How long have you been a festoolie?

[HowardH]

After lurking about a Woodcraft store for quite some time wondering what this Festool stuff was, I was formally introduced to the system in late December, thanks to LOML.  How long ago did you discover Festool and are you still using them?  How much different are the tools today compared to when you made your first dive into the Festool pool?  Do you feel the quality is the same?  Better? Worse?  Just curious...

 

[Jesse Cloud]

I'm about a year and a half down the slippery slope.  Actually, I find myself using them more and more as I learn more about them.  I have a hunch that I have just barely scratched the surface of what they can do.  Right now I'm building a dining table.  The top is about 80 inches long and 40 wide and heavy!  Definitely a case of "take the tool to the wood, not the wood to the tool."

Even in that short time, I have seen a couple of improvements with new models of the tools I use, not revolutionary, but substantial marginal improvements.  Can't say that about my delta or dewalt tools, they seem to "improve" by replacing more iron with plastic with each year.

 

[Daviddubya]

It was close to four years ago when I made my first Festool acquisition - a barrel jig saw.  I had seen some Festool products in a friend's shop, and he raved about them.  I needed a jig saw that would cut reliably square in 2X material, and I bought my first Festool, replacing a Bosch jig saw.  After using the Festool saw for about a year, and being very pleased, I made the leap with a package deal that included the ATF55, RO150, MFT1080, CT22, ETS150/3 and OF1400 and became an addict.  A year later I added a second MFT and most recently bought a detail sander when the $50 rebates were in full swing about 18 months ago.  In the meantime I have placed a few accessory orders.

I am a hobbyist that makes some money doing woodworking projects for others, so I guess that makes me a semi-professional.  A few of the tools have been upgraded by Festool since I bought, but I have not felt the need to rush out and buy the new model.  The ATF55 and RO150 I have work just fine.  I use my Festools on a regular basis and never feel disappointed that I made the plunge.  The initial cost is a bit much to swallow, but once over that hurdle, enjoying the tools far exceeds the pain of writing the check.  The quality of the tools has not changed over the years I have bought and used them - they are still the best tools on the market for my money.

 

[Lou Miller]

Its been about 1-1/2 years for me. I was very skeptical at first. I just couldn't get over the cost. I finally decided to break down and try the TS55, an MFT1080, and the guide rail accesory kit. It didn't take long at all for me to understand why most of the stuff cost what it does (I'm still a little stubborn on a few of their things though). I added an RO150, ETS 150/3, DX-93, OF1400, OF1010, hole drilling jig, a systainer for sandpaper and a 9 drawer sortainer.

I'm not the type that will just trust any tool or accessory because of the name on it. I still look very carefully at every tool before I make any purchases. Quality is the most important thing I look at, but durability, service, accessories, and price are included too. I won't be getting all of the tools Festool offers, but I am very happy with what I have. The RS2, LS130, more sortainers, and possibly a vac are in my somewhat near future. I'll also take a long look at the Kapex when it arrives here in the US, but its going to have blow me away to buy one.

The only tool I own that has changed is the RO150. I bought my TS55 just as they were changing over from the ATF saws. Everything else is current. 

 

[ejantny]

I bought my first Festool a Trion jigsaw about two years ago.

I have used it off and on and knew from using it that Fetools were of a quality that it above the rest.

Since moving I've obtained just about every Festool there is and use them daily. I'm the type of a person when it comes to stuff I buy I want the best of the best and Festool fits the bill.

 

[Dan Clark]

I've been a Festoolian for a little more than a year.  Fortunately, all of my tools have been the new versions.  And, I'm very satisifed with them.

It's my impression that 1) Festool makes continual improvements where is matters (mostly inside) and 2) that the product quality has remained high or improved.  For example, I was fortunate to walk into a local tool store earlier this week the day after the owner received his Domino demo unit.  So, I had to go over and and droo...  uhh, play with it.  I literally had only a couple of minutes with it, but my impression was that it was just as solid as any other Festool that I've bought.  That is, with one exception - the fence action.  If anything, they raised the quality bar with the Domino fence.

The fence on the Domino swings forward for angled domino cuts.  When I rotated the fence forward and backward, it was amazingly smooth.  It clicked in and out of the detents with a very precise feeling.  I guess what I'm saying is that the minute or so that I played with the fence made a VERY positive impression on me.  And I'm a bit Festool-jaded.

Regards,

Dan.

 

[Matthew Schenker]

Howard,
I got my first Festool tool back in 2000, when the tools were still called Festo and were being sold by a different distributor in California.  I bought a plunge saw and guide rail and liked it a lot.  It seems funny now looking back at that, but after I got the saw I kind of figured that was it for me and lost track of what the company was doing.

Then, when I was looking for a powerful sander in 2003, I bought a Fein and a matching dust extractor.  I was not happy with it.  It was that that I vaguely recalled that Festo sold sanders, so I checked in on their Web site again.  I was amazed to see how much better the offerings were.  I reached Bob Marino, and chose to buy the Rotex, as well as an MFT, a new saw, and a Dust Extractor.  I used those tools for a while and was amazed at the smoothness, design, and safety.  As my other sanders began frustrating me, I replaced them with Festool models, and each time my appreciation for the Festool system concept really went way up.  Along the way (not sure of the exact order) I added a jigsaw, router, more sanders, another router.

Then I had an issue with my dust extractor.  For some reason, it kept turning itself off in the middle of a job.  I called Festool.  The service guy patiently went through all the troubleshooting steps with me, and in the end sent me a new dust extractor.  Well, I had never had that kind of assistance from any other company before!

At that time, I had some involvement in online forums for Ryobi and Ridgid.  Festool, it seemed to me, must have as many interested customers as those other tool companies, and they must have their own forum, right?  Well, searching the Web turned up nothing!  Being a sort of amateur social scientist, I wondered about other people who use Festool tools.  Was there a common point of view among them?  Were there particular techniques they shared?  What could I learn from them?  I decided to create a quick little group on Yahoo and see what happened.  Just an experiment.  The rest is clear!

Matthew

 

[Michael H Hinkel]

5 Days ;D

 

[putttn]

Two weeks and still buying.  I haven't been in woodworking for over 25 years so the stuff I do have is dated and not much of it so in a way I'm fortunat.  I did purchase a used Shopsmith which I'll probably sell but ended up with the MFT 1080, TS55, 1400, FEQ150 and 22 vacuum.  Will also get the Jigsaw.

 

[Tinker]

I was hooked back when they were known as Festo, as with some others, here.  I had seen pictures of this funny looking Festo saw in various WW publications.  They always showed it with this huge plate attached and I kept thinking that was a rediculous way to make a circular saw.  that big plate looked awfully clumsy to tote around and surely, nobody in their right mind would ever buy such an ugly and clumsy tool.  i was definitely not even interrested enough to try to look at one.

Fast forward:  i had been looking at John Lucas's demo for a portable fence arrangement (I'm not mentally registering the name of the tool right at the moment, sorry) where one could lock onto a piece of wood and using circular saw, make a perfectly straight cut.  Also, a router could be locked on and the wood joint could be edge planed to a perfect square and gluable edge.  I buy a lot of my lumber rough cut, unsurfaced and sometimes an edge has not seen the milling saw blade.  I had several boards that kept being shoved aside til I had a project to make best use of them.  They had a nice grain and I did not want to cut into easier to work shorter pieces.  I decide to take a ride down to my toy store and see if my friend, John, could order one of those heavy straightedge back kiling things.  A 60"er weighed something like 30 or 40 #s I seem to recall.  I walked into the toy store and off to my right was this rdiculous work bench that looked like it had been made in a Swiss cheese factory.  There on top of it was the strangest looking circular saw I had ever seen in my life (Compared to my 30 and 40 year old Milwaukees) sitting on top of that long plate I had seen in the adds.  "What in heck is that?!!!" I asked John.  "Here, let me show you."

Well, John showed me.  He then allowed me to play around with it to get a feel of the controls.  He offered to let me cut a few pieces of wood.  By then I was aalready hooked and told him i did not need to cut anything.  "Just wrap up a saw for me."  Well, he did not have a saw handy to give me right then, but he did order.  As it was, i walked out of there with the order for an ATF 65 (I later decided I shoud have the ATF 55 instead >>> no problem).  I loaded MFT 1080 and CT 33 into the back of my truck and could not sleep for the next week, i was so anxious to pick up my saw.  I did manage, thru bad habits from using Milwaukee saws for so many years to do plunge cutting of form lumber and scaffold lumber and dropping the saws directly into the plywood, run into a problem.  Once set up to make my first plunge cut, I raised the back of the saw into the air and plunged on down.  Luckilly, the only scars i have from that eppisode are on the top of my guide bar.  Once I got my thinking organized to the Festo ways, i could not wait to get back to the toystore tto order my OF 1000 and i have been slipping all over the place ever since.  it's like i have one foot in the toystore and the other on a pile of banana peels.

it must be 3 or 4 years altogether now, and still drooling over new additions.

As for the high pricing some have mentioned, one thing I found out many moons ago:  "Cheap ain't cheap"

Tinker

 

[HowardH]

It certainly appears that the Festool phenomenon has been a fairly recent occurence for most of us.  I know they have been around since the 20's.  It just took a long time, I think, for them to find their way over here but are we ever glad they did!  I don't suspect I will ever have to replace the majority of the things I have bought so far.  In that regard, they will end up costing me less in the long run.  At least that is what I tell my spouse. :  I still have some old B&D stuff I acquired at least 20 years ago and they look and perform like toys compared to the Festool versions.  My old circular saw will be heading out to the shed this weekend as well as some other still functioning but otherwise out-moded tools.  Domino up next, then the OF1400 and then the C12.  That should keep me busy for awhile.

 

[brandon.nickel]

I took the plunge around Christmas of 2005, so about 14 months ago.  At the time I was in a house with a 2 car garage and needed to keep two cars in it.  Now, a 20x20 garage with 2 cars in it doesn't make for a lot of tool room, so my desire for a cabinet saw didn't seem like it was going to work out.  After TONS of internet searching I wandered across John Lucas' reviews of the Festool system.  It intrigued me enough to read everything else on the internet regarding Festool (excepting the Yahoo group, which I didn't run across).  Many, many hours of research later I decided that this system was the solution to my space limitations.  So, I jumped in with a TS55, CT22, OF1400, MFT1080, and a Trion jigsaw.

Shortly thereafter I moved to a different house and now my space has more than doubled and I got to use my tools to build all of the vanities and cabinets in my new house.  Talk about a trial by fire!  In fact, I was temporarily living in an apartment while building the house, so I did much of the work in a 10x30 storage building off one 20A circuit.  I don't think there's any way that I could have done this project without using Festool.  In fact, the only limitation that I've discovered is my inability to rip large amounts of stock (say 200' of 1.5" wide cherry for face frames).  If I could do this easily with my Festool equipment I'd be completely happy with it.  I had to borrow a friend's terrible Jet tablesaw (we went through two and the 2nd one's blade is still not square to the table).  It really makes me appreciate the quality of my Festools.  However, I still needed its rip-fence.  Bring me a CMS and I'd be complete.  You'll also need a bandsaw and planer for resawing and thicknessing of rough stock.  Everything else can be taken care of with the Festools.

During my cabinet project I decided I needed the LR32 system (which Bob Marino supplied me with).  My next project is building a crib for my new 4-mo old daughter and I've ordered myself a Domino because I don't have a drill-press and dado blade to do mortises the traditional way.  Plus, with my new baby-imposed time constraints I think the speed of the Domino will make this process much, much faster. 

 

[fcraven]

Hi, my name is Fred, and I'm a Festoolie

After finally getting my Bachelor of Music degree in 1994, I got a day job as a painter. I worked on real nice houses, with lots of sanding and dust prior to paint. Somehow, I discovered the Fein detail sander (known today as the "MultiMaster"). This marvelous wonder of German technology was one of the best tools ever to be added to the companies roster. It sanded, cut out caulk, and could plunge cut in very difficult locations (by the way, the accessories available today are better than back then). Next came the Vein VAX, a Grinder, and the ROS. All of which are great, but they piqued my interest.

One day, I spyed with my little eye in Fine Woodworking, an add for Festo Tooltechnic. Hmmmm... Another German tool maker. The internet was still growing, so looking them up wasn't like today, so, I called the number and ordered a catalog (a rather big catalog actually). Verily I was fascinated. Whereas Fein was on the industrial side of things Festo seemed to be on the Furniture building woodworking side of things--where I wanted to be. Oh, and those Systainers were really cool too.

By this time I was singing with the opera by night and sitting at a desk by day. It was time to expand the woodworking horizon on the weekend. I wasn't sure which way I wanted to go. The Festo products had a lot going for them, but they were limited (the tools being brought into the US were more restricted) So, Instead of getting some Festo, I bought an INCA table saw, with US standard 12" blade. Very nice, Festo would follow after a couple of other purchases, but then I got laid off.

Time Passed and I was working in another place. Festo became Festool. Somewhere in there I spoke with Christian, and he sent me some German Tanos catalogs (which I still have), along with some information on the yet to be released linear sander. Bob Marino became a prime contact person, and he sent me a new Festool catalog (but this time it was much thinner). Alas, I did not yet buy. Finances would not yet support the investment.

A month ago, my olf friend and employer--the painter http://www.paolinopainting.com/ needed some help with a closet. Just some stupid closet shelving. I helped, had a blast, and said I never looked like I was having so much fun. Could it be that I should do this? Can I actually make money cutting wood? The time had come for Festool. Now with an excuse in hand (make money with tools) and a supporting wife.

I finally ordered my first Festools. I now have an MFT1080, and TS55. These tools are already making money. Hopefully they will be joined by many other tools this years maybe some before the April 1st price increase, and, if all goes well, maybe a Kapex later this year.

I want to share the good news with carpenters and woodworkers everywhere I go. Last night I met my future cousin-inlaw (he's a carpenter in D.C.). "Have you heard of Festool?" I ask. "No" he answers. If only I had some catalgos with me. "They are the best tools available...yada yada yada..." Then we had to eat our steak.

But now, I must go. There's wood to be cut.

 

[Dan Lyke]

In fact, the only limitation that I've discovered is my inability to rip large amounts of stock (say 200' of 1.5" wide cherry for face frames).

I've approached a few rips of narrow hardwood stock (including ripping down some 1.5x.75" actual birch down the middle, and tapering some oak legs with similarly thin stock), and it seems to me that with some extra wood to support the rail (when the stock you're cutting from is narrow) and a couple of "L" measuring blocks that include the blade kerf (so you can put 'em on the edge of the wood and align the rubber strip to 'em), regular rips aren't all that hard.

Maybe not quite as fast if you're doing a lot of cuts as a table saw, but what am I missing?

 

[bassman00]

Let's see.  Just under a month.  One thing I noticed is the guide rail tightness adjusters on the TS55 are now thumb wheels while the manual says to adjust them with a screw driver.  I guess they continually improve the usability of their products. 

PaulD

 

[Stan Tillinghast]

Let's see--10 hours. 
I was looking for something like a good straightedge to use my circular saw to do some ripping; then was thinking about maybe getting a contractor's table saw. In looking up table saw reviews, I found Sawmill Creek forum and references there to a myterious Festool, which seemed to be widely used, highly recommended, and I had NEVER heard of it. So I looked up more on the web last night.
This morning I found a dealer in Santa Rosa, an hour and a half drive away from my place on the coast. They had an AT55, and told me I could pick up the MTF 1080 part of the package when it came in.

This afternoon I did the rip cuts, with no drama, little noise, and with vastly--vastly better control and sense of safety.
Furthermore the saw cut looks like it came out of a jointer.
What a revelation!
I'm going for another package next: the 1400 router and the 33 dust extractor.
I look forward to learning from you much more experienced woodworkers what I can do with the Festools which will be appearing in my workshop.

 

[Michael Kellough]

Let's see.  Just under a month.  One thing I noticed is the guide rail tightness adjusters on the TS55 are now thumb wheels while the manual says to adjust them with a screw driver.  I guess they continually improve the usability of their products. 

PaulD

Have you downloaded Rick's pdf manual for the TS saw? I was going to link to it but I can't find it.

Hey guys, where is Rick's TS 55 manual? Does the forum have a page of links to this kind of stuff?

 

[Brice Burrell]

I'm going for another package next: the 1400 router and the 33 dust extractor.
I look forward to learning from you much more experienced woodworkers what I can do with the Festools which will be appearing in my workshop.

  Stan, when you get the vac you will love your Festool even more, have a blast with the new saw.

 

[JJSchumer]

After a back injury in 2000, I needed a new way to cut sheet goods easily.
I moved my PM66 Sliding Table Cabinet saw into the barn, oiled and covered it up.
(actually i got my brothers to put it in the barn)
I had seen, and used Festool at a few shows, but always thought.. Ouch, that's expensive !!
Made up my mind to start new with the "system"
Off I went to the Festool site,
Started with an ATF 55,  a CT33  and a few guide rails, building a Display Humidor for a friend that owns a Cigar Parlor.
After using my good old PC sanders to create a dust storm sanding that cabinet....
I heaved them out and bought an RO125 !!
I have since added 2 MFT 1080's , a MFT 800, OF1400, CT12, VS600 and many other
accessories.
So..........
It has been about seven years for me, and I do not regret a thing!!
I only wish I had done it sooner!!!

John

 

[Ted Miller]

About 3 minutes ago, just placed my first order with Bob here at FOG. Can't wait to try the new tools out, have some side jobs that these tools will work great at...