Help with first time Festool purchase

[Jeff Scott]

I'm getting ready to buy my first Festool, a TS55 and I would like to here your thoughts on which dust extractor to go with, the CT 26 or 36?  I'm leaning towards the CT 36 because I've always had a "bigger is better" mentality, but is it necessary for this tool and future tool purchases?

Thanks, Jeff

 

[Wonderwino]

Congratulations on your first purchase, Jeff!  If you are planning on doing routing or power planing in the future, the larger CT36 would be better for the capacity.  I have the older CT33 with the boom arm and it stays in the shop, as it is less portable than the CT Midi I bought to take on jobs that require sanding or just a few cuts.  The CT26 will be a little easier to take with you than a CT36 if you do much work away from the shop.  Both the 26 & 36 are more powerfull than the Mini or Midi.

 

[Jesse Cloud]

Hey Jeff!
[welcome] [welcome]
Hard to answer your question without knowing how you will use the TS55.  I'm a retired hobbyist, so I'm in the shop just about every day.  Most of my Festool work is with the TS55, the Domino, or one of the routers.  I change bags about once a month on the CT22 (older brother of the CT26).  Unless things have changed with the '6 vacs, the 26 and the 36 have the same suction and same functionality, just different sized bags and cavities.  Bigger is usually better, but its also heavier - which may be important to you if you are mobile.

In any case, you really can't make a wrong decision on this one.

Did you know that many folk choose to upgrade to a longer guide rail than the one that comes with the 55?  Your dealer will let you do that for the difference in rail prices.  Also many choose to add a bigger hose (though that probably won't be needed for the 55).

Welcome to the forum and to the slippery slope!!

 

[tbellemare]

Jeff:

Jesse and Wino's advice is really very good, as usual.

The CT 26 and CT 36 are essentially the same machine except for the capacity. There are 10 liters of potential bag capacity difference. If you are using either of them with only a TS 55, I suspect you will want to change the bag before that difference really matters because of the density of what they contain.

Of course, that also depends on whether or not you need to move the CT. If you can roll it around wherever it needs to go, you can fill the bag fuller with more dense materials like fine sawdust. A CT 36 alone is quite easily manageable to me. A CT 36 with 8-9 gallons of fine sawdust is what, 50-60 pounds heavier?

I may be exaggerating, but I don't think by much...

I've carried my female customers' CT 22 from their truck to my "showroom" (can you spell chivalry?) with a chock-full bag. It was not pleasant. The bag turned out to be so full that the CT was plugged. It was like a brick and it took some persistent, gentle persuasion to remove from the housing.

I think I know the history of that particular bag and it was largely 22 liters of TS 55 in MDF and maple, plus a lot of sanding of the same. It also included some exotic species that were cut and sanded to about 180. It got really compacted, to the point that the CT 22 didn't want to suck any more. The whole thing was pretty darn heavy. Add another 2/3 to the weight (22/36) and it would be less pleasant.

I use this bag as an example because it's the worst that I've run across. It took us a little while comparing it to my similar unit to determine that the over-full bag was actually the problem. It didn't look full but was pretty darn full and turned out to be a real "brick".

The larger capacity is very helpful in situations that require larger capacity but can also hamper mobility if larger capacity isn't really needed.

Tom

 

[Steve R]

The CT 26 and CT 36 are essentially the same machine except for the capacity.

Tom is right they both have the same power only the bag capacity is the difference.

I went with the CT22, I have two of them they might not have as much capacity as the larger CT's but they travel better for me as they are smaller than the CT 33 now CT 36 and the coming CT 48.

Cheers,
Steve

 

[AlexThePalex]

Since they're both the same with only the bag capacity different, you want to think about mobility. If you plan to use the vac only in your shop where you can wheel it around easily, the 36 isn't a bad choice. But if you want to haul the vac around, from workshop to your house or to jobsites, then the 26 would be better. As Tom said, a vac can become really heavy. And I already find my 26 a bit bulky to carry up the stairs, this would be even more troublesome for the 36.

 

[Jeff Scott]

Thanks to everyone for your responses.  I hadn't taken into account the mobility factor as much as I should have.  I think I'll head on down to Woodcraft and put my hands on them before I make up my mind.

Jesse, you mentioned that people opt for a longer guide rail? What length do most people go for?

Thanks!
Jeff

 

[Jesse Cloud]

.....

Jesse, you mentioned that people opt for a longer guide rail? What length do most people go for?

Thanks!
Jeff

Here's a thread on the guiderail length question.  As you can see there are lots of different opinions...
guiderail for TS55
Its good to know, too that you can connect multiple rails with Festool item # 482107. You will need a pair.  The rail that comes with the saw will cut the 4 foot distance, but not 8 feet.

 

[mouppe]

If you see an mft in your future bear in mind that it comes with a short rail so I would recommend going with a 106" rail at least.

 

[Steve R]

I have the 1080 that came with the MFT/3, a 1400 and 1900. In hindsight I would not buy the 1900, as I do most of my work on site.

They all connect together and are just as smooth as a single long one.

The 1900 is good for a shop situation but it is too long to travel with easily. It is also a pain/too big to move around at some sites.

If I was to start over I would go with The 1080 that came with the MFT and then change to 3 - 1400mm  of the FS/2-LR32 32mm Hole Guide Rail  FS 1400/2-LR32 Guide Rail 55" (1400 mm), Product No.: 496 939.  the 32mm rails are only $12 more over the standard 1400.

The 32mm rails give you the option to do cabinets and for $36 more that is a cheap option for down the road.

Cheers,
Steve

 

[MadViking]

One thing to consider: If you get the smaller CT 26 and end up using it in your shop for stuff that fills the bag quickly (routing etc), you can always add a Dust Deputy. That way the smaller bag won't realy be a problem. But the smaller vac will be easier to move around if you need the mobility.

At my local Festool dealer they said that of all the Festool vacs they sell, 95% are the CTL 26. The people who bought the 36 needed it for major work site jobs like sanding drywall with a Planex, which you most likely won't end up doing. The 26 seems a better idea, and the money you save can later be spent on a Dust Deputy if need be.

 

[fisheye]

I was in your shoes not long ago and went with the 36.  I'm very happy with everything, but might go with the 26 if I had it to do over.  I end up doing things outside of my little shop a lot more than I imagined, so mobility is a bigger deal.  Someday might end up getting one of the midis to go with a sander.  Still, the big 36 is nice, holds a ton of mess.

 

[sancho57]

When I bit the bullet and bought a dust extractor, I orginally was going to get the smaller CT22 or Midi.

The Festool guy at my suppliers talk to me about what I was going to use it for etc. He pointted me to the CT 26.

It was more then I wanted to spend.

Im happy he did. he was right.