How aggressive is the Mirka Ceros? Should I get it over RO90?

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jc

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I hear talk around the forum that the Mirka Ceros are pretty aggressive but how does it compare to the rotex?  

I'm a hobbyist and the only Festool sander I own is the RO90 but I realise most of my projects are fairly large or would benefit from having a larger sander (eg. dining table, kitchen side table, head board for bed, wooden planks for accent wall...).  I do use the aggressive mode of the RO90 to flatten/smoothen some really dirty and crudy (varnish, paint, glue) planks of reclaimed lumber.  Would the Ceros be up to the task?

I'm still within the 30-days of my RO90 and wondering if I should go for the Ceros instead.  I really can't justify owning both sanders.

Edit: also, can owners comment on the noise Ceros vs rotex?  I work from my apartment and noise stresses my wife out...  thanks. 
 
I have used the Mirka that is on display in my local Woodcraft. It is a sweet sander...I've almost walked out of the store $500 poorer on a few occasions. I wouldn't compare it to the RO sanders but more along the ETS sanders or the non rotex mode on the rotex sanders.

If you have a local dealer, I would suggest a test run. The low profile is very comfortable in the hand and the dust collection is also great (due in part to the Abranet paper from Mirka). Also, the sound is very tolerable...very similar to the Festool sanders.

Some may see a downside to the fact that theres a transformer that the sander plugs into but the cord is considerably long from the transformer to the sander.

If you're flattening wider surfaces with the RO 90, that seems like a large task for that size sander...choices choices.

Let us know what you do!

Bob
 
Based on what others have posted and from a brief test run I did at a store I really doubt that the Ceros would be anywhere near as aggressive as a Rotex in the aggressive setting.  The Ceros is a real nice sander but if you need larger and aggressive I see an RO150 in your future.

Seth
 
I honestly don't think you're comparing apples with apples. The RO90 is small and very aggressive, plus it's incredibly flexible with the delta head interchangeability.

The Mirka ... isn't.

As stated previously, compare Mirka with ETSxxx sanders, not ROTEX and certainly not the 90.
 
SRSemenza said:
Based on what others have posted and from a brief test run I did at a store I really doubt that the Ceros would be anywhere near as aggressive as a Rotex in the aggressive setting.  The Ceros is a real nice sander but if you need larger and aggressive I see an RO150 in your future.

Seth
Click to expand...

Hey what's that up ahead?  Looks like a green slope...  ;D
 
Kev said:
I honestly don't think you're comparing apples with apples. The RO90 is small and very aggressive, plus it's incredibly flexible with the delta head interchangeability.

The Mirka ... isn't.

As stated previously, compare Mirka with ETSxxx sanders, not ROTEX and certainly not the 90.
Click to expand...

Kev, I totally agree they're not in the same class.  However, I'm just a hobbyist and I cannot afford more than 1 sander.  Any particular sander might be best for a certain task but for me any tool I eventually end up keeping needs to be competent in various tasks.  That was why I initially went with the RO90 for versatility: aggressive, finish sanding, deltex.  But the small pad size, unbalanced nature and loud noise are traits I failed to fully consider. 

I really like the aggressiveness of the RO90.  If the Ceros can match the aggressiveness of the RO90 (not RO150) that might be enough to make me switch. 

Another lesson learnt:  I never even considered the noise when I purchased the RO90 but it stressed out the wife so much and you know what that means...  >:( So if the Ceros is indeed as quiet as I read, it is attractive.
 
I was in the same boat as you, but ended up buying both the RO90 and Mirka Ceros 6".  I don't do a lot of sanding, but figured I probably won't have to ever buy another sander for the rest of my life now  :)

When I bought the Mirka Ceros, it came with an assortment of Abranet paper including Abranet HD.  This stuff is pretty damn aggressive, so I would say if you were to use that it should be what you are looking for.  The RO90 is a great little sander and is good for getting in tight spaces and also squared corners.  You won't be able to do that with the Mirka Ceros or the other Rotex sanders for that matter.

http://www.amazon.com/Abranet-HD-Assortment-Pack-each/dp/B005EG02OO
http://www.woodcraft.com/product/2005922/35325/mirka-abranet-6-assortment-pack-30-pack-10-ea-of-406080.aspx
 
I own several sanders - Ceros 6", Rotex 90, ETS-150/3 etc.

If you told me that I could have ONLY one of these I think it would be the Ceros. It's not as aggressive as the Rotex 90 in beast mode, but it does cover a lot more area and it is pretty powerful, so you may actually finish the job just as quickly unless you are really hogging in to the wood.

I really like the light weight of the head - it's great for working on vertical surfaces which is the main reason I own it.

For finish sanding large surfaces it's great - I use it until I get down to the final step and then the ETS-150 takes over.

However I wouldn't classify it as extremely quiet. Not really hugely different from the Rotex 90. If quiet is the main factor the ETS 150 is the one for you. It is really is a great finish sander.

It's too bad that you can't have two. The ETS-150 + RO-90 might be ideal for you.

Another option is a ETS-150 + a Bosch 1250DEVS. The Bosch in beast mode is pretty good, the combination is about the same cost as a Ceros and they cover a much wider range of motion options. Unless you are hogging down on stuff which will always be loud you can use the ETS-150.

In fact I think that's my recommendation to you. For the same price as the Ceros get a ETS-150 + a Bosch 1250DEVS.

 
mikeneron said:
I was in the same boat as you, but ended up buying both the RO90 and Mirka Ceros 6".  I don't do a lot of sanding, but figured I probably won't have to ever buy another sander for the rest of my life now  :)

When I bought the Mirka Ceros, it came with an assortment of Abranet paper including Abranet HD.  This stuff is pretty damn aggressive, so I would say if you were to use that it should be what you are looking for.  The RO90 is a great little sander and is good for getting in tight spaces and also squared corners.  You won't be able to do that with the Mirka Ceros or the other Rotex sanders for that matter.

http://www.amazon.com/Abranet-HD-Assortment-Pack-each/dp/B005EG02OO
http://www.woodcraft.com/product/2005922/35325/mirka-abranet-6-assortment-pack-30-pack-10-ea-of-406080.aspx
Click to expand...

+1
As a wise man said ( [wink]) they are apples & oranges.  Neither is a very good replacement for the other but they compliment each other very nicely.  If I absolutely had to choose only one... it would be the RO90 because of the flexibility.  However I would suffer where the Mirka sander is better.  The RO90 is harder to balance on larger flat surfaces.
 
jc said:
I'm a hobbyist and the only Festool sander I own is the RO90 but I realise most of my projects are fairly large or would benefit from having a larger sander (eg. dining table, kitchen side table, head board for bed, wooden planks for accent wall...).  I do use the aggressive mode of the RO90 to flatten/smoothen some really dirty and crudy (varnish, paint, glue) planks of reclaimed lumber.  Would the Ceros be up to the task?
Click to expand...

I think so.  Abranet discs go down to 80-grit and last pretty well.  Mirka also offers AbranetHD discs which (40, 60, 80-grit) that would probably be great for reclaimed lumber.  I've used them a bit and they are quite aggressive.  However, I've found that they dull much more quickly.  When they dull, they just stop working altogether.

I have the 6" CEROS.  I've played with the RO90 a bit at the store, but never used it in a real world application.  I was impressed with the RO90.

jc said:
Hey what's that up ahead?  Looks like a green slope...  ;D
Click to expand...

Hmm.  Time for me to make a new avatar?
 
Chris Has Flair said:
jc said:
I'm a hobbyist and the only Festool sander I own is the RO90 but I realise most of my projects are fairly large or would benefit from having a larger sander (eg. dining table, kitchen side table, head board for bed, wooden planks for accent wall...).  I do use the aggressive mode of the RO90 to flatten/smoothen some really dirty and crudy (varnish, paint, glue) planks of reclaimed lumber.  Would the Ceros be up to the task?
Click to expand...

I think so.  Abranet discs go down to 80-grit and last pretty well.  Mirka also offers AbranetHD discs which (40, 60, 80-grit) that would probably be great for reclaimed lumber.  I've used them a bit and they are quite aggressive.  However, I've found that they dull much more quickly.  When they dull, they just stop working altogether.

I have the 6" CEROS.  I've played with the RO90 a bit at the store, but never used it in a real world application.  I was impressed with the RO90.

jc said:
Hey what's that up ahead?  Looks like a green slope...   ;D
Click to expand...

Hmm.  Time for me to make a new avatar?
Click to expand...

Perhaps more of the girl, less of the pagoda???  [big grin]
 
Not sure what is available in the US, but in the UK the Ceros is available in 2.5mm, 5mm and 8mm orbits. I've got the 5mm which is a good compromise - can be used fairly aggressively with 80g but can also denib between coats of finish with 400g without any noticeable swirls.
 
The 5mm stroke model is currently available in North America.  I know that the 2.5mm model is coming but I'm not sure about the 8mm.  Do you know if somebody wants, say the 2.5mm and 8mm models, they need to buy the entire package twice, or can the sander be bought independently of the transformer?
 
There have been many many days when I think that if I only were to own one sander it would be either the ro90 or the ets125. The ets125 is a very versatile 5". You can put 80g on it and do fairly aggressive sanding, but it takes a bit longer than a rotex would. But, you can turn around and put 220 on it and sand anything from drywall patches to cabinets. Plus, there is just something about the lightweight of it, and the way it fits the hand that make it tough to live without. I have used the Ceros. That whole boat anchor you have to accomodate with it are a turnoff. As well, I have hear from many users that the abranet burns out base pads like crazy, which I understand can be costly to replace. Havent had Granat throw a pad under the bus on me yet. There is alot to be said for well designed abrasive backing.
 
Scott B. said:
I have hear from many users that the abranet burns out base pads like crazy, which I understand can be costly to replace. Havent had Granat throw a pad under the bus on me yet. There is alot to be said for well designed abrasive backing.
Click to expand...

You are supposed to use a pad protector between the base and abrasive when you use Abranet disks.

 
Scott B. said:
There have been many many days when I think that if I only were to own one sander it would be either the ro90 or the ets125. The ets125 is a very versatile 5". You can put 80g on it and do fairly aggressive sanding, but it takes a bit longer than a rotex would. But, you can turn around and put 220 on it and sand anything from drywall patches to cabinets. Plus, there is just something about the lightweight of it, and the way it fits the hand that make it tough to live without. I have used the Ceros. That whole boat anchor you have to accomodate with it are a turnoff. As well, I have hear from many users that the abranet burns out base pads like crazy, which I understand can be costly to replace. Havent had Granat throw a pad under the bus on me yet. There is alot to be said for well designed abrasive backing.
Click to expand...

Chris Wong did a nice review of the Mirka sander over on his website:  http://flairwoodworks.com/2012/03/13/review-of-the-mirka-ceros/

I'm still using the same ~$6.00 pad protector for almost a year -- still going strong & no need to align holes when changing disks.  If you work mainly in your shop you can mount the transformer to your vac in a similar fashion that Chris did for a handy setup.
 
Thanks for linking my review.  My focus was apparently distracted by my avatar.

The pad protector - a thin piece of material with hooks on one side and loops on the other side - does a great job at protecting the pad.  I've been using the same one for over a year.  Being a year old, it doesn't hold discs as well as a new one, but they still stay attached well.

The transformer and hose connection was an annoying inconvenience until I took the time to adapt the CEROS to the Festool system:
 
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