

 

[afish]

I think he was trying to save on the END TRIMMER made by festool.  There are some Chinese knock offs available but I have never used one so cant comment on how well they work compared to the festool.  If the MFK is out of your budget get the https://www.fastcap.com/product/little-lipper  Does just as good trimming horizontally it just lacks in the dust control compared to the MFK 

 

[GregorHochschild]

Thanks! I already have the MFK and was asking about the end trimmer. Happy to spent the money if it’s worth it but wondering how it compares.

I think wood veneer edge banding that is 1mm or thicker has layers. 0.5 does not, I think.

 

[Peter Kelly]

The Virutex end trimmer that will cut up to 3mm tape is less than 1/2 the price of the Festool. Works great, they've got some smaller ones too:https://www.virutextools.com/hand-end-trimmer-for-tapes-up-to-3-mm-rc321s-pid309

 

[Crazyraceguy]

Thanks! I already have the MFK and was asking about the end trimmer. Happy to spent the money if it’s worth it but wondering how it compares.

I think wood veneer edge banding that is 1mm or thicker has layers. 0.5 does not, I think.

Do yourself a favor and forget about .5mm edgebanding.....of any kind.

 

[denovo]

Do yourself a favor and forget about .5mm edgebanding.....of any kind.

I second this!  1mm edgebanding seems to be the sweet spot

I haven't tried the Virutex but compared to other end trimmers the festool is worth the extra cost and the carbide scraper.  I've found so many uses for it I bought a second

 

[GregorHochschild]

Many don't even list the thickness. Here is Oak Wood Veneer, which I used a lot for veneer sheets:
http://www.oakwoodveneer.com/oak-edgebanding-white-rift.html

Or Edge Supply, which I saw recommended somewhere:
https://www.edgesupplyusa.com/product-page/white-oak-wood-edgebanding-nonglued-5-8-1-1-8

Is this edge banding people would recommend? Any alternative and better sources?

For the Oak Wood Veneer, the option without glue is "Fleecebacked". Any thoughts on that?

Do yourself a favor and forget about .5mm edgebanding.....of any kind.

I second this!  1mm edgebanding seems to be the sweet spot

I haven't tried the Virutex but compared to other end trimmers the festool is worth the extra cost and the carbide scraper.  I've found so many uses for it I bought a second

 

[sancho57]

i usually recommend to buy a kit if festool offers one.

In the case of the Conturo I didnt buy the kit. Instead, I bought the scraper, already had a trimmer or use the MK 700. I also bought the black attachment so you can run long long peices of edge banding. I use 3mm edge banding , I get it from framatech. They only sell in large qtys but have every species you could imagine.

Also get a box of glue pucks youll need it