Split Topic - Festool Belt Sanders

it may not be that obvious for people outside Germany..
but the companies we are referring to like: Festool, Metabo, Mafell, Kress, Bosch (just to name a few..) are coming out of a very small area in Germany.. were talking here about a 100km circle.. (~50miles).. which means.. there was and is quite some cross talk going on and also developements are done together on several technologies with some companies..
So this is maybe the reason why some tools from different companies have been looking very similar  [big grin]
 
For whatever reason, don't know why, around here we always called that Holz-Her type a 'locomotive style' belt sander. One of the first tools I bought many years ago was a Ryobi 3x21 in that style. Horrible DC, loud rough motor that tended to bog down when stressed. Got really hot too.
I have that PC belt sander in the pic. Big, loud, pretty good DC though hooked up the my CT or Fein. Won't bog down and tears through anything. I mostly use it to scribe tops, wood rails, etc to walls.
A Festool belt sander is one of those items I would buy.
 
Hey, it may look like a brick, but you guys are forgetting about the aftermarket mods that are available.  [big grin]

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i've had the festool bs 105 e belt sander for 1.5 years now.

i dont like all these new fancy shapes for belt sanders.

the brick shape from my point of view is perfect.
it is very easy to attach the festool legs to the top of the sander. (these aluminium legs are supplied with the sander)
then turn the sander upside down and you have a linisher.

i now find myself using the sander in this position about 70 percent of the time.
its great onsite and great in my workshop.

i do find the dust collection hose slips off when using the sander in the normal position.
thats maybe because of the aggressive way i am using it when sanding floors or decks.

without a vac attached, dust collection with the supplied dust bag is useless.
i highly recommend using a vac with this tool.

justin.
 
Off topic, Peter cheers for that.  Its years since i seen Tool Time  [thumbs up]

I off to Google more episodes.
 
EcoFurniture said:
To be honest, I'm not sure if I would spend big $ on a Festool beltsander.... I'm not a big fan of the Makita and PC sanders, they are too heavy and just not fun to use. Several years ago, I bought a Bosch http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/B0000223HB/rickswoodshop-20  Together with the CT Mini it is a pleasure to use!
That's the sander that i've been looking at.
Any problem with it?  Does it have good balance?  I am use to the bigger brother 4x 24 and PC sanders witch i'm not to pleased with.
 
mastercabman said:
EcoFurniture said:
To be honest, I'm not sure if I would spend big $ on a Festool beltsander.... I'm not a big fan of the Makita and PC sanders, they are too heavy and just not fun to use. Several years ago, I bought a Bosch http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/B0000223HB/rickswoodshop-20  Together with the CT Mini it is a pleasure to use!
That's the sander that i've been looking at.
Any problem with it?  Does it have good balance?  I am use to the bigger brother 4x 24 and PC sanders witch i'm not to pleased with.

I really like it! I even use it one handed for scribing! It's not lightweight, but ok.
 
The belt sander shown below is the belt sander I use most.  I can't remember the last time I brought out my big gun Porter Cable, but this little PC is always very near me - Porter Cable 371K, 2 1/2" x 14" Compact Belt Sander :

http://www.savannahtoolhouse.com/poca372x14co.html

Of course it has a Festool Plug it now.

 
I've a BS75 and it kicks ass. It is a flattening monster. I don't go much higher than 80 grit, you can dial the zamboni fence so the grit is just skimming the surface if you want, and after I'm happy the piece is flat, I usually move on to a Rotex for 80-400.
 
We use Makita 9924Bs in our glass, aluminum and plastics business, despite the daily use and abrasive nature of glass dust, our sanders last around ten years.  In thirty three years we have gone through 5.  I take appropriate sized vac accessories and use a heat gun to mold them to the dust collection bag outlet and attach to vac system.
 
rst said:
We use Makita 9924Bs in our glass, aluminum and plastics business, despite the daily use and abrasive nature of glass dust, our sanders last around ten years.  In thirty three years we have gone through 5.  I take appropriate sized vac accessories and use a heat gun to mold them to the dust collection bag outlet and attach to vac system.

That's  a neat way to custom size the fittings.

Seth
 
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