RTS 400 vs RS 300

[AlexThePalex]

I am in need of an orbital sander in compliment with my Rotex 150 FEQ to do sanding of painted surfaces. Now I got my eye on the RTS 400 and it's easily available secondhand because it seems like everybody's got one.

But I've seen there's also the RS 300 (at least in Europe, don't know about the USA) and it's a bit bigger than the RTS 400. I'm worried that the RTS 400 might lack some aggressiveness to tackle harder layers of paint and was wondering if the RS 300 might suit me better.

Unfortunately, there's very little information or reviews to find of the RS 300, so I got a question.

Does anybody have experience with the RS 300 and could compare it to the RTS 400?

Any type of advice is much appreciated, thanks in advance. Oh yeah, I mostly use my sanders for paint work on houses, not for bare wood.

   

 

[AlexThePalex]

Well guys, not all at once please.

Oh come on, there must be some oddball here on this board who knows something about this apparently obscure machine.  ???

 

[Forrest Anderson]

But I've seen there's also the RS 300 (at least in Europe, don't know about the USA) and it's a bit bigger than the RTS 400. I'm worried that the RTS 400 might lack some aggressiveness to tackle harder layers of paint and was wondering if the RS 300 might suit me better.

Unfortunately, there's very little information or reviews about to find of the RS 300, so I got a question.

Does anybody have experience with the RS 300 and could compare it to the RTS 400?

Any type of advice is much appreciated, thanks in advance. Oh yeah, I mostly use my sanders for paint work on houses, not for bare wood.

Although we in the UK have a choice between the RS100, RS100C, RS200, and RS300 half-sheet sanders, the US only has the older RS2. (See my comparison of them at [url=http://festoolownersgroup.com/index.php?topic=2961.msg32811#msg32811]http://festoolownersgroup.com/index.php?topic=2961.msg32811#msg32811)

Since the vast majority of active FOG members are from the US, I suspect that you won't get much feedback about the RS300, although hopefully some European or Australian members will chime in.

Going by specifications alone, we have:

RUTSCHER RS 300
Power consumption 280 W
Speed 4000-10000 min-1
Speed 10000 min-1
Sanding stroke 2,4 mm
Interchangeable sanding pad 93 x 175 mm
Connection dia. d/e 27 mm
Weight 2,3 kg

RTS400:
Power consumption 200 W
Speed 6000-14000 min-1
Speed 14000 min-1
Sanding stroke 2 mm
Interchangeable sanding pad 80 x 130 mm
Connection dia. d/e 27 mm
Weight 1,1 kg

Although both have similar strokes and power, the RS300 is quite a bit bigger and twice as heavy as the RTS400.

Both can get into corners - the RS300 can take "ironing board" and extended-length sanding pads, whilst the RTS can be unofficially converted into a delta sander by using the pad from the DTS400.

The UK Festool catalogue gives the following applications (note that Festool suggest the RTS400 for overhead or vertical use):

RUTSCHER RS 300

Main applications
? Sanding surfaces and corners in one working procedure
? Sanding louvres with a special pad
? Light sanding of varnish, paint, wood and plastic
? Sanding natural woods and veneer prior to varnishing
? Light sanding of varnished surfaces
? Light sanding of mineral materials
? Special applications

Strengths and benefits
? Different interchangeable sanding pads for an extremely wide range of applications
? Ergonomic shape ensures non-tiring work, even on vertical surfaces and work overhead
? Electronics integrated in the housing, a sturdy bearing, secure oscillators and an extremely tear-resistant MPE sanding pad ensure a long service life and high economic efficiency

RUTSCHER RTS 400

Main applications
? One-handed sander for small and narrow surfaces
? Ideal for vertical surfaces or work overhead
? Sanding natural wood surfaces and veneering prior to varnishing ? particularly furniture
? Intermediate sanding on flat varnished surfaces

Strengths and benefits
? An even sanding pattern and the ability to sand close to edges on three sides keeps reworking to a minimum
? The enclosed dustproof bearing and extremely tear-resistant MPE sanding pad ensure a long service life and maximum economic efficiency
? Effective integral turbo dust extractor
? Small, lightweight and extremely handy for non-tiring work

Forrest

 

[AlexThePalex]

Thanks Forrest for taking the time to put all this data together for me, although I must say honestly, I already knew this from browsing Festool's website myself. I was more interested in hearing from people's own experiences, because no matter how much you read on paper about something, it doesn't beat hearing the opinion of people who actually held it in their own hands, made it buzz and worked with it for real.

But I guess I'll have to be satisfied with knowing this machine is probably not one of Festool's bestsellers.

Now I'm not a pro like most of you guys here so new Festools are generally out of my league so I'm always on the lookout for nice deals on second hand machines. The second hand Festool market is pretty big here in Holland and I'm amazed how much people buy such an expensive machine and decide after one or two weeks they don't like it. I myself always do extensive research before buying an expensive item. The most you see in orbital sanders are the DTS 400 and the RTS 400, followed by a distance by the Deltex and the LS 130. Occasionally an RS2/RS200, but in the last half year I think I only saw one single RS 300.  :-\ I was only considering it because that single one is sold right in my city and is still available for a nice price.

But maybe it'd be better to go with the RTS 400 since support on the long run might remain better available. The obscure machines always get fazed out  first and the popular ones get a long support time.

On another note, it's a damn shame Festool doesn't offer all it's machines in America. I wonder why.

 

[Bob Marino]

[On another note, it's a damn shame Festool doesn't offer all it's machines in America. I wonder why.

[/quote]

Yes thanks Forrest for the run-down.
A few of the reasons the USA doesn't have all the tools is that Festool is a relative newcomer here and they had to pick and choose which would be the better selling and most useful tools - don't forget the USA run of tools is 110 v, not 220. Also getting UL Certification makes it  a slow and expensive process.

Bob

 

[AlexThePalex]

What do they have to do exactly to get UL approved? Why is it so costly? Does the UL charge a lot of money for it? Hm.

110v shouldn't be a problem. Just put another motor in the machine, I'd say.