RO 125....HOLY COW

[fdengel]

I'm questioning if Rotex mode should even be in play here.

I don't think I'd try to use that at all for finishing work; it's really much better for shaping and other types of tasks.  I generally just start in random-orbit mode to begin with when I'm doing finish sanding.  If I needed to do something in Rotex mode first, I would probably at least back up and repeat a few grits when switching to random-orbit.

 

[Zacharytanner]

The baby brother, the RO 90, will impress you even more.

But before the sanding, there's sawing planing and routing ...  [big grin]

Damn you guys..............I have added the RO90 AND YES I LOVE IT

 

[Scott B.]

LOL.  That's what the cool aid will do to ya.

My experience with the RO 125 has been a little different. I purchased it with a CT48 to get a system that worked better than my Porter Cable and Dewalt R/O sanders that I have used for years. The dust control is amazing and I am very impressed with the CT48, but the RO125 has been very dissappointing. It has a mind of its own and is prone to jumping around so I have to hold it so tightly it wears me out. I have been using it with 120 grit Rubin in random orbit mode (the Rotex mode is almost uncontrollable) mostly on a storage unit that I am making out of western red cedar so this adds to some of the difficulty controlling the sander as I have found it is easier to use on harder materials. The best combination that I have found is on the highest speed and the lowest extractor speed. I am very careful not to tilt the sander, but no matter what I do it always gets around to jumping unless I am directly over it with a  firm grip. Is this normal? I contacted Festool and they sent me a return authorization form, but maybe others have thoughts that may help before I send it in.

The 3 factors that determine the performance of the sander are:

-abrasive grit
-sander speed
-extraction rate

If any of these are out of balance, there is nothing you will really be able to do as the operator to improve the situation, in fact you might just make it worse because at that point you are fighting the sander, which sounds like the case you have. I think in your case, you have the extraction too low. Bump it up to half and it might level out.

Here is a video of me operating the RO125 with 60 grit Granat, sander speed at 6 and extraction at one half, doing some typical material removal with just one hand on the tool. This is in gear driven mode.

Festool RO125 in Rotex Mode: One Hand Operation

 

[jacko9]

The baby brother, the RO 90, will impress you even more.

But before the sanding, there's sawing planing and routing ...  [big grin]

Damn you guys..............I have added the RO90 AND YES I LOVE IT

I have been adding more and more sanding abrasives for my RO 90 and the higher grits, 320, 400, etc are fantastic.  I also got some Platin 2 in 500, 1000, 2000 and 4000 grit and if you want to see highly polished end on mahogany or walnut try going from 400 grit granat to 500 grit platin 2.

 

[Zacharytanner]

Nice...Thanks for the tip

 

[ghostofhoward]

something that should be noted when discussing any sander that has a rotex mode is that the work piece needs to be held FIRMLY in place while being sanded.When the sander begins to jump around and misbehave it is often because the work piece is vibrating badly.Clamping it works better than simply working on a rubber sanding mat.