Let's talk sander pads --

[PeterK]

Long time Festool sander user. Wondering what you use the various sander pads for?

Years ago I switched to the hard pads on my random orbital sanders to get better results on pine and red oak and to get truly flat surfaces on really dense materials. This was to reduce the excess sanding on the softer grain areas. I also use the hard pad on round over edges at times without problems. Definitely saw an improvement on panel sanding with the hard pads and have stuck with them ever since.

Got me thinking, what are the best uses for the tool supplied soft pad? Also the super soft pad? Or the interface pads? Seems to me a pad that orbits no matter how soft is going to eat off material on one side of a curve and not give a reliable contoured effect. The soft pad over the 5-6" pad area resists flexing for contours in my limited experience yet under performs on flat surfaces. Doesn't seem soft enough for contoured surfaces. The super soft pad seems would only be a benefit for sanding or buffing something like a boat with a gradual curve to it.

Ramblings from a curious mind this morning.

 

[Poindexter]

I use soft pads on my RO90 for curves.  I also use a non-marring pad on the RS2 when sanding on edges.  But, like you, would love to hear some other pad uses that might benefit my work.

And yeah, every sander should have a hard pad!

 

[Discap]

I use the interface and super soft pads for paint and body work. ETS 150 and RO 150

Bill

 

[Goz]

I've been using the interface pad with my RO90 when sanding baseboard and door trim.  For face frames, I typically use the hard pad to keep things flat.  I have used the soft pad for rounding over edges, but typically it's just the base for my interface pad, so I can easily switch between that and the hard pad.

Sent from my SM-G930R4 using Tapatalk

 

[Cheese]

Unfortunately, there's no hard pad available for the old ETS 125, Pro 5 LTD or new ETS 125.

That's a shame, I wonder if a ETS EC 125 hard pad could be fitted?

 

[grbmds]

Bought the RO125 a few months ago with an interface pad. So far, I have used the interface pad for carving out the seat of a chair I was making as part of a class. Wood carving and sanding curved surfaces is what I plan on using the interface pad for. I might even buy the RO90 with an interface pad for smaller carving jobs. With 40 grit sandpaper, it has been a great assist on the chair seat after some rough work with another tool.

 

[rljatl]

I second that.  Hard pad for the Pro 5, please

 

[live4ever]

I imagine Festool doesn't believe a hard pad is useful for any of their 2mm stroke machines, why I'm not exactly sure.  The RTS and DTS also do not have a hard pad available.

 

[AlexThePalex]

I second that.  Hard pad for the Pro 5, please

Third-ed, and one for the DTS and RTS also please.

Back to the OP's question, a (super) soft pad is meant for curves on wood, but mostly cars. The idea is that you keep the sander moving at all times so you never stop long enough in one spot to make a dent. Obviously the extra flexibility of the pad helps to keep the pressure as even as possible.

 

[PeterK]

I ordered the hard and super-soft pads for my new ETC sander. Still wondering what advantage the supplied soft pad has as it really isn't much softer - at least seems not soft enough for curved surfaces. Would personally rather see the hard pad supplied as standard. Just a curious guy.

 

[ear3]

I typically use the soft pad on my ETS 150/3 when doing veneered surfaces.  It minimizes the possibility of burning through the material.

Interface pads are very useful, as others have mentioned, when doing curved/contoured surfaces, and occasionally, when doing high grit sanding on flat surfaces.