Festool ETS125 not spinning?

[MikeCalifornia]

Hello, new festool purchaser.  I just got the MIDI & ETS125 combo.  I hooked it all up and the sander does not seem to spin like a normal orbital?  When I turn it up to six, it spins a little, on one not at all just massive vibration.  What's up?

 

[tjbnwi]

Set it on a surface. No downward pressure.

Tom

 

[MikeCalifornia]

Is the ETS not what I think a random orbital is?  I have a rigid sander that spins pretty fast on high.  This seems to spin much slower, but use more vibration to sand.  I do alot of vertical stuff, doors, cabinets, etc.

 

[WarnerConstCo.]

Have you tried sanding anything with it?

 

[MikeCalifornia]

I used the 80grit on my front door.  Old poly over stain on mahogany.  Seemed to take a long time to get through the finishes with 80.  My rigid would have tore through it in less than 30s with 80.  I guess I was expecting it to spin since it was round?  I guess the RO sanders do this.  Seems like this sander is more for smoothing out for finishing and less for removal, which is weird since they give you an 80g disc in the box?

 

[peter halle]

I might suggest that you contact the service department (the phone number is on your sander) and talk to them.  If I am remembering correctly the ETS's have a black collar that might need to wear in or there might be an issue with it.

Peter

 

[wow]

Mike:

First, [welcome] to the FOG.

I don't own an ETS125, but there are a lot of great people here who will jump in to see that you get the answer you need. Also, don't be concerned if there's a problem. Festool will solve it for you.

If the sander isn't as aggressive as you want, I'd suggest you look at the RO125 since it has both the 'normal' random orbit mode, and also the aggressive Rotex mode. I have the RO150 for that reason.

And as a final option you always have 30 days to return it if you don't like it - or want something else like the RO125.

 

[rmwarren]

Mike, I had the same initial expectation of the ETS, and sent it in to be checked. It was working as designed. Learned the ETS, being a finish sander, was not designed with the rotary action I had expected.

I kept mine and later added the RO, but in truth I rarely use the ETS.

RMW

 

[tjbnwi]

Is the ETS not what I think a random orbital is?  I have a rigid sander that spins pretty fast on high.  This seems to spin much slower, but use more vibration to sand.  I do alot of vertical stuff, doors, cabinets, etc.

It is nowhere near as aggressive as other random orbit sanders. It is a finish sander used primarily for between coat work. It will remove wood and finishes, but that is not its primary purpose.

When the unit is held in the air there is very little motion, place it on a surface the motion increases. If this does not happen the extractor is set to high or to much hand pressure.

As others have mentioned the RO 125 may suit your needs better, it has a 5 mm stroke in the RO mode (the ETS 125 is 2 mm). The ETS 150-5 may also be a better fit for your needs, it will act more like your Rigid sander.

Tom

 

[semenza]

Is the ETS not what I think a random orbital is?  I have a rigid sander that spins pretty fast on high.  This seems to spin much slower, but use more vibration to sand.  I do alot of vertical stuff, doors, cabinets, etc.

It is nowhere near as aggressive as other random orbit sanders. It is a finish sander used primarily for between coat work. It will remove wood and finishes, but that is not its primary purpose.

When the unit is held in the air there is very little motion, place it on a surface the motion increases. If this does not happen the extractor is set to high or to much hand pressure.

As others have mentioned the RO 125 may suit your needs better, it has a 5 mm stroke in the RO mode (the ETS 125 is 2 mm). The ETS 150-5 may also be a better fit for your needs, it will act more like your Rigid sander.

Tom

What Tom said.   Especially that the ETS150/5 will be a more all purpose random orbit sander.

Seth

 

[Administrator_JSVN]

Since this was posted in the "Ask Festool" section, I'll chime in.  [smile]

As others have said, the ETS 125 is meant to be a fine finish sander. For that reason, it has a small orbit and is not made to be aggressive. Definitely not the best sander for stripping tasks. The ETS 150 and Rotex sanders would be better suited for that task, as suggested by others.

Shane

 

[AlexThePalex]

I am surprised nobody mentioned the necessary break-in period for this sander yet. Because this one really needs it.

There are two parts that need to be broken in before you get optimal performance from this sander.

1 - The brushes. By factory default they are square shaped, but the armature is round. The brushes need some time to wear to the proper shape to make optimal contact. This can take up to 8 hours. Until then, your sander's performance can be deteriorated by as much as half.

2 - The pad break. On the base of the sander between the body and the spinning pad there's a rubber ring called the pad brake. It is there to prevent the pad from spinning up to a high speed when you lift the sander of the workpiece. By factory default it is fitted very tightly to the pad. Again this part needs to wear a bit before it has the optimal shape.   

What is done often here on the FOG with these types of sanders (ETS125, DTS400, RTS400), is to hang them from a rope and let them run for 8 hours straight. This breaks them in nicely.

As for stripping with the ETS125, it can be done just fine with a grit like 80. Not the best sander for the task, but it works if you're willing to have some patience. But if you're a pro who relies on this sander for stripping, then you have definitely made the wrong choice and are better off with a more powerful sander like an ETS 150/5 or RO125.

 

[MikeCalifornia]

Thanks guys/gals, all great information.  Break-in period, check, sounds like the answer.  Although from what others have said, it is not an aggressive sander, bummer as I was hoping for something similar to my rigid especially at this price.  I think the ETS150's are way to big for what I need, I might think about an RO down the road, but price is a big issue on those.  Also, a little bummed I have to buy the festool sandpaper as regular 5" 3M and norton do not fit the holes?  Not that it is more expensive, just have to order it, instead of picking up packs at the paint store.

 

[Administrator_JSVN]

Mike,

We are very quickly expanding our distribution to paint stores. If you have some that you prefer in your area, send me a message with the names and locations and we'll reach out to them. Then, abrasives will be more readily available for you.

 

[leakyroof]

Mike,

We are very quickly expanding our distribution to paint stores. If you have some that you prefer in your area, send me a message with the names and locations and we'll reach out to them. Then, abrasives will be more readily available for you.

  Ditto on the Paint stores picking up the Festool line and abrasives. I always forget that there is a Paint store 10 minutes from where I work that doesn't carry any other Festool product other than what you'd expect them to be able to sell for the painting supplies they carry, but it's one more Brick and Motar store that carrys Festool Sanders and their consumables.
Very cool

 

[MikeCalifornia]

Just wanted to update this post.  I found out from reading a few other posts and some hints elsewhere and figured it out.  I turned down the suction to half on the MIDI and that made a huge difference.  Also as I have been using it more, it has loosened up.  Thanks for the help.

 

[coucheod]

I had the same problem with my ETS EC 125/3 EO sander.  The center post the the bolt screws into turns easily when there is no pad on it, but it only spins when the pad is on it with some effort.  The bolt and motor would get hot. I fixed this by placing a thin nylon washer between the post and the pad and then threaded the bolt through the pad then the washer and into the post.  This fixed it!