New Member with Rotex Question

P

Paul Perry

Member
Joined
Nov 14, 2007
Messages
24
Hello all,

Bought my first Festools (TS-55, CTL-22, MFT 1080, OF-1010, MFS-400) a couple of months ago and have been lurking here for about the same amount of time.

This group is amazing! I have learned a lot from this group so far and am continuing to learn. Thanks to all of you!

I should say right off that I am a visual artist, not a professional woodworker, and that I bought the various Festools to make small pieces and sketches and models of larger pieces.

At the moment I am looking to purchase two Festool sanders: a DX-93 (any chance that it will be updated with a Plug-it socket any time soon?) and a Rotex. Concerning the latter, I have read everything I could find on this forum concerning the two Rotex sanders and have had both in my hands at a nearby dealer -- but I am still on the fence about which to purchase.

Does anyone have any experience sanding *very* small objects with either of the Rotex sanders? And if so would there be any advantage in choosing one over the other?

Does anyone have any experience roughing out small freeform curved shapes using the soft backing plate with either the 125 or 150? Again would there be any advantage in choosing one over the other?

And one last question-- how is dust collection while sanding curved shapes with the Rotex (where only a part of the sanding disk is in contact with the work)?

Thanks again for the great group!

-- Paul

 
Hi Paul,
it all depends on what you want to sand. It seems you are sanding small curved pieces. The best sander for this is LS130. Rotex is really great, but for larger flat pieces. You can't get into the corners with it, so you must add a D93 for this purpose. Consider combination of RO150 and LS130.
Joseph
 
I use both Rotex 125 & 150 sanders. The 125 is much better for smaller pieces.
I have sanded convex curvered pieces with both sanders & they worked very well.
 
Hi Paul,

Welcome aboard! You're going to love your Festools. Please don't forget to post some of your Festool projects in the Members Projects area. It would be fun to see what you're up to.

It would be helpful to us if you would define "small". One person's small is another persons gigantic. I have used my RTS400 to sand pieces with 3/4" cubes (small puzzles). It was a bit aggressive. And, yes, if the sandpaper is not completely in contact with the surface you'll get more dust. I don't have either of the RO's, though I'm leaning toward the RO125 as it's smaller and lighter. I'd use it for my furniture building (chairs, tables, cabinets). Let us know which direction you go.
 
Thank you all for your replies and suggestions.

In reply to Seth's question: I'll be using the Rotex for the flatter bits of models with compound curves.

In reply to Poto's question: I see your point. When considering which Rotex to purchase I see "small" as measuring between 5-10 cm.

As I mentioned I will also be purchasing a Deltex which I understand from Jerry Work's tutorial on the Festool sanders is perfect for fine detail work.

-- Paul
 
I'd think the rotex would be HUGE compared to the workpiece and very unwieldy (workpiece is 4" and the smaller sander is 5").  Festool RO sander dust collection works best when the sander is flat on the workpiece.  I'd think a Deltex and / or a LS130 would cover all of your bases...
 
Paul
will you be holding these small pieces by hand or be fastening them down with two face tape, vacuum or my favorite, a dab of hot glue. this could make a difference on your choice of sander.
 
Paul Perry said:
Hello all,

... I should say right off that I am a visual artist, not a professional woodworker, and that I bought the various Festools to make small pieces and sketches and models of larger pieces.

At the moment I am looking to purchase two Festool sanders: a DX-93 (any chance that it will be updated with a Plug-it socket any time soon?) and a Rotex. Concerning the latter, I have read everything I could find on this forum concerning the two Rotex sanders and have had both in my hands at a nearby dealer -- but I am still on the fence about which to purchase.

Does anyone have any experience sanding *very* small objects with either of the Rotex sanders? And if so would there be any advantage in choosing one over the other?

Does anyone have any experience roughing out small freeform curved shapes using the soft backing plate with either the 125 or 150? Again would there be any advantage in choosing one over the other?

And one last question-- how is dust collection while sanding curved shapes with the Rotex (where only a part of the sanding disk is in contact with the work)?

Thanks again for the great group!

-- Paul
Click to expand...

Paul,

I have both an RO 125 with all the pads, a DX 93 and an LS 130.  I am not an artist.  I am a DIYer involved in refurbishing my old house which has lots of natural woodwork, carpentry for remodeling this house, and making furniture for myself (when I cannot find the "right" piece in a store - which is often).

I have used my RO 125 to sand old varnish off the flat and gently convexly curved portions of the molding trim around my windows and doorframes and portions of the baseboard, using the medium and soft pad.  Then finished sanding the tighter areas with my DX 93.  You are correct that when sanding curved areas with the pad hanging out in space that dust collection is not as good as when sanding on a wide flat surface such as a table top.  But the dust collection is still pretty good.  I turn the vacuum machine toward the high end of its range when sanding "over the edge."

I have also done my own limited versions of "free form" sanding, usually to smooth down rough edges cut with a saw.  I have formed free form edges on 2x10s that I shaped to be the main joists for an arched bridge I made for my wife's flower garden using my RO 125 and 36 and 50 grit Rubin abrasives (Cristal was not available when I did this).  I thought it worked rather well, but I don't have your experience base to use for comparison to other tools for free form shaping.  The RO 125 was not as fast as using my 7" angle grinder with 36 grit, but that machine spins a lot faster and does not have any dust collection.  I used the 7" machine before getting my RO 125 to level out a bunch of joist risers for a section of old decking I rebuilt.  I needed to remove quite a bit of wood from several of those joists to match my string lines, and it went surprisingly quick - about one hour to level a 15' x 30' area. 

I need to make some mahogany molding to match that around my windows and doors.  I may try a combination of sawing, routing, jointing and sanding with my RO 125 to achieve the needed profile.  The alternative is to pay for a custom knife, setup, etc. at a millwork shop, and I only need maybe 40' of 3 1/2" trim.

I hope this is of help to you.  Don't forget Festool's 30-day trial period.  If the tools cannot do what you need, you can return them.

Dave R.
 
Thank you all for your advice and suggestions.

I now realise that neither of the two Rotex machines is appropriate for small pieces of wood. It looks now as if I'll purchase a Deltex and one of the smaller sanders.

Somewhat off topic: I've recently discovered that Hegner (another German company... I own one of their scroll saws) makes a workbench surface sander which might be perfect for flat sanding of small, delicate pieces of wood.
http://www.hegner-gmbh.com/TWS230.htm

-- Paul
 
In addition to Sand-Flea there is a unit made by Stockroom Supply (stockroomsupply.com, I believe) I have one and like it very much. Mine is 30 inches wide and can flatten and flush a glue-up quite quickly, although big pieces take a little finesse. I have used it for small pieces as well and can actually 'joint' surfaces, taking out bow and twist on parts that would make me nervous on a jointer. Hooked to a CT22 is is a pretty clean machine to use.
 
I was aware of the existence of the Sand Flee but not about the Stockroom Supply unit. A quick look at the site of the latter has got me excited about what I might be able to add to the Hegner machine to make it more useful...

-- Paul
 
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