Rotex?

[SS Teach]

I am going to get a Rotex, but which one, the 125 or the 150. I already have the Ro 90, plus an ETS 125 and a few others, RTS 400, and LS 130. I am working on a coffee table about 5ft x 3ft. It's a slab of rough sawn redwood that has been sitting outside for about 22 years. I can not deal with the dust of a belt sander, been there done that. After the table I will be working with recovered rough sawn lumber at a minimum of a foot wide. My wife said I am a certified member of the Slippery Slope Club. Any advice would be helpful.

 

[jbair]

After watching the video of the Rotex 150 taking a piece of walnut through the grits and polishes, I'd suspect that would be your option for the immediate project.  I don't know if you've tried or looked at the RS 2e, that was my first Festool Sander, and it's terrific for finish sanding.  My next purchase is the RO90 you've already got. I'm guessing these may fully meet my needs for the immediate future, but that rough stuff your looking at doesn't sound like it needs a 1/2 sheet finishing sander.
Jim

 

[Sparktrician]

Since you already have the ETS 125, get the RO 125.  They share the same abrasives, so you can keep your inventory down. 

 

[wow]

There have been numerous threads on this very topic - it seems to be a popular one. If you haven't already read them, you might want to do a search on RO150 vs RO125. Here's a recent one that comes up:

http://festoolownersgroup.com/festool-tools-accessories/ro125-vs-ro150-why/msg55099/#msg55099

MY opinion - for what it's worth - would be to go for the RO150. My reasons are:

• You already have the RO90
• RO 125 is not a significant increase in size over that
• RO150 will let you accomplish your task in a MUCH shorter time. Perhaps only half the time it would take with the RO125?

Sparktrician makes an excellent point about the ETS125 and RO125 using the same abrasives. Since you own the ETS125 that's a decision you'll need to make a some point. But your description of what you'll be doing sounds to me like the RO150 is a pretty clear choice.

Either way, you can't go wrong.

 

[VW mick]

I'd agree with sparktrician RO 125 and keep your disks the same

Although the RO 150 does look a beast

 

[mdelrossi]

RO150

 

[jamanjeval]

I'd go with the RO150 but only get the coarsest abrasives. You will be well served by the extra surface area and power for the initial, rough sanding. For the finish sanding, you can use the other sanders and the finer grit papers you already have.

 

[dltflt]

I would buy the RO125 since you have the ETS 125

 

[leakyroof]

A few years back my reply would have also been to stick with the same diameter sander so you can swap abrasives from sander to sander. I no longer say this since following that path kept me from buying other sanders that didn't share an abrasive with some other tool in the Festool line, which in turn kept me from using and choosing the best sander for my task, versus just worrying about abrasive costs .
I totally vote for the RO150 since it has more surface area than a 5" sander, and is in my opinion easier to control in Rotex mode over the smaller 125 model.
Sure, it's 'another' size of abrasive to stock and buy, but worth it.

 

[jbair]

I'm thinking like jamenjeval, if you get the RO150 with the more aggressive grits and types of discs, and then switch back to the ets125 or even the RO90 for finishing you could minimize the inventory overlap. And what the hell, it's not like the stuff goes stale if it sits too long! LOL! Who knows, after using the RO150 you might determine you can part with some of the other sanders.
Jim

 

[waho6o9]

Rotex 150 no doubt

 

[rvieceli]

Unless that slab is pretty flat now (which seems unlikely) you might want to consider using a router on a sled to flatten it.

I work with slabs a lot and this set up works really well. Just google flattening slab with a router sled and you'll get lots of links.
Here's a couple of youtube videos to give you an ide. I use an 1.5 straight bit  with a 1/2 inch shank in a Festool OF2000 and it works like a champ.

Once you get one side flat you slip and do the other side. Then start the sanding process.

 

[Gary in Texas]

With either one, you will use basically the same number of disks.  Before, I would have agreed to stick with the same size for ease of inventory, however, from a cost perspective you will still go through approximately the same number of paper disks.  So based on cost (and there is a slight variant) you will have to buy, or restock, x number of disks.  Either size will get the job done.....

 

[amt]

+1 on the router planing.  I did 100 board feet of QSWO recently with a OF 2000 and a 2" dado bit from Whiteside.  Unless you don't want perfectly flat boards, I am not sure using a sander to go from rough to milled square is a good idea. 

 

[semenza]

  Since you have the RO90 the RO150 is going to be a better choice especially for doing a large slab and you will gain a broader size selection in your sander stable. Though the ETS125 and RO125 would share abrasives and you wouldn't need to stock an additional size, it won't actually save anything in the long run.

Seth

 

[tbellemare]

I like to use the RO 90 and RO 150 as complementary machines.

I try not to fully advise anyone what they should do but rather ask them a series of questions until they can decide what they would like to do...

Would you like significantly larger surface sanding capability, while maintaining efficiency?
The RO 150, strictly by geometry, covers about 40% more area for the same time spent than a 125mm diameter sander. It is also less likely to cause "cupping" on large surfaces because of a bigger "footprint".

Do you care more about having fewer sheets of abrasives of different types or having a better sanding experience?
I sell abrasive selections for almost all of the Festool sanders to help people avoid limited choices in their sander stables.

Why compromise?

Tom

 

[VW mick]

some good points and good advice .thanks

suppose i will eventually go 150 aswell

 

[shed9]

I went through the same dilemma recently. I knew I was going to get an Ro90, so the choice was either an Ro125 or Ro150 to compliment it. I went round in circles and initially was concerned about the size of the Ro150.

I ended up with the Ro150 on the argument made by Wow up there ^; the Ro125 is not of significant difference in size to the Ro90. The two machines compliment each other and the Ro150 is not the unwieldy beast it is made out to be.

The commonality in abrasives is one to consider but really shouldn't impact too much as after all, regardless of which machine it goes on, its getting used.

If you get the Ro150, get the front handle accessory - makes all the difference for certain sanding operations.

 

[wow]

The commonality in abrasives is one to consider but really shouldn't impact too much as after all, regardless of which machine it goes on, its getting used.

If you get the Ro150, get the front handle accessory - makes all the difference for certain sanding operations.

+2 on the front handle.

Also, Seth made an interesting point - that over time it doesn't matter whether you stock abrasives in both 5" and 6" sizes. His point - and he's right, of course - is that if you need 10 discs of 80 grit, you'll end up buying 10 discs of 80 grit. It could be 5" or 6" - it doesn't matter. Sure, you might have some overlap at a particular point in time, but ultimately - if you use it - it doesn't matter.

If you keep both sizes, the only negatives I see are:

1. Potential duplicate inventory
2. Physical storage (multiple Systainers needed if you want to keep 5" and 6" separate from each other. I would.)

But #1 above - duplicate inventory - COULD also be a plus. If you run low in one size, you could switch to the other size to finish the job.

I *used* to exclusively use 5" sanders (PC, Dewalt, and DynaBrade) because that's what I was used to. But in the future I will use either the  3.5" RO90 or the 6" RO150. It all depends on how soon I sell my old sanders or run out of 5" abrasives.

And yes, you could always add an RO150 to your stable. Whatever you decide, you won't be disappointed!

 

[mdelrossi]

Just a side note.
I just finished getting rid of milling marks and damage to some Ipe boards for a deck. If I didn't have the RO150 it would have taken me all week.
60 grit in RO mode and it was like a magic eraser. Some spots took a lot longer but when I was done in RO mode I switched to orbital mode and all of the swirl marks disappeared after working my way through 120 grit.

That sander is worth it's weight.