My/Your Festool Embarrassing Moments.

Stephen B

Stephen B

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May 6, 2013
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[size=13pt]An opportunity for you to share your embarrassing Festool moments, stuff ups etc., ; witnessed or not. The objectives here are some fun perhaps but also to assist others.

So -

1/ Sanding without a sanding disc attached. $A70 Mistake for new RO150 Pad.

2/ Vacuming out a Router Systainer and  spending the next 30mins extracting a jambed turn knob from the hose.

Your turn dear reader -
 
I dont have any embarrassing moments using tools,

But the time I plugged in the 2200 while it was sitting on top of my MFT fortunately its as well balanced as it is so it didnt chase me around the shop,

or the time I had the blade on my TS set to deep and it cut through my MFT and left a nice kerf mark in the aluminium or the guide I cut with my TS Glad I dont have any embaraassing moments

 
Recently i helped a neighbour setting up some skirting by loaning out my battery-driven brad-nailer. He was back within 5 min., complaining it wouldn't work. I followed him to the skirting, pressed the trigger: nothing. Went back to change batteries when i noticed i had it in 'single shot mode', i.e. the motor only starts up when you press the nose to the wood..
felt a bit stupid, i did..
 
The very first cut with my TS75 and 1400 rail about 5 years ago...........I was cross cutting a 40mm laminate worktop and it wasn't as well supported as it should have been. As the cut was completed, the 2 sections of worktop nipped up together and the TS75 kicked back and jumped off the rail taking a large chunk out of the sacrificial strip and rail edge. A lesson learned, but I was seriously peed off having just bought the saw and rail brand new.
Thankfully, that was the only time it's ever happened and it could have been a lot worse.
 
Dropped my TSC55 on the ground, cracking the base plate.  I had just made a rail cut, and forgot that I hadn't clamped the rail, so when I slid the saw back to the front of the cut to rest it, it tipped backwards and struck the concrete floor of my shop.  Service was cool, though, and only charged me the unit cost of a new plate.
 
The time I had an opportunity to purchase a LNIB Kapex 120 with cart and wings for $1000 USD.  I already had one and couldn't justify another. Wish I had bought it.  :-\
 
Cutting a sequence of mortises in a long board. Cut the last one and stepped back to admire my work and noticed each mortise was slightly further from the top of the board than the previous one. I had not adequately tightened the fence on my Domino 500. I glued tenons into each mortise, tightened the Domino fence, and recut the mortises. There are many other stories of screw ups. They have a common thread. Most happened when I got in a hurry, was tired, or wasn't paying attention. I've learned to be more careful, think through what I'm doing, and stop when I'm frustrated or tired.
 
Distinctive Interiors said:
The very first cut with my TS75 and 1400 rail about 5 years ago...........I was cross cutting a 40mm laminate worktop and it wasn't as well supported as it should have been. As the cut was completed, the 2 sections of worktop nipped up together and the TS75 kicked back and jumped off the rail taking a large chunk out of the sacrificial strip and rail edge. A lesson learned, but I was seriously peed off having just bought the saw and rail brand new.
Thankfully, that was the only time it's ever happened and it could have been a lot worse.
Click to expand...

But you weren't injured! 

Peter
 
Because I use my MFT as a sawhorse at times have plunged thru the table and also partially cut the profile.  Had the user caused kickback issue with more than one guide rail.  Yanked on a cord and broke a prong on a plug-it cord.  Sanded without a pad.

Stuff happens.

Peter
 
I had a minor kickback when I plunged the ts55 for the first time, and chewed the rail a bit, at least the instructor of the class didn't get mad when a rail was being used to make the first cut in the class.
 
Using the compact cleaning set, I have (quite a few times unfortunately) vacuumed with the suction relief wide open wondering why it's taking so long to clean up or why my vac just isn't getting it done despite a new bag.....
 
Peter Halle said:
Distinctive Interiors said:
The very first cut with my TS75 and 1400 rail about 5 years ago...........I was cross cutting a 40mm laminate worktop and it wasn't as well supported as it should have been. As the cut was completed, the 2 sections of worktop nipped up together and the TS75 kicked back and jumped off the rail taking a large chunk out of the sacrificial strip and rail edge. A lesson learned, but I was seriously peed off having just bought the saw and rail brand new.
Thankfully, that was the only time it's ever happened and it could have been a lot worse.
Click to expand...

But you weren't injured! 

Peter
Click to expand...

No, thankfully..!!! Only my pride was hurt as I was actually showing a work mate how impressive the cut was going to be.... [embarassed]
 
Not Festool; but I impatiently removed my router from my dovetail jig while it was spinning down.  Jig still works, but I replaced the bit.
 
I've found that routers are the easiest tools to screw up using.  I've dinged one of my MFTs by setting down while using a guide bushing and neglecting to release the plunge knob...wood putty filler and bench dog inserted to mold the hole, then some judicious sanding.  Just last week nicked my Woodpeckers radius jig, luckily not the actual radius, by not lifting enough and pulling back too soon.  This was mostly a function of too much speed as I was hurrying, making product stops for a customer's produce area where four murders and a suicide had occurred...morbid job, would have preferred not have know where the job was going.
 
Well today I just blew a hole through a bed rail. Using my DF700 I forgot to switch from 50mm to 25!
I'm sure I'm not the only one who has done such a thing. Time to make a new rail [mad]
 
Not sure how to post a new question, but just called festool and was told they never heard of their large diameter hose making a high pitch noise. He also tried telling me my brand new Ct 26 and brand new hose was clogged. Not happy to say the least. [sad]
 
Would having the wrong end of the power cord at the end of the vacuum/power cord sleeve exercise qualify?

Yeah, I guess it would.

Recoverable, thankfully.

Cheers - Gary
 
Jason medley said:
Not sure how to post a new question, but just called festool and was told they never heard of their large diameter hose making a high pitch noise. He also tried telling me my brand new Ct 26 and brand new hose was clogged. Not happy to say the least. [sad]
Click to expand...

Hi and  [welcome]
...are you UK based? Some times I have noticed the hoses do whistle or resonate sometimes. I guess this is the winding in the hose causing it
rg
Phil
 
i've failed to tighten the depth stop on my router more than once, my mft has a nice collection of partial mortises and groves on it. Also forgot to set the depth of the df500 when cutting 6mm mortises on 3/4 ply, got some nice thru mortises.

Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk Pro
 
[size=13pt]Thankyou to all who have participated or read this Thread. Some good experiences and some salitary lessons. [eek] [big grin]

One more from me -

There have  been discussions elsewhere on the FOG regarding the safe use of slot bitts with hand held routers. I used to do this once as a de facto biscuit joiner; then I got a D500.

Anyway the embarrassment was telling my dealer that I needed a new Plug It Cord for my 1400 Router. You dear reader can fill in the embarrassing details.
[size=8pt]
[Although we have 240 V down here, we also have mandated switchboard trip switches.]
 
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