Slightly disappointed with lack of abrasives sample for new ETS150/3

[mebert]

After all the positive reviews of the ETS150 sander, I decided to buy one (my second Festool purchase) and I finally received it today. I was holding off on buying abrasives for it until I got a chance to try it out with the samples that supposedly came with it, but to my disappointment it didn't come with any! I thought at a minimum they would include at least one sample of sandpaper, and according to some others on this site there was a small assortment of sandpaper when they bought theirs, but alas I can't try the sander out until I buy some disks.

For general purpose wood finish sanding (Oak, Cherry, Walnut), what are the recommendations on type and grits? I was planning to buy 80, 120, 180 and 220, but I'm not sure what the best type would be. I was hoping to get this figured out with the "included" assortment. I guess I'll have to wait another week or two before I get excited again  [crying]

 

[Alan m]

welcome to the fog

for some reason the included assortment was scraped in the last price adjustment.
its a total shame
its hard to prodict what you wil use and prefer
i would buy an assortment from one of the regular dealers on the fog that put a systainer together with a selection

 

[ScotF]

Yeah -- the scope of delivery changes from time to time.  For barewood I would recommend Rubin II (although I have just used regular Rubin), Brilliant II and Granat.  I prefer Granat as a general do-all paper and I believe Rubin II is now manufactured to give similar longevity on wood.  Personally I do not skip grits and usually start at 80 to remove milling marks and go up  from there depending on the type of finish I am using.

Scot

 

[mebert]

Thanks for the suggestions on paper selection! After reading up some more on it I'll probably start out with some Rubin and see how well that works out at first. Shortly after posting the message, I realized my local Woodcraft store (less than 20 miles from me) carries Festool, so I'll head out there tomorrow after work to pick up some disks. I did fire the sander up and can't believe how much quieter and vibration free it is compared to my old trusty PC 334!

 

[Kev]

Do you have a variable suction DC ? This is a major aspect of effective finish sanding with the Festools ... particularly the ETS,DTS,RTS sanders.

You can't go wrong with Granat as a multi purpose abrasive. Rubin II for bare timber is possibly marginally better, but if you did want a broad range of grits for multiple purposes I'd steer towards Granat.

Going through the numbers from 80 to your target finish with the odd hop wouldn't hurt, but you could find yourself spending more time on a finer grit because you skipped an intermediate ... a lot depends on your desired/acceptable outcome.

We get a single sheet of abrasive here in Oz with the ETS sanders, but because I buy from a shop front, I suppose I know what I'm taking home.

A cheap sample pack should be offered at the very least if you're buying online - bit of a short coming that! (Wouldn't hurt to offer one with a tool purchase ONLY - if they don't want to give them away).

 

[semenza]

After all the positive reviews of the ETS150 sander, I decided to buy one (my second Festool purchase) and I finally received it today. I was holding off on buying abrasives for it until I got a chance to try it out with the samples that supposedly came with it, but to my disappointment it didn't come with any! I thought at a minimum they would include at least one sample of sandpaper, and according to some others on this site there was a small assortment of sandpaper when they bought theirs, but alas I can't try the sander out until I buy some disks.

For general purpose wood finish sanding (Oak, Cherry, Walnut), what are the recommendations on type and grits? I was planning to buy 80, 120, 180 and 220, but I'm not sure what the best type would be. I was hoping to get this figured out with the "included" assortment. I guess I'll have to wait another week or two before I get excited again  [crying]

Hi,

Welcome to the FOG!  [smile]

I would go with Rubin up to 150gr and Brilliant for the finer grits, on bare wood.  I like Granat for some things  but for the most part still prefer Rubin and Brilliant on wood.    I guarantee you will get a ton of differing opinions on abrasive selection  [wink]

Seth

 

[Kev]

After all the positive reviews of the ETS150 sander, I decided to buy one (my second Festool purchase) and I finally received it today. I was holding off on buying abrasives for it until I got a chance to try it out with the samples that supposedly came with it, but to my disappointment it didn't come with any! I thought at a minimum they would include at least one sample of sandpaper, and according to some others on this site there was a small assortment of sandpaper when they bought theirs, but alas I can't try the sander out until I buy some disks.

For general purpose wood finish sanding (Oak, Cherry, Walnut), what are the recommendations on type and grits? I was planning to buy 80, 120, 180 and 220, but I'm not sure what the best type would be. I was hoping to get this figured out with the "included" assortment. I guess I'll have to wait another week or two before I get excited again  [crying]

Hi,

Welcome to the FOG!  [smile]

I would go with Rubin up to 150gr and Brilliant for the finer grits, on bare wood.  I like Granat for some things  but for the most part still prefer Rubin and Brilliant on wood.    I guarantee you will get a ton of differing opinions on abrasive selection  [wink]

Seth

Come to think of it, Rubin and Brilliant was the starter sample set I got with the 150mm abrasive storage systainer + Rotex bundle a while back!

 

[mebert]

Do you have a variable suction DC ? This is a major aspect of effective finish sanding with the Festools ... particularly the ETS,DTS,RTS sanders.

Yes, my first Festool purchase was the CT-26, and I love it! I've used a standard shop-vac (16 gallon Craftsman) in the past but I wanted something smaller, quieter and more controllable so I bit the bullet and purchased the CT-26 two months ago. Prior to this I didn't understand why anyone would want to spend so much money on a vac, but I now see the light [big grin].

Now that I have the CT-26 and ETS150/3, I'm now saving for the TS55 (and drooling to also purchase a Domino). I think I'm starting fall down that slippery slope  ;D 

 

[ScotF]

TO echo what Seth said, the Rubin II is supposed to be as long lasting as Granat and if that is the case, I would absolutely get that for bare wood as it was really designed for that application.  Granat is super long wearingon the abrasive side, but the disks are thinner and can tear if you are not careful, especially on edges or corners.  Before Granat was available all I used for wood was Rubin original and Brilliant.

Scot 

 

[Brice Burrell]

Don't count on Woodcraft stocking much in the way of abrasives.  It's possible they'll have what you want but it really is hit or miss.

 

[mebert]

Don't count on Woodcraft stocking much in the way of abrasives.  It's possible they'll have what you want but it really is hit or miss.

Thanks for the warning... I'll give them a call in the morning first to see if they stock any.

 

[ccarrolladams]

When you ordered your ETS 150/3 did you ask if it would be shipped with any abrasives?

I can see it would be frustrating to have what you will soon find to be a marvelous finish sander without any sanding discs.

When I embraced Festools, especially the sanders in 2006, Granat was not available even in Europe. Since I build cabinets only from new material, removing paint is not a consideration. I started with Rubin for the coarser grits and Brilliant for the finer grits. Then along came Granat. Once I had the chance to test it over a long period, I have only ordered it in all sizes. My inventory of Rubin and Brilliant is nearly gone except in a few less used grits.

I run a large custom cabinet shop, so total cost of abrasives is important to me. Granat costs more per disc, but in my application, those discs last enough longer that they save me money in the discs and in the lost time changing discs.

Yes, the backing of Granat is thin, but nearly all of my sanding is done with hard pads to preserve crisp edges, so tearing is not a problem. Of course all of us in my shop have decades of sanding experience.

For DIY, I suggest Rubin 2 and Brilliant 2 because they are more robust and for a given budget you can buy a wider selection.

 

[TinyTiger]

After all the positive reviews of the ETS150 sander, I decided to buy one (my second Festool purchase) and I finally received it today. I was holding off on buying abrasives for it until I got a chance to try it out with the samples that supposedly came with it, but to my disappointment it didn't come with any! I thought at a minimum they would include at least one sample of sandpaper, and according to some others on this site there was a small assortment of sandpaper when they bought theirs, but alas I can't try the sander out until I buy some disks.

For general purpose wood finish sanding (Oak, Cherry, Walnut), what are the recommendations on type and grits? I was planning to buy 80, 120, 180 and 220, but I'm not sure what the best type would be. I was hoping to get this figured out with the "included" assortment. I guess I'll have to wait another week or two before I get excited again  [crying]

Welcome to the group!  It's nice to hear from you.

I've had really good luck with 100, 150, and 220.  I also use Rubin for the 100 and 150 and Brilliant for the 220.

 

[fdengel]

+1 on Rubin [2?] for lower grits and Brilliant 2 for the finer grits.