Tool purchases can be difficult when you have a significant other monitoring your buys. Therefore, I have come up with the 9 ways to, “Hide tool purchases for your significant other”.

1. Use Pre-Paid Credit Cards from the bank of your choice. Often, if you squirrel away $20-$30 here and there, it is fairly easy to get up to the required dollar amount.

2. Purchase the tools on lay-away, so as not to have the glaring “big hit” to your credit card.

3. Purchase the tools with cash. Warning, make sure to get the tools dirty prior to showing them off.

4. Get a buddy to buy the tools and you pay them back. Careful, don’t tell the significant other it is a poker debt you are paying off.

5. Purchase several small tools over a period of time; never open them and keep the receipts! Then when you have enough credit on returning these items, get the one big item you desire.

6. Each project requires a new tool, make sure you commit to only the ones that require new tool purchases.

7. Purchase the tools, bring them home, and DO NOT USE THEM FOR SEVERAL WEEKS. This way, when asked if they are “New” you do not have to lie when you say NO!

8. Purchase large tools that can be dismantled; it is sometimes easier to get to the shop with the tools taken apart. Better yet, have the tools shipped to your work place, dismantle them there, and bring them home piece by piece. This is often beneficial for several reasons.

a. There is no packing material to throw away.

b. When you assemble the tool, it looks more like a repair job rather than a set up of the new tool itself.

c. Refer back to Rule 7: it may take a while to get the tool set-up. Therefore, when you are ready to fire it up, it is no longer a “new tool.”

9. Always round the purchase price down when asked how much something cost. I.e. if actual take home cost was $849, you would respond “about $800.” Tax never counts!

10. Please add your own creative ways to this post. I am always up for learnin’ somethin’!!!

Timmy C

Sometimes people and power tools(or hand tools) don’t mix. Check out our favorite video clips on the subject below.

Lighting a Cig with a chain saw

Cooking with Power Tools (long but funny)

Joe sands a stop sign apart

What to do and not to do in wood shop

Last but not least…..
Festool Party

Effective immediately www.festooljunkie.com is sponsoring a contest for the FOG. The grand prize will be a Festool Centrotec Bit Assortment Systainer. Second Prize will be a 25^th Anniversary Rotex Watch. 3^rd Prize will be Festool Thermos.

There are two phases to this contest.

I. Phase 1: Accumulate entries by FOG

members posting to this thread by answering the question: “You know you are a Festool Junkie when:” The duration of this phase will last until 12:01 a.m. CST, September 30^th, 2007

· Each FOG member can enter as many times as desired. THE CONTEST IS NOT LIMITED TO USA MEMBERS. www.festooljunkie.com will ship worldwide on this one…YUP, IT’S TRUE!

· Please use single entry posts. DO NOT post multiple answers in a single thread. Once again, any FOG member can enter as many times as they wish.

· Creativity and Humor will be the key elements for consideration for Phase 2 results.

II. Phase 2: The Festool Junkie team

(12 team members) will compile the “Top Ten” and post them in a poll for FOG MEMBERS to vote on October 1^st, 2007.

· Voting on the FOG poll will last until October 12^th, 2007 at 12:01 a.m. CST USA

· Winners will be announced Monday October, 15^th, 2007 and prizes will ship October 17^th, 2007.

***The Festool Junkie Blog will also be involved in this Contest. Festool Junkie will post a blog entry announcing the contest to perhaps get people who have not previously been to the FOG to come over and register. Furthermore, perhaps some “guests” of the FOG will get off the fence and come play in our playground of AWESOME information; sharing their experiences with Festool by posting and lending to the community.***

At the end of the contest period, the “top ten” and the winners will be recognized for their contributions.

1^st Prize: Centrotec Assortment Bit Systainer

2^nd Prize: Festool 25^th Anniversary Watch

3^rd Prize: Festool Thermos

If you are not a member of the Festool Owners Group please pop over to the site, and register. Once you have registered, you are welcome to post your response to “You know you are a Festool Junkie when:”…

Peace,

Timmy C

One thing I have learned over the past several years is: Ya gotta think different when you slappin’ around the Festools. For example, upon first glance, a prospective user views the Festool Domino DF 500 Q as a new fangled biscuit joiner….the Domino is so much more than that limited only by the woodworkers imagination. The Domino has been used to cut tenons, through mortise to expose decorative woods used to join mitred corners, used on bench tops to insert the actual dominos that act like bench dogs, the list could go on and on; these types of stories are all over the place with many of the Festool products.

One approach that I have used with my Festool TS 55 EQ plunge cut circular saw is to glue up large panels and simply draw lines where I need the saw to cut. I once made a compound angle, 4 shelf, entertainment center with a base, simply by drawing the sides of the cabinet in mirror image, and placing my rail on the respective lines. The cool thing is, prior to the cut, I made sliding dovetails for the shelves by utilizing the Festool OF 1400 EQ router into the rail adapter. It was pretty slick when I cut the sides with the saw, the shelve dado’s lined up perfectly.

There have got to be a ton of creative/resourceful ideas out there in Festool Land. Let me know what some of your favorite uses are.

Timmy C

My fellow dudes and dude ranchers:

Festool tools and accessories are the finest made “hand power tools” made in the world. Here at www.festooljunkie.com we are committed to providing these tools in a welcoming and rather “loose” environment. We use these tools everyday in our own shop, and once a person gets their hands around one of these sexy dark blue and green tools, the slippery slope of acquisition is thus engaged.

Many Festool owners indeed become Festool Junkies. By definition, a Junkie or Junky is; One who has an insatiable interest or devotion! Hence, A Festool Junkie

There are many indicators of a Festool Junkie! To kick-off this blog, What are some of the tell-tale signs that a person is indeed a Festool Junkie.

Please allow me to start with my own compulsion.

I knew that I had become a Festool Junkie when I named my new, Rotex RO 150 FEQ, Gertrude. My little German Grandmother’s name was Gertrude (Gert for short), and I thought it only appropriate that I name my “mean” new German sander after Grandma Gert. She was a real pistol and so is this sander.

Great to be here, and I look forward to hearing of your obsessions and musing toward Festool products.

Tell me what makes you a Festool Junkie!

Timmy C