Quick Festool Cordless Drill Question

P

PC4CAB

Member
Joined
May 2, 2012
Messages
10
Folks,

New to the forum, and new to Festool. While I'm struggling with the cost of the various drills (I'm leaning toward a T12, but may only have budget for a CXS) I did have one question. Will the drill work with any off the shelf drill and driver bits you could purchase from Home Depot or Lowes?

I'm new to DIY, and woodworking in general, but eager to learn and get started...

Why can't these tools go on sale!!?? [big grin]

Thanks in advance for any replies.

 
they dont go on sale because we still buy them anyway and they dont need to.
welcome the fog.
any drill bit that that has a shank smaller than the max chuck capacity can be used. all hex bits can be used in the hex adapter that comes with the drill

happy drilling. the csx is a nice little drill and perfect for diy small jobs. wont be great for bigger screws but thats not what its designed for
 
Do you have another cordless drill already?- If not, my advice would be to get one of the larger models, T15 or C15. If you do, then the CXS will meet most of your needs and is a joy to use - BUT - with regards to bits, etc. remember that the CXS chuck is only 5/16" not 3/8" so there will be problems with larger bits. you can buy the larger chuck and it will work but this is an additional expense. For most people the CXS seems to be good for 90% of their day to day needs but not 100%. If you need to drill larger holes or drive larger screws, the CXS may not be up to the task.

Once in a while Festool does a promo and you can save a bit but like most really good stuff, you get what you pay for.
 
Welcome to the FOG!

As Alan said, you can certainly use any drills (within the allowable shank size of the drill) and drivers with the keyless chuck.  If you want to use the Centrotec aspect of the drill then you will need to either buy Centrotec bits from Festool or buy an adaptor that will allow you to use standard wire detent 1/4" hex bits.  The exception to this is that if you don't have anything on the end of the drill (just the output shaft) then you can use standard 1/4" hex bits and tips in that, but they don't lock in place.  You may also want to note that the CXS has a max capacity of a 5/16" shank going into the keyless chuck which is less than the standard 3/8" minimum capacity of common drills here.

Why not on sale?  Festool develops a tool to its specs, then prices it.  The tool is sold on its merits - not its price.  Every dealer sells at the same price, so in order for a dealer to be more successful than the next dealer he has to stand out other than offering tools for a discount.  Occasionally Festool will offer a promotional price, but that doesn't happen frequently.  I have three Festool drills and three other brands of corded drills.  Guess which ones rarely get used.

Hope that this helps.

Peter
 
Thanks guys!

Peter - great dog pic. I have a Golden too... Wonderful dogs!
 
Thanks,

That is MacGyver.  He is sometimes referenced as the FOG dog by Festool USA guys and gals because he came to live with us during the Fogtainer marathon and was chronicled.  He even has his own blog although he sucks at posting on it lately.  I personally think his take on social networks is the most profound, but hey, I am his Dad.

Goldens Rule!  So do Newfies!

Peter

PS:  For our UK and GB members - he is half British Golden Retriever which is different from our standard Golden Retrievers.  He is skinnier, and more food fickle.
 
I wouldn't want the CXS to be my only drill!!!! I would want it to be the drill I reached for most often as it is light, powerful and comes with the handy dandy right angle attachment.

You'll still want a drill with at least a 3/8" chuck or preferably one of the big brother Festool T or C style 12, 15 or 18 Volt drills.

I have several C's and T's kicking around the ship at home but the one I reach for most is my little CXS!!!

Dan Clermont
 
If you are home DIY and also budget oriented, a CSX and a corded drill for the 10% big stuff would probably work out. The CSX will become your favorite "pen knife" - but you still wouldn't use it to chop down a tree!

Seems the "best extremes" combo is becoming the CXS+T18 for NA as I read it ...
 
I'm trying to stretch the budget to maybe a T12 or 15 if I don't get the whole kit...

This will be my very first cordless drill/driver, other than a very old 9.6v Craftsman I own.

Thanks for the advice folks, I do appreciate it!
 
PC4CAB said:
I'm trying to stretch the budget to maybe a T12 or 15 if I don't get the whole kit...
Click to expand...

The kit is what makes these drills IMO. 

There are always Fes drills on Ebay that can be had at a reasonable price. 
 
As Vindingo, says, the kit is the thing. I wouldn't think about getting one Festool drill and no kit. The right angle (and in the case of the larger drills the offset) chucks are so useful. When you need them you really need them. Based on what you just said, I would definitely find the $ for a 15 kit, then you're set. 
 
Well, I went for the T12+3 over the CXS. I didn't much like the chuck size limitation or the fact that the chucks etc. didn't fit the other drills.

I found it was the right choice for me. Several times since buying it I've used drills with shanks 3/8 to 1/2 in it. It would have been a pain to have to drag out my big corded drill for these jobs. Since I bought it I haven't had to use any other drill.

It's the first Li ion battery drill I've owned - what a treat. The batteries stay charged, and recharge very quickly.

As far as fitting bits - yes it will work with anything, but wire detent are a little more convenient than power bits because they fit more of the chucks well.

I'm still thinking I might want a small driver for working with electronics but now I'm thinking something like an electric torque screwdriver.

 
Hi PC4CAB,

Welcome to the FOG !  [smile]

A couple additional things to note , the CXS will not work with the Eccentric (offset) chuck or the Depth Stop (drywall/deck screwgun type) chuck. 

The CXS batteries will not work on the SysLite, but that is probably not a deal breaker.

On the positive side the CXS has a surprising amount of power and torque for its size.

Don't forget you have 30 days to try it if you buy new.

Seth
 
"Always with the negative waves, Moriarty......"   But pardon me, isn't that a ton of money.  You sure you want to tie that much up in one drill?  If you were going out in the field then maybe.  But you aren't going to be more than 50 feet from you battery charger are you?  

As far as the other chucks go, I've built 4 kitchens and a library and a bathroom and other odds and ends in the last three years and I've never even held a right angle drill in my hands.  My son in law has one but I've never used it.  

You do what you need to do but surely you realize that you could replace all the cabinetry in you home with an 18v Ryobi as your only drill and have no problems at all.  And the same battery could power you weed eater and your hedge trimmer.  

Festool is the best no argument, but I've never been able to talk myself into it.  Forget Festool, I've never been able to talk myself into a nice Bosch or Makita.  Those kitchens and stuff I mentioned?  They were built with this.....

[attachimg=1]

$175 from Home Depot three years ago and I've had no problems at all.  ($140 today on the net)  Spare batteries are $30 but I've never had to buy any.  The originals are holding about %80 of the charge they had on day one.  Funny.  I have a Domino and a Kapex but no Festool drills.  You're just starting out and I'm starting my 5th kitchen and you'll have a T drill and I won't.  Go figure.  
 
PC4CAB:  Welcome - a real good question.

In an ideal world, my first general purpose all-round Festool drill would be the C15 Li-Ion set.
(Pro's and con's of T-handle vs C-handle has been well covered on other threads.)
But yikes, for ordinary folk, it is expensive.
In your situation (particularly as beginner) would definitely give the comments by fshanno some very serious thought.
Using his approach, you might then have more 'dosh' available for other woodworking tools/equipment.
As you progress, you will better able to fine tune what your specific drilling needs are, and, how to address them - as and when the time comes/finance allow.

An example:  recently have been using the Eccentric /off-set chuck (referred to by SRSemenza) extensively - no other drill (including the 'CXS' IMHO)  would let me get so tight into corners, and have me do the work as quickly or efficiently.
But, it doesn't mean there aren't other ways of doing the same task using much, much cheaper alternatives.

Apologies for not addressing your question directly - but hoped helpful in some way.
Good luck, Richard.  [smile]
 
fshanno said:
I have a Domino and a Kapex but no Festool drills.  You're just starting out and I'm starting my 5th kitchen and you'll have a T drill and I won't.  Go figure.  
Click to expand...
I was also thinking that way before i had Festool drills, but when i sold my Bosch ps20 and angle driver for a CXS i had no regrets at all. But probably because of the reasonable price of the CXS.
One year later i sold my Bosch 14.4V for a T15 with only regret that i didn't do it sooner.
You cannot judge them on price, especially when you don't own any. I have yet to see anyone complain about their Festool drill not being worth the price, While funnily enough you have a Kapex and it's not rare to find owners who think it's overpriced, including me.
 
Seems we can't have a Festool drill discussion without the obligatory anti Festool dig. Honestly - now we have Ryobi in the mix. I have to say I wouldn't even use a Ryobi drill as a hammer!

I fully understand that people may not be able to afford or cost justify Festool drills or may not need the flexibility and reliability - but I just don't understand why some people think nobody else would want or need Festool's features. The Festool drills sell to a discriminating set of people and I don't think every Festool drill buyer is a fool.

Sorry for the rant, it's just that I've seen this sort of thing on almost every Festool drill discussion ... I'm almost starting to think it's a stealthy anti Festool marketing campaign or something.

 
Welcome to the slippery green slope!

I held off on the Festool drills for a long time, but was absolutely delighted when I succumbed.  I have the TDK 12 (bought at clearance price that is probably still available) and the CXS.  Both drills delight me every time I use them.  I do DIY and build furniture.  Frankly the CXS does 99 percent of what I need.  Yesterday I was screwing in 3 inch screws into hardwood and it never slowed down.  I mainly pull out the T12 when I'm in production mode and 2 drills speed things up.

The suggestion of a cheap corded drill is good.  They are powerful and cheap and last forever.  Easy to find on craigslist.

Beware of buying one drill of a pair without the kit.  The CXS kit (except for centrotec) is not useable on the T and C models or vice versa, same with batteries.

My suggestion:  buy the CXS for now, get a bigger drill when you build a deck or have a project that justifies it.
 
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