Great difficulty controlling RO125

Spike

Member
Joined
Sep 12, 2007
Messages
227
Hey guys,
Is it me? might be.
I'm sanding clear pine with my RO125 using 120G Rubin. I tried orbit and rotary modes, tried different speeds and reduced vacuum suction. The RO is throwing me all over the place, mind you I'm a relatively strong guy but this thing wants to rip out of my hands. Important to note that my RO 150, ETS 125 and ETS 150 do NOT behave like this.

Curious
Thanks ???
 
Pine might be to soft for Rublin 120 at full speed.  Try changing grits or slowing it down.  Do it in RO mode and not Rotary only mode unless you are trying to remove a lot of stock quickly.  Give it a try.  
 
Taos said:
Hey guys,
Is it me? might be.
I'm sanding clear pine with my RO125 using 120G Rubin. I tried orbit and rotary modes, tried different speeds and reduced vacuum suction. The RO is throwing me all over the place, mind you I'm a relatively strong guy but this thing wants to rip out of my hands. Important to note that my RO 150, ETS 125 and ETS 150 do NOT behave like this.

Curious
Thanks ???

Taos,

I had the same probelm with mine and I am a big guy.  It has got better with use, maybe more experience, maybe more break in time.  It always seemed to work best in the highest speed in random orbit mode.  Be sure not to push down on it, just hold it where the cord and vac meet the back of the machine.  This will keep it flat and keep you from pressing down too hard.  Got this advice from other posters.

Dave is probably right as well.  It could be the material you are sanding.

Good luck with it.

Neill
 
I've experienced some of that w/ my RO125 as well.  I talked to Brian about this at the end-user-training and he recommended holding the sander w/ the left hand centered on the rubber pad at the front of the sander and the right hand holding the sander at the point where the vac hose connects to the sander.  Don't push down hard and reduce the vac suction.  Apparently much of the grabbing comes from holding the sander in a way that very slightly tips the pad relative to the work piece.

Haven't tried it yet w/ mine, but it seems that the larger surface area of the RO150 would make it easier to hold the sanding pad flat on the work piece and explain why the RO150 seems easier to control.

Fred
 
If your lumber isn't fairly flat, you may be catching on the dips etc.  The sound of the sander, in time, will tell you more of what its doing.  Once you get more familiar with that Rotex, you'll really come to appreciate it.  I think most don't expect a learning curve on a sander.  Sure the concept is simple to understand, but you will have to put some time in...
 
bobbobbob said:
If your lumber isn't fairly flat, you may be catching on the dips etc.  The sound of the sander, in time, will tell you more of what its doing.  Once you get more familiar with that Rotex, you'll really come to appreciate it.  I think most don't expect a learning curve on a sander.  Sure the concept is simple to understand, but you will have to put some time in...

Hi bob........
I know what you mean but I'm 24 years in custom furniture and have a plethora of sanders including everything Festool offers except the 1/2 sheet sander. The pine is dead flat, I think in general the pine is just too soft and the 120Grit is simply too agressive, coupled with an agressive machine like the RO125.
Tuesday I will try a higher grit, maybe 150-180 and report back.

Thanks all.
 
bobbobbob said:
If your lumber isn't fairly flat, you may be catching on the dips etc.  The sound of the sander, in time, will tell you more of what its doing.  Once you get more familiar with that Rotex, you'll really come to appreciate it.  I think most don't expect a learning curve on a sander.  Sure the concept is simple to understand, but you will have to put some time in...

Bobbobbob is right, it's all learning curve, putting time in with the tool is the only solution. Good luck.
 
Occasionally, I have had my RO 150 take off in an unexpected direction. (I have not used a RO 125) It is usually a symptom of my own inattention.  I don't know if this will help for those who have experince long standing, but maybe a help to any newbies who might be tuned in here.  I used a concrete trowel machine for many moons.  My machine was light weight and was only one blade.  Being very light weight, it was subject to some costly dives upon occasion.  I had to really pay attention if i expected to finish a slab within a minimal and reasonable amount of effort.  I have found that my RO 150 reacts in much the same way as that old trowel machine. 

When in Rotary mode, the direction of inertia is going to be counter clockwise.  It the tool is tipped so front of rotating pad is tipped away from your hands, the pad will want to move to the left.  If back of pad is receiving the most pressure, the tool will want to dive to right.  It takes a very light touch to make a change in direction.  It takes a little experience to determine exactly how much to tip the tool to make it move in a different/or wrong direction. 

Also, variation in density of wood will also affect the way the tool handles.  I recently was making a lazy susan and using white pine, red oak and black locust.  The original pad was the medium.  I was gouging the pine while barely affecting the locust.  I posted somewhere here on the FOG and somebody mentioned I might have better luck using the hard pad.  Once I procured a new stiff pad, I was able to keep the finish sanding level with no more dipping into the softer pine.  End of problem and the old soft pad is still resting in one of my sortainers.  With the stiffer pad, i find less problem with the RO 150 wanting to make unexpected changes in direction. I think that is because it is easier to keep sanding on a flat plane.
Tinker

PS  Dave Ronyak had suggested I make a report on this at time I changed pads.  I have not had time to even think about such as my work is outside of shop.  I will try during my winter "rest" period.
WHT
 
Just remembered one more thing Brian mentioned at the end user training about the RO125 - the softer pads have less tendency to grab and jerk the sander around.

Fred
 
bruegf said:
Just remembered one more thing Brian mentioned at the end user training about the RO125 - the softer pads have less tendency to grab and jerk the sander around.

Fred

Fred,

He was referring to chatter.  If you have chatter move to the super soft pads.  I'm sure this would help as well.
 
I've had the same problem. The first thing to do (which I think you've already done) is turn the suction down on the vacuum. All the way down. Second is to use your RO125 for at least 10 hours before worrying - it takes that long to break it in. Third, the sander is very sensitive to subtle movements of your arm and wrist. It doesn't take much of a change in pressure to make it shoot one way or the other. Once you figure it out (during the initial 10 hours of break-in) you'll find that you can control it quite well. But it always takes a lot of attention and some muscle. If you find you're using too much muscle, try doing small rotations of your wrist, rather than trying to power through it.
 
I think everyone knows I'm an enthusiastic Festool user, some even people believe I think Festool can do no wrong. However, I think this is one product that really doesn't live up to the hype. Don't get me wrong, I have a RO125 and I feel it is well worth what I paid for it. The problem as I see it is this tool is sold as a sander that can do it all, well, it can but not with ease or grace.

I use my RO125 for stripping paint or other old finishes, when I need to remove a lot of material but very seldomly as a finish sander. As a couple of members have already discussed there is a learning curve just to be able to control the tool let alone produce fine finished results. It certainly can be done as I'm sure a number of members can attest. It does take a fair amount of effort both physical and mental. I find using the RO125 far more tiring (both physically and mentally) than any other sander I own. For extended sanding sessions I reach for my ETS125 or other finish sanders that I can use for hours with little or no fatigue and better results.

If you are considering the RO125 look carefully at your needs, if you decide on one be prepared for the learning curve.       
 
I finally broke down and bought the ETS125 because it's so much smoother and easier to handle for finish sanding than the RO125.  But if you want to remove a lot of material its hard to beat the Rotex sanders.

Fred
 
I've put a hard years worth of sanding hours on my ro125.

I bought a ras115 because I am impatient.

I bought a ets125 because I hate holding my ro125 virticle all day.

I like the ro125, it is not as smooth as the ro150 but, it is much lighter.

Most time spent with that sander is not horizontal sanding.

The ras115, ro125, and ets125 (dont forget dx93) together make a great striping and refinishing combo.

If I was going to sit/stand all day and sand and I coulnd't afford a wide belt sander, I would get the 6" sanders. 

Maybe a bigger one like the fein (no experience, it looks huge!)
 
bruegf said:
I finally broke down and bought the ETS125 because it's so much smoother and easier to handle for finish sanding than the RO125.   But if you want to remove a lot of material its hard to beat the Rotex sanders.

Fred

Fred,

I did the same thing.
 
Me too, I tried the ETS125EC and RO125. kept the ETS125EC and bought an RO90. Contemplating the 150. the RO125 is a (two) handful, very nervous. The ETS125EC is a dream to use.
 
Mr Speaker said:
Me too, I tried the ETS125EC and RO125. kept the ETS125EC and bought an RO90. Contemplating the 150. the RO125 is a (two) handful, very nervous. The ETS125EC is a dream to use.

Most folks say that the RO90 is the hardest to handle, but it was the first I ever owned, so I didn't know any different. It did take a bit of experience at first, but after using so many different types of sanders in so many years, it's not that big of a deal. The RO125 is essentially the same machine, just larger. This is a bit of a trade-off though. The heavier body dampens the reaction some, but it has more "traction" from a bigger piece of sandpaper too.
It's just about teaching yourself the muscle memory to deal with the way an orbital sander works.
I use both the 90 and 125 one-handed on vertical surfaces, but it does take 2 on horizontal surfaces to counter-act the weight balance.
I have access to a RO150, that I do not own myself. I have used it a few times, but I don't see any real advantage over the RO125. Sure, it's bigger, but that is not automatically a bonus.
 
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