I know that this tool was designed for stripping of finish but would like to know how it performs at rough shaping. Can it be used for rough stock removal like a 4 1/2 inch grinder with a flexible pad. Or is it really just for slow removal of finish? Also how is the dust collection?
RAS 115.04 ?
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Brice Burrell
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The person that may be able to answer your question is Matthew, I he did a review a couple years back, here's his review, Using the Festool RAS 115 Rotary Sander To Strip Two Window Sills, By Matthew Schenker
Bob Marino
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buckmaidt said:
The RAS is pretty much a specialized tool and I have only used it a few times, but he short answer is yes, you can do rough shaping and serious stock removal. Be careful, with a low and very low grit paper, you will remove material way faster than you think you would. The dc is fair to good (depending upon technique) and does have a slight learning curve - using/turning that dc schroud.
Bob
jaegerhund
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There is nothing slow about removal --- whether finish or stock -- when it comes to the RAS 115, especially in low grit/high RPM combinations. You can burn up a pad pretty quick if you are not careful as well. Fine dust control is fairly good with the RAS but debris can be scattered (shot) about if you are not careful --- it does take some practice. The amazing thing about the RAS is that it is pretty easy to control and handle and can get into tight spots you would think it couldn't. It is a true work horse if you have the need for it.
Justin
Justin
Thanks for the replies. I have been using a 4 1/2 inch grinder with a 24 grit sanding pad to cope round logs into one another. The grinder works great but the fine dust is overwhelming. I am not so concerned about total dust and debris collection but any is better than none 
Matthew Schenker
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buckmaidt,
I actually like the RAS 115 a lot, and sometimes wonder why this sander/grinder is not more popular among Festool fans.
As Brice mentions, I have used the RAS 115 a few times, including that window-sill effort I documented in the review. Although I did not use it for rough shaping, I would say that it would work fine for this purpose after a little practice.
As others have said, the RAS 115 takes down material incredibly fast, and it does throw debris about. After some practice, you get better at positioining the brush to catch more debris, and you definitely learn to gain better control of the machine. I feel quite confident using the RAS 115 now for all kinds of things, but in the beginning it did intimidate me a bit. It's powerful!
Hope that helps. If you have more specific questions, feel free to follow up.
Stay in touch,
Matthew
I actually like the RAS 115 a lot, and sometimes wonder why this sander/grinder is not more popular among Festool fans.
As Brice mentions, I have used the RAS 115 a few times, including that window-sill effort I documented in the review. Although I did not use it for rough shaping, I would say that it would work fine for this purpose after a little practice.
As others have said, the RAS 115 takes down material incredibly fast, and it does throw debris about. After some practice, you get better at positioining the brush to catch more debris, and you definitely learn to gain better control of the machine. I feel quite confident using the RAS 115 now for all kinds of things, but in the beginning it did intimidate me a bit. It's powerful!
Hope that helps. If you have more specific questions, feel free to follow up.
Stay in touch,
Matthew
Dave Ronyak
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Can you mount a wire cup-style brush on the RAS 115? Or those laminated sanding wheels available in flat and tapered shapes from Klinspor and others? These products require an externally threaded shaft (I believe most are provided with female 5/8" x 11 TPI metal center "nut"). I have a 7" conventional angle grinder that I use with 25 or 36 grit disks when I need to hog off wood material, or grind welds. I also cut brick and stone with that tool using a dry cut diamond blade. Can any of these accessories be used with the RAS 115?
Dave R.
Dave R.
I used mine to contour thresholds and found it very efficient. It is far better at controlling dust and debris than an angle grinder and far more tame in your hands while still as fast. I think this is a great tool a nd agree with Matt about its lack of popularity. I just think it is probably maore a remodeler's tool than a normal woodworker's tool, much the same as the Fein MultiMaster.
Dave Ronyak said:
Dave,
The RAS has a 14mm thread which makes it difficult to adapt anything else than the Festool stuff. With the right abrasive you could still grind welds, or sharpen lawn mower blades for that matter. Since you already have the angle grinder I would use that for most of the jobs you mentioned that you already have used it for. Think of the RAS as a bridge tool, much easier to control but far more aggressive. Someone asked about stripping paint with an Rotex in another thread some time back. The RAS will outstrip the Rotex by a country mile. i used mine to edge sand a hardwood floor, something you would probably not want to do with an angle grinder, and something that a Rotex is not particularly suited for either.
Dave Ronyak
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Thanks, Greg. I asked because I would like to replace use of that old 7" angle grinder/sander wherever possible. For many jobs its larger and more powerful than I need which means it is harder to control, and most importantly, debris flies everywhere. That's OK when working outside, but collection of most of the debris, even half of it would be nice.
From your response I understand that if I can find a source of wire brushes and laminated disks with the right threaded center nut, the RAS 115 could be used as I desire.
Dave R.
From your response I understand that if I can find a source of wire brushes and laminated disks with the right threaded center nut, the RAS 115 could be used as I desire.
Dave R.
Emer Construction
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Dave Ronyak said:
Probably. Another alternative would be to have an adapter made with an M14 thread internally and a 7/8 external to use the 'other' angle grinder standard thread. I doubt you could make a very effective adapter M14 to 5/8-11. I will take a look at what that might look like.
nickao
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There are many ways to cope crown, but using a grinder is one messy way. Why not use this and eliminate the mess completely:
http://www.collinstool.com/base.php?page=collins_coping_foot.htm
http://www.collinstool.com/base.php?page=collins_coping_foot.htm
Forrest Anderson
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Dave Ronyak said:
Dave
Yes you can, and Festool even supply two wire cup brushes (485097 and 485099) and a wire brush with radial brushes (485096)!
Unfortunately :
they are NAINA (ie not available in North America for those new to FOG), as it seems that Festool don't seem to want customers from that marketing area to use the RAS for metalwork.I have talked about this very subject 18 months ago, and if you check out that thread, you'll see a comparison between UK and US accessories.
Forrest
Matthew Schenker
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nickao said:
The RAS 115 takes material away much faster than the Rotex sanders. Also, a word about dust collection: when you are using the RAS, it's more like "debris" collection! There is dust, but a lot of what is produced is rougher stuff. I mention this somewhere in my review of the machine.
The fact that it's "debris" and not "dust" tells you something about the nature of the machine!
Thanks,
Matthew
jaegerhund
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If you are in the business of taking finished (painted) stuff down to bare wood, the RAS is the way to go. Low RPM and 24-36 saphir paper can handle even nasty latex (I hate latex paint). For a pure rotary device, it leaves a nice surface ---- with a little help from a ROS it can be readied for painting/finishing in no time.
Justin
Justin
