Festool drills, what am I missing?

[kevin clifford]

I am, like everybody else on the FOG someone who owns and enjoys using plenty of Festool products. After each purchase I found the tools to be worth every penny spent. So my question is to the people who own Festool drills, the 18 volt set in perticular. Is the set worth it? At $625 for one drill, it seems like buying 2 DeWalt drill and impact sets is way more bang for the buck. I have used DeWalts for almost 20 years now and am trying to wrap my mind around the price of Festools drills.

 

[duburban]

i have one and i'd have to agree that 2 impact/drill sets would give you more function. the drill feels great but aside from the right angle chuck there isn't any added utility. but really it feels and runs great, super smooth and tons of trigger control.

 

[tjbier]

$500 plus for a drill seems nuts, yet I wouldn't get rid of my T15. Been putting on doors, drawers and drawer faces for the past 3 days and I'm wishing I had a CSX!
  Ridiculously smooth, quite, powerful, seem to always need that right angle chuck. All our other drills stay put away when we are doing finishing touches on our houses. Straight up luxury to have them,....

 

[tjbnwi]

I have the T-15 and 2-CSX drills.

Each is basically 3 drills in one "box".

I have to drill a lot of studs to run EMT. The T-15 out preforms any of my corded right angled drills.

The CSX drills are the best in their class (really in a class of their own). I gave away Bosch 10.8's long before I got a CSX. Swore I'd never own a small class drill again. Was gifted my first CSX, they are now my go to drills.

Try the T-18, if you don't like it return it within the 30 days. Try the CSX also.

Tom

 

[Ajax]

I have plenty of Festools, but I dont get the drills.  I love my Bosch 12 and 18 volt drills, drivers, and impactors.  Great accessories and batteries.

For $625 the Festool should work by mind control.  Save my fingers after all that effort handing over dollar bills.

 

[bigjonh]

I have three makita drills and two makita impacts on the truck that I use daily, i have a t-12 and t-18 in the shop. The t-12 was new old stock I traded for a cxs because I thought the cxs was underwhelming. I bought a c-15? And returned it the same day, the c grip did not work for me. The t18 is well balanced and powerful and a great value at the 40% off reconditioned price but I never would have paid full price for it. Once you start on the drills you got to start on centrotec and that gets ludicrously expensive fast. Over all, the T series are good drills but overpriced and not game changers for me.

 

[Greg M]

I've got two T12+3 sets that I got as refurbs.  I actually bought the 2nd refurb set for the batteries to use with my refurb syslites (excellent lights).  Sold the right angle chuck and the charger out of the second kit and almost paid for it.

While I like the drills I'd never buy one at full price except maybe the CXS.  My Dewalt drills do everything I ask of them and they do it very well.  I find no extra value in the Festool drill over the Dewalt.  IMO, there's no way most of the Festool drills are worth what they cost.  However, I will own a CXS one day.

 

[WastedP]

I'm having a hard time envisioning any of the Festool drills with a right-angle chuck fitting into the tight spots my Makita right-angle impact can snake into.  Although it's been spread over six or seven years, a drill, an impact, the angled impact, a sawzall, charger, and four batteries still came out to be under $600, so I'm not seeing the added value of the Festool drills over what I currently have.  If every Makita cordless tool I owned broke, burned up, or was stolen tomorrow, I still don't think I could make the argument for Festool replacements at full price.

I work from time to time with a fellow that is heavily invested in Centrotec accessories.  I remember when he bought his first Festool drill after switching from Panasonic, and he wasn't 100% enthusiastic about it.  He complained about the cost of the accessories.  However, I stopped by his shop last week and, eight years later, every one of his employees is using a Festool drill.

 

[fshanno]

What are you missing?  Maybe that throwing semi-skilled home town manufacturing workers to the wolves is not Festool's thing?

And in that context they still go ahead and market some of their home grown products in the US.  They sell enough to make it worth their while. 

It's kind of like a farmers market.  Some folks like to go down to the farmers market on a pleasant Saturday morning from time to time.  Course that's not where the bulk of the produce is moved.  But it's fun. 

 

[philphilop]

Dont use cordless drills in my work, need the longevity of constant uninterupted power that 230v provides but, i have used cordless drills that my collegues use and found the DRC very very good, on par with Hilti.

 

[sancho57]

As I've said before , When I buy something I look for versatility .

For what I need a drill to do as Tom already said, my C12 and C 18 replace 2-3 drills each.
With the various chucks, offset, Jacobs and centrotec I can do many different task with the same drill.
I had a Mikita impact kit impact and drill. The batteries lose their strength after a year or so and they need prefacing where my festools do not.
The Mikita have brushes which after a while diminish the power of the drill after a while.
My Festool are brushless so that won't happen. Festool service and support is awesome.
Have you even taken a tool to Makita or DeWalt for repair?

 

[jools]

I own the BHC, PDC, CXS and DWC with two centrotec sets and zobos. Having used them every day on site since purchase I can't imagine going back to the other platforms I have used in the past. They work, are very controllable, interchangeable with each other and tough enough for the tasks I do to earn a living. It was a huge investment but I don't regret a penny of it. Are there holes in the "system" Yes! But centrotec compatible third party bits are appearing ( Axminster etc ) and I'm sure that 18v impact is sitting on a German test bench just waiting for a launch date [big grin]. The PDC will drive 120mm poz3 just as well as a 20mm x 3.0. It will run 30mm auger bits with right angle chuck no problem but as a contractor doing it all the time you would buy a specialist drill as with any repetTive task tool. I've moved away from disposable tools that's why I buy Festool. 10 years of parts, a repair system that works, three year guarentee and three year theft cover all make the investment value added
Regards
Jools

 

[bigjonh]

I had a Mikita impact kit impact and drill. The batteries lose their strength after a year or so and they need prefacing where my festools do not.
The Mikita have brushes which after a while diminish the power of the drill after a while.
My Festool are brushless so that won't happen. Festool service and support is awesome.
Have you even taken a tool to Makita or DeWalt for repair?

I've had good success with makita batteries, and I depend on them everyday. 

There are a variety of brushless drills and impact drivers and other cordless tools that Makita and other manufacturers make.

I just got a drill and my cordless metal cutting saw back from Makita service, I drop it off at my dealer, he mails it back when it's finished.

I've been using Festool for almost 15 years and I love Festool products, and I like my T-18 and T-12, but I don't think they are game changing have to haves.

 

[bcradio]

I certainly don't think it is worth it to invest in Festool cordless tools.  All of the major brands of tools now make cordless the bread and butter of their product lines so the competition is fierce.  Just about every major brand now does brushless so that is not a reason to buy Festool cordless.  Where the other brands shine is their wide selection of tools on the same battery platform.  If you need other cordless tools then definitely don't get the Festool unless money is no option.

Milwaukee M12 Fuel gets my vote.  [big grin]

 

[SittingElf]

  Where the other brands shine is their wide selection of tools on the same battery platform.  If you need other cordless tools then definitely don't get the Festool unless money is no option.

Other than my CXS, my Festool Cordless products ALL run on the same battery platform (Drills , Jigsaw, Tracksaw, Syslite).  I don't see how your statement about others "shining" because of the same battery platform holds any water, or is at all relevant??  [huh] That is unless you're talking about Ryobi One+ tools and equipment, but the problem there is that their batteries absolutely SUCK! Most will not hold a full charge within a year of purchase.

Further, on Corded tools, Festool really DOES shine due to the vast majority of their tools being powered by detachable plug-it cords that are compatible with most of their line.

And with all due respect, and no insult intended, it would appear that your Festool collection consists of a TS55 and CT-Midi. You obviously don't own any Festool cordless tools, and therefore can't really be objective in your criticism. It is also almost rude to make a statement like yours when you stated "If you need other cordless tools then definitely don't get the Festool unless money is no option." on a forum that is for FESTOOL owners and those who are interested in their products.

Enjoy your Milwaukee's. The rest of us are quite happy with our Green Machines, and really don't need to be told NOT to buy them.

Cheers,
Frank

 

[bcradio]

  Where the other brands shine is their wide selection of tools on the same battery platform.  If you need other cordless tools then definitely don't get the Festool unless money is no option.

Other than my CXS, my Festool Cordless products ALL run on the same battery platform (Drills , Jigsaw, Tracksaw, Syslite). I don't see how your statement about others "shining" because of the same battery platform holds any water, or is at all relevant??  [huh] That is unless you're talking about Ryobi One+ tools and equipment, but the problem there is that their batteries absolutely SUCK! Most will not hold a full charge within a year of purchase.

Further, on Corded tools, Festool really DOES shine due to the vast majority of their tools being powered by detachable plug-it cords that are compatible with most of their line.

And with all due respect, and no insult intended, it would appear that your Festool collection consists of a TS55 and CT-Midi. You obviously don't own any Festool cordless tools, and therefore can't really be objective in your criticism. It is also almost rude to make a statement like yours when you stated "If you need other cordless tools then definitely don't get the Festool unless money is no option." on a forum that is for FESTOOL owners and those who are interested in their products.

Enjoy your Milwaukee's. The rest of us are quite happy with our Green Machines, and really don't need to be told NOT to buy them.

Cheers,
Frank

I'm not sure how you don't see that?  [blink]

M12 Lineup

Over 50 tools in the M12 lineup alone seems pretty straight forward to me.  I don't own Festool cordless for a reason...  and that reason is I need more than just the limited cordless selection Festool offers.  Pretty simple actually.  Not to mention the 5 year warranty on Milwaukee vs 3 on Festool.  That alone would swing me toward Milwaukee.  Also the cost difference is pretty blatant as I am not made of money myself.

My post is not to say anything negative about the Festool cordless tools as I'm sure they are great.  I am simply pointing out reasons to consider other options when looking at cordless tools in general.  And again if money is not an issue, then have at it.

As for your comment about this being a Festool forum, I would say if green kool-aid is all you and the OP drink, then there is no need to even have this discussion here.

Lastly, none of my comments were directed toward Festool corded products.  They all have areas they shine in, and I do plan on buying more corded tools as I need them.

BTW this is from a standpoint of someone living in the US.

 

[Ed Bray]

Just an aside, I have had a large number of Ryobi One+ tools for a good number of years and do not have any issues with their Li-ion batteries. I have 11x 4.0Ah, a 2.4Ah and a 1.5Ah, all hold a good full charge and they are cycled through the 2x 6 port battery conditioner/chargers that I have for them. There is always one on a tool, and when it runs out the next one (or more depending on what I am using) is replaced by it in the system. The 6 port battery conditioner cycles all the batteries over a weekly period to maintain them in the best condition.

I have so many One+ cordless tools and batteries that it would be hard for me to change at this point. So, the likelihood of my owning a Festool Cordless is doubtful (unless I'm fortunate enough to win one  [cool] ) but, I would never say never so who knows.

 

[bigjonh]

  Where the other brands shine is their wide selection of tools on the same battery platform.  If you need other cordless tools then definitely don't get the Festool unless money is no option.

Other than my CXS, my Festool Cordless products ALL run on the same battery platform (Drills , Jigsaw, Tracksaw, Syslite).  I don't see how your statement about others "shining" because of the same battery platform holds any water, or is at all relevant??  [huh] That is unless you're talking about Ryobi One+ tools and equipment, but the problem there is that their batteries absolutely SUCK! Most will not hold a full charge within a year of purchase.

Further, on Corded tools, Festool really DOES shine due to the vast majority of their tools being powered by detachable plug-it cords that are compatible with most of their line

Enjoy your Milwaukee's. The rest of us are quite happy with our Green Machines, and really don't need to be told NOT to buy them.

Cheers,
Frank

The number of tools available from other manufacturers that run on the same batteries dwarf Festools current NA offerings. Makita for instance offers around 100 that run on the same 18v platform.  What's not relevant to this conversation is Festools corded line up, the OP  was about cordless drills.  I'm sure he enjoys his Milwaukees, just like I enjoy using my tools of various manufacturers to make a living.  At the end of the day it's about the work you've produced and the process, not just the tool brand you prefer.

 

[SittingElf]

I love my Ryobi garden tools. Well made and work just the way I want them too. I sold off most of my other Ryobi's when I standardized on Festool.  The problem I've had is with the batteries. I have a lot of them, but have had to throw away 25% of them in a ridiculously short period of time, and they are expensive to replace. Maybe one of my chargers is the culprit. I hadn't really considered that.

My favorite tool is the cordless leaf blower!  Makes blowing out the garage workshop a "breeze"!  Their hedge trimmer, 36V edge trimmer, power caulker, and hand vacuum all get regular use.  My most recent purchase is their new 1700PSI corded pressure washer. Much, MUCH better than the previous washer I had (Karcher). The thing sounds like a turbine engine when the trigger is pulled! Only $159 at HD.

I have no issue with Ryobi tools, except for their batteries, but maybe I'll do a little more research and find out if one of my chargers is causing the issue. The batteries that fail get the constant blinking red light on the chargers.

Cheers,
Frank

 

[Slartibartfass]

got both the CXS and PDC18/4 and a very happy with both. Don't see myself needing anything else based on what I am doing. Also have a dewalt impact driver....