R0125 Awful Swirl Marks

[j.wendell]

I purchased a rotex 125 secondhand from someone off fb marketplace. I used it the first time and it was pretty miserable. So I went out and practiced for a while and still have issues. The sander almost feels unusable when the vac is turned up all the way. The sander constantly want to stop its rotation and drags along the workpiece. I hold the vac hose with once hand and the front of the sander with the other and put as little weight down as possible. It almost feels like I have to try and hold the vac up for the sander not to bog down and stop. When I turn the vac to its lowest setting its easier to handle but not great. It is a brand new ct26.

I have used a friend's 150 and it did not feel like this at all. I took it to a festool dealer and he said its running fine but he didnt even hook it up to a vac. He also said its not a finish sander so the swirl marks are normal, I call BS on that. We were running 120 grit.

Any advice? I assume swirl marks are of course not normal.

 

[peter halle]

Start from the lowest vacuum setting.  Also, there are different hardness pads that might help.

Peter

 

[Sparktrician]

Watch this video -  Larry is very knowlegeable.

 

[Sanderxpander]

You're not supposed to turn the vac up that high. That will create too much suction and the RO125 will do exactly what you described. Swirl marks can be avoided with proper handling (e.g., turning down suction). The Rotexes jn general are not generally described as "easy to handle".