Repair or Replace

[twistsol1]

I have a CT33E which has performed flawlessly since 2008 until a couple of weeks ago. I was in Sioux Falls and took it out the truck and set it on the sidewalk put Put a couple of other tools on it and the rear wheels weren't rolling which I didn't notice until they both had small flat spots.

I had a chance to look at it today and It turns out the chassis cracked where the wheels attach. Temp was -27F (-33C) and plastic at those temps is mostly useless. It will cost $205 for the essential part and an additional $120 to replace the wheels and a couple hours of my time to reassemble. The kicker is the part isn't available for 12 weeks.

Is it worth it to put $300+ or even $200 into a 20 year old or should I just bit the bullet and upgrade? I don't use any battery powered tools other than a c18 drill so bluetooth is meaningless to me. I can read and compare the specs, but are there any significant advantages to the CT 36 over the CT 33 from a practical user standpoint?

 

[luvmytoolz]

My experience of Festool extractors has been wildly positive over the decades ( I have 4), and while the CT36 is awesome, I wouldn't hesitate to spend 1/5th to a almost a 1/3rd of the cost of a new one to get a known good unit repaired.

My CT36 has been hooked up to my CNC the last 15 years and has run for thousands of hours, and the total maintenance cost has been a new set of brushes.

In general from a reliability and maintenance point of view, aside from the fairly rare control board failure, most people will only ever reach the point the brushes need replacing.

If it's been good to you, be good to it! ;-)

 

[mino]

I will diverge.

The CT26/36/48 series were a major upgrade as far as durability of construction goes. The SelfClean bags are a major upgrade as well.

If the motor is good, I would patch it up enough with glue and duck tape so it is still usable confined to static use in a shop and get a CT 26 or 36 to replace it for mobile use. I would also seriously look at a CT MIDI or CT 25 depending on your use case.

The only "negative" is I prefer the "old" CT 26/36/48 model mechanical controls and the lack of a built-in secondary socket/control module option bothers me too. So me, personally, I would seek out a used CT 26 with the manual controls instead of a new touch-control one.


As for Bluetooth .. you absolutely, definitively, want it. The main use case is the remote(s), not the use with cordless tools.

 

[jeffinsgf]

I have a CT-22 in my home shop that is several years past old enough to vote. I work with a relatively new CT-36 at work. I prefer the form factor and bag access of the CT-22/33 style to the newer ones. I prefer the tilting head to the removeable head and I find the bag removal to be much easier. I will keep it going as long as I can. Bags are still available and still competitively priced. I have a permanent bag that has been in the package since I bought the vac. When I can't get bags anymore, I'll resort to that.

That was a long-winded preamble to explain why I would...in your shoes...fix rather than replace. Before you take my advice, you should go mess around with a CT-36 at a store and get a feel for working with it compared to your CT-33. You may love the removeable head and you might find the bag access easier. I just didn't know if you were familiar with the very different designs.

 

[Crazyraceguy]

So me, personally, I would seek out a used CT 26 with the manual controls instead of a new touch-control one.


As for Bluetooth .. you absolutely, definitively, want it. The main use case is the remote(s), not the use with cordless tools.

Agreed 100% on both.
I have had a CT26 since 2019 and later bought a CT15, as a second unit. After using it for a while and my use-case for it changing, I would have been better off with a Midi (or another 26) It's fine, as far as suction, it's great. The membrane switch and lack of Bluetooth are definite drawbacks. I'll get over it.

 

[twistsol1]

I ordered the new chassis and will live with the slightly out of round wheels. I just hope I remember how to reassemble it in three months when the part arrives! I do have another CT33 that has a boom arm on it so it is a hostage to the shop.

I also have a CT15 dedicated to my Kapex. It was purchased to be the portable, but the membrane switches irritated me; that in itself is enough for me to not buy the current CT36. The CT15 just sits under the Kapex cabinet and turns itself on and off automatically so I only need to touch it to replace the bag.

 

[Cheese]

I also have a CT15 dedicated to my Kapex. It was purchased to be the portable, but the membrane switches irritated me; that in itself is enough for me to not buy the current CT36. The CT15 just sits under the Kapex cabinet and turns itself on and off automatically so I only need to touch it to replace the bag.

Can't beat that... ...another option is to convert the CT 33 to take the place of the CT 15 and then use the CT 15 for mobile purposes.

 

[onocoffee]

so bluetooth is meaningless to me.

Oh, I HEAR you, my brother. Bluetooth? That's STUPID.

This is exactly what I thought about Bluetooth on a vac when my dealer was trying to convince me on the virtues of the CT MIDI I over the CT 15. I thought that had to be the DUMBEST thing I'd hear in a long time. I mean, I've used vacs ALL MY LIFE and I was like "It ain't no big thing" to reach down and hit the switch. Plus the CT15 was like $300 cheaper!

I ended up getting the MIDI because it had more features than the 15 and I gotta say: Bluetooth is My Favorite feature of the vac - and I have ZERO cordless tools to pair with the MIDI (unless I wanted to pair the TID 18, for whatever reason). I LOVE the Bluetooth feature. It is incredibly convenient. No more walking back to the vac to hit the switch. No more bending over to hit the switch. Turns out that was all nonsense. So much so that I added a wireless remote to my Ridgid shop vac.

I think if you get it you will find great utility with the Bluetooth. Now, if only Festool would add variable suction selection to the remote - that would make it Awesome.

The problem with the old CT22/33 is that now, in 2026, they're ticking time bombs just waiting to explode and disintegrate. One of the CT22 that I have just had a wheel failure. The right rear wheel just sheared off the tub. I've got the CT-ASA boom mounted to the vac so it's a PITA to address (which means I haven't). And when the mount on the front tilt cracked off a couple months ago, I just glued it back together. Since you're out working in the field, I think you have less issues getting a newer CT36 (and not necessarily the CT 36 EI). That will give you a more robust tub assembly that's not on the verge of total collapse.

 

[luvmytoolz]

The problem with the old CT22/33 is that now, in 2026, they're ticking time bombs just waiting to explode and disintegrate.

That's so poor! My SR5E is over 40 years old and solid as the day I bought it, I actually stack stuff on top it's so strong. Superbly made.