Rumor mill says new Domino on the (far off?) horizon - what would you hope for?

[Mini Me]

My prediction is they have noted some of the accessory market for the machine and include some of that in the standard Domino.

 

[bwehman]

I'm torn on having the 3 slot widths - I don't miss that on my DF700, but others might.

I've never used the ultra-wide setting. What's the use case for it? I've only ever had to use tight and the middle one over 8+ years of using it.

 

[ChuckM]

I wish the widest setting could be wider! I use the widest setting many many times.

Look at it as a slot-cutting tool! Or simply as a routing tool, or a controlled boring tool (because the machine has a fence).

Here's one example out of many: To make the apron clamp-friendly, the flat part of the opening was cut with the DF500 in the widest setting:

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[ScotF]

I am not sure battery would be good - since you really need DC to have the best cut. The hose on the machine ties you to a dust extractor anyway - so a cord is not a big issue for me. The weight and ergonomics of the battery might pose an issue with balance. I agree with pins over paddles and maybe some better accessories - but the machines are both pretty well executed as is.

 

[Alan m]

the real question here is what features would make you want to upgrade. you can add lights etc but they are not going to make you upgraede.
making the tool do something it cannot previously is the only way. for me that is using it on site  so it would need to be cordless  because on site work would mostly be a few mortices here and there rather than hundreds you would do in the shop. to allow that cordless to work it would need a blower to clear the dust and allow a bag to work so you dont need a dust colecter every time

 

[Crazyraceguy]

I wish the widest setting could be wider! I use the widest setting many many times.

Look at it as a slot-cutting tool! Or simply as a routing tool, or a controlled boring tool (because the machine has a fence).

I use it too, but not that often. I have used it to make slots for fences and/or adjustable stops.
I have also made wider, custom sized, Dominos, which is part of why I would like to see deeper cuts.

 

[squall_line]

the real question here is what features would make you want to upgrade. you can add lights etc but they are not going to make you upgraede.
making the tool do something it cannot previously is the only way. for me that is using it on site  so it would need to be cordless  because on site work would mostly be a few mortices here and there rather than hundreds you would do in the shop. to allow that cordless to work it would need a blower to clear the dust and allow a bag to work so you dont need a dust colecter every time

This is a very good point.  With two DF 500s and one DF 700, I don't see myself getting a DF 600 variant if one were to come out.  That doesn't mean they shouldn't make one for future users, but the market size will be a bit smaller as a result.  Some people will still upgrade because it's just right for them.

Sorta like the TS 60, honestly.  I have a TS 55, TS 75, and HKC 55.  Can the TS 60 do 70-80% of what each of those three does individually?  Sure, but I already have them, they work, and they're not hurting anything being in my garage shop right now.  If I didn't have any of them, the TS 60 would likely be an entry point that would get me 90% of what I need and then decide which of the other two (HK/C 55 or TS 75) I would need for the remaining 10% use case.

 

[ChuckM]

the real question here is what features would make you want to upgrade. you can add lights etc but they are not going to make you upgraede. Snip.

For me, it has to be the milling capacity (depth). Everything else is just nice-to-have, and for most of them, I already have some shop-made solutions.

My game plan is to sell my DF500 if a DF600 does come out, and pay for the difference.

 

[ChuckM]

This is a very good point.  With two DF 500s and one DF 700, I don't see myself getting a DF 600 variant if one were to come out.  Snip.

2 DF500s?
One mounted in a stationary table?

 

[Cheese]

2 DF500s?
One mounted in a stationary table?

My guess is one with paddles & one with pins.  [scratch chin]

 

[squall_line]

2 DF500s?
One mounted in a stationary table?

My guess is one with paddles & one with pins.  [scratch chin]

Itchy trigger finger on eBay late one night when an older model (with pins) plus the domino assortment came up for a VERY attractive BIN price in an estate-type listing.

(I've since procured a paddle fence so that I can swap them back and forth and/or put the paddle fence on the older one to sell and keep the pin fence to swap out)

It's far from my worst late-night eBay purchase, for sure (the OS 400 blades take that prize).

 

[cpw]

Better adjustability of the paddles than just changing them to slightly different ones and an LED.

 

[Cheese]

It's far from my worst late-night eBay purchase, for sure (the OS 400 blades take that prize).

I can appreciate that situation...I absentmindedly purchased a trove of new Fein blades to fit my OS 400 and when they arrived I realized they wouldn't fit the OSC 18 I was planning on using.  [doh] [doh]

 

[jeh]

As discussed, the obvious first thing is to make a DF600 that sits between the DF500 and DF700. I once posted that this would be the equivalent of making a ⅜" socket set. Yes, you can cover everything with a ¼" socket set and a ½" socket set, but you'll find that 90% of the time the ⅜" covers what you need and is just the right ratchet size in your hand.

I'd rather have a different tool than a 3rd Domino.

 

[mino]

I believe a "DF500 R" is the most likely result. The time is ripe for that - is one of the last tools not having the bayonet hose connection.

We should think of the OF 1010 R update. Nothing revolutionary but still a better tool than the original OF 1010.

- the paddles can be improved for sure, e.g. allowing their calibration
- the thickness setting can go the way of the XL, with an 18 mm setting added while at it
- a (removable) XL-style handle is certainly feasible
- I can see a centering laser or a shadow-line with light added
- possibly some additional accessories mounting options

Either way, definitely do not see the space for a "DF600" style product. The XL sells very little and there would be no point in it when there is already an overlap at the 10 mm end of the spectrum.

 

[smorgasbord]

the real question here is what features would make you want to upgrade.

I'd rather have a different tool than a 3rd Domino.

If I were running Festool, I'd be thinking about how to expand to new owners more than getting existing owners to sell and upgrade to the new tool. Especially considering that some of the patents are expiring soon and competition is on the way.

That said, one way to do that is to have the new model be even higher-end and reduce the price of the existing model. Perhaps a brushless motor as well as expanded size capability and fence upgrades as I posted earlier for the new DF600 model, and cut the price of the existing DF500. Did Festool cut the price of the ETS 125 or ETS 150 when they came out with the brushless ETS/EC models?

 

[smorgasbord]

Either way, definitely do not see the space for a "DF600" style product. The XL sells very little and there would be no point in it when there is already an overlap at the 10 mm end of the spectrum.

You may be right that's what Festool does, but I'll argue that trading off the 4mm and 5mm bit sizes to get a 12mm bit and enable deeper mortises on the 10mm and 12mm bits would make the new tool even more popular. I expect competition when patents expire to cover a larger range with a single tool, so Festool might want to counter that.

 

[ChuckM]

Snip.

but I'll argue that trading off the 4mm and 5mm bit sizes to get a 12mm bit and enable deeper mortises on the 10mm and 12mm bits would make the new tool even more popular. I expect competition when patents expire to cover a larger range with a single tool, so Festool might want to counter that.

Yes.

The first gen of DF500 does not have the 4mm cutter, and 5mm in the majority of cases can be replaced by the 6mm. I'm rather an exception as I use the 4mm cutter in quite a few projects (4 or 5), but I'd trade the 4mm cutter for the 12mm cutter in a heartbeat.

The problem with the 10mm is not its thickness or width but depth. So I'd trade my DF500 for a DF600 even if the latter has only a 10mm cutter but with greater cutting depth.

On the other hand, if a competitor comes out with a quality "DF600" after the patent expires, and Festool sticks to the DF500 & DF700, I'd definitely jump ship! [tongue]

 

[luvmytoolz]

I don't use cutters bigger than 6mm with my DF500, and rarely use the 10mm with the DF700, but I'd love a much wider stroke for the 12/14mm. I reckon that would be sensational.

 

[ChuckM]

I buy the 6mm tenons by the bulk pack. For the Domino connectors, we must use the 8mm cutter.

I've used the 10mm for a set of chairs, but for some of their mortises, I needed to drill them deeper with a 10mm drill bit as I didn't feel that the depth of 25mm was good enough.

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