Festool Junkie Blog

Hello all,

If you are a Festool Owner / User and like the group feeling that you get in a forum environment; www.talkFestool.com has moved into it’s new home. The new Festool oriented forum has a crisp new look, a team of moderator’s, incredible software with hundreds of features, and well, just a great bunch of folks that have already started posting there. This is where FestoolJunkie, TimmyC, RW, and MarkE will base our forum activity and I hope to see many of you woodworking enthusiasts over there to share, play, and learn.

As I mentioned above, the software is indeed superb and will be the perfect arena for content, reviews, and good ol’ conversation about Tools and woodworking. In my opinion, it is going to be a fresh, and certainly unique forum that has beautiful untended soil, that has not been “churned and burned.”

Please stop by and say hi,

Timmy C

I am honored to have been asked to moderate a section of a new forum out there in the wonderful world of Festool. The forum is called talkFestool; We all know that Festool can be a bit tricky with all the attachments and accessories that are available with many of the Festool tools. The vision is to centralize many of these questions and be able to access answers quickly and confidently.

The forum is brand new, and they are anxious to get the information rolling in. Upon perusing the site, it is very functional and already allows for pictures, there are several “off Festool” zones that you can join in on, and overall it is a very nice environment.

One of the cool things about this is watching it grow. I am sure there will be little anomalies that will arise, and frankly, that is truly part of the attraction. It appears that there are already some great minds that are involved, and I am just tickled green to be part of it.

Get over there! Sign-Up and start sharing ideas, concepts, projects, and most of all….Have Fun!

Timmy C

The Festool MFK700 will soon become a go-to router around any woodworker / fabricators shop. The light weight trim router weighs in at just 4.2 lbs and has a power comsumption of 700 Watts. The specs on this little guy are perfect if you are looking for a Festool Trim Router. With the capability of running 1/4″ shanks or 8mm shank bits and a maximum bit diameter of 1″ you can dial in to any job that requires meticulous trimming.

This video from Festool shows the router going through several applications. Notice how the router can be oriented in a vertical position or in the horizontal position. With the 1.5 degree off-set base, your bit will never touch the horizontal surface of the articulating board. In other words…who needs bearings right.

We are excited for this router in many ways. As in the video, plowing out a dado along the edge of a curve is just plain kewl. Furthermore, in the horizontal position, we are excited about the sensor bearing; talk about comfort in knowing that your set-up is going to be quick, and your cut is going to be precise.

FJ still has several for distribution on the first of May. Give us a shout, or shop for the MFK 700 by clicking >>>Buy The Festool MFK 700<<<

Peace Out,

Timmy C

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

The Festool RO 150 FEQ Rotex dual mode sander has a rotary orbital motion and a random orbital motion. Both motions have their advantages for a dedicated sanding task. The gear driven orbital motion is made for aggressive material removal and polishing, the random orbital motion is made for fine sanding.

1. Rotary Orbital Motion The rotary orbital motion is a combination of two movement patterns: The pad both rotates and has an eccentric/orbital pattern at the same time. The aggressiveness results from the fact, that the pad is gear driven and forced to spin as opposed to the random orbital motion where the pad spins due to centripetal forces and can be stopped by hand.

With this pattern the sanding action is almost as aggressive as a belt sander or a grinder. While a belt sander leaves typically deep linear scratches and a grinder deep circular scratches that are hard to sand out with the next grit up, the rotary orbital motion of the Rotex causes a random scratch pattern that erases itself during sanding. The result is a surface quality in each grit that is by far superior to a surface quality you can achieve with a belt sander or a grinder on the same grit level. And that means that the time needed for the next sanding steps with higher grits is cut down significantly. Bottom- line: Sanding with the Rotex in rotary orbital motion saves a lot of time since material is removed in an aggressive, yet smart way, providing always the best surface for the next sanding steps.

The rotary orbital motion combines a forced rotation with an eccentric/orbital motion.

2. Random orbital motion In the random orbital mode the main pattern is an eccentric
pattern. In addition the centripetal force resultant from the crankshaft offset causes the pad to spin. This is a weak force and pad rotation can be stopped if too much hand pressure is exerted on the sander. Due to the eccentric motion and the rotation, the tiny orbits are stretched into long curved loops, which, when interlaced, tend to eliminate any signs of swirl marks. The Rotex leaves a very fine finish in the random orbital mode. If a finer finish is desired, the Festool ETS150/3 is the sander of choice. Both are using the same abrasives, so they complement each other very well.

The random orbital mode combines small orbits with an unforced rotation.

Solid Surface Sanding and Finishes

1. The right Method of Sanding With the Festool RO 150 FEQ

The method that works best is sanding from left to right (making sure to overlap ½ the pad) then sand from front to back (making sure to overlap). After the surface has been sanded in both of those directions, sand in a circular motion clockwise (with the sander) in an 8″-10″ circle. This circular motion will make the finish more even. The key is to sand with the direction of the pad. If you sand against the pad you will leave swirls in the finish.

The other big thing most fabricators don’t realize is that you need to make sure all the sanding dust is removed before going onto the next grit. You will finish faster and achieve a better surface quality if you don’t skip grits.

For polishing (high gloss finishes, see below), the same method is used. It is important to clean up all compounds before moving on to the next step.

Either 80 or 120 grit can be used to sand seams. When sanding a seam, the Rotex has to be used in Rotex mode (gear drive mode) up to 120 grit. For the next steps with grits of 150 and above, it is recommended to switch to Random Orbital mode (fine sanding, pad spins freely).

2. The right Abrasives Festool Titan II

Matte finish:

Light colors: Titan II - 120, 150, 180, Vlies 280
Dark colors: Titan II - 120, 150, 180, 220, Vlies 800

Satin Finish:

Light colors: Titan II - 120, 150, 180, 220, 320, Vlies 800
Dark colors: Titan II - 120, 150, 180, 220, 320, 400,
Platin 500

Semi Gloss:
Light colors: Titan II - 120, 150, 180, 220, 320, 400,
Platin 500
Dark colors: Titan II - 120, 150, 180, 220, 320, 400,
Platin 500, 1000

Gloss:
Light and Dark colors: Titan II - 120, 150, 180, 220, 320, 400, Festool Platin 500,1000, 2000, 4000

High Gloss:
Light and Dark colors:
Same as above (gloss finish) only use compounds after the sand paper

Use sander in Rotex mode (gear driven mode) with the following pads and compounds:

Festool Polishing Pad, Sponges and Felt Pads
Hard felt - Rubbing compound (Marine grade)
Soft felt - Finesse it II
Wool pad - Liquid glass

We have had several RO 150 FEQ Dual-Mode sanders come back to us lately with burnt out plug-it cords. Make sure that you twist and lock the cords into the sander. Remember, the cords need to TWISTED 1/4 TURN. The cords are very tight, and although you may think the cord has been turned enough, ENSURE THAT IT HAS INDEED BEEN TURNED 1/4. If need be, make a mark on the cord end when you first plug it in, and then after you have twisted to lock it into place, is it a full 1/4 turn.

One other “slick trick” is to cover the prongs, and spray a little silicon onto the cord. This will serve to lube the cord, as well as make it a bit more pliable.

Timmy

The Festool Rotex RO 150 FEQ 6″ Dual-Mode Sander is an incredible tool. Let’s see some examples of how you use yours.

Send me your descriptions and photo’s via e-mail at thedude@festooljunkie.com and I will be sure to get them on the blog.

Phillip From The Ohio Valley: Tim asks, “dude, what are you doing with all these RO 150 FEQ pads?

Phil Answers: Dismantling a Cedar Log home, interior and exterior walls, 1000 sq ft. house. I’ve just about finished the logs. The house was built 1n 1972 by my brothers and I for a guy in southern Indiana; about 10 yrs later someone ran into the house in a pickup and damaged some logs. These log homes go up like the old toy log houses we played with as kids. They are tongue and grooves and are notched together.

Any way a contractor took it down and the owner replaced the house with a newer one and I bought it from him. I have been storing the logs in my barn every since. We are finally going to rebuild it next year if everything goes as planned. This 150 FEQ Rotex has sure made these logs look better than they were in 1972, using Rubin 50 grit then Rubin 180 has made this sanding job a god send. I’ve got two large trash cans full of dust.

Thanks For Sharing Phil

Festool RO 150 FEQ (571594)
- Big, 6″ disc, Dual Mode (direct spin or random orbit), edge protection, plug-it cord dust port into vac only.

Shop For Sanders <<<<

Festool ETS 150/5 (571541)
- Big, 6″ disc, 3/16″ throw pattern for intermediate sanding, plug-it cord, dust bag capabilities, turbo dust extractio

Shop Fro Sanders <<<<

Festool ETS 150/3 (571540)
- Big, 6″ disc, 1/8″ throw pattern for finish work, plug-it cord, dust bag capabilities, turbo dust extraction.

Shop For Sanders <<

The above sanders are the 6″ series of sanders. Junkie money goes to these bad boys/girls (staying politically correct). Here is a tip: decide what size of sander you are going with, 5″ or 6″, and stay with your decision. This way, you are not buying two sizes of Festool abrasives.

Check Out The Sander Packages <<

RO 125 Rotex (571536)
- Smaller than it’s brother/sister, 5″ disc, Dual Mode, tighter than the RO 150 FEQ with a 9/64″ throw in random orbit mode, Plug-It cord.

Shop For Sanders <<

ES 125 (soon the ETS 125) (571568)
- Small, 5″ disc, Lightweight, EXCELLENT BALANCE, 3/32″ pattern (tight little sucker), dust bag capabilities.

Shop For Sander <<

RS 2 E (567669)
- If you are doing large surfaces this sander is a must. See the recent review by Mr. Brice Burrell. The Festool Junkies around here feel the RS 2 is the most under-rated Festool Sander. It is big, and not very sexy looking; but is a horse in the shop. Tight too with only 3/32″ pattern.

Shop For Sanders <<

RTS 400 EQ (567187)
-Small, Tight 5/64″ pattern, the ultimate finishing sander, rectangular pad, dust bag capable. Get into tight spots along rebates and edges.

Shop For Sanders <

DTS 400 EQ (567825)
-Small, Tight 5/64″ pattern, the ultimate finishing sander, delta shaped pad, dust bag capable. Get into tight spots along rebates and edges and into corners with the pointed tip of the pad.

Shop For Sanders <

NOTE TO SELF: THE PADS FOR THE RTS AND THE DTS ARE NOT INTERCHANGEABLE. In essence, they are the same motors and features with different pad configuration.
The following sanders are more in the line of “specialty” sanders. Each has some specific usages and really do the trick.

LS 130 Duplex (567777)
- AWESOME SANDER, This is a Junkie favorite! In-line sander that has interchangeable pads for profile work. This sander even has a scraper attachment. Basically, this sander replaces hand or block sanding. It goes back and forth. 5/32″ stroke pattern gets the job done 3 times faster than sanding by hand. Killer dust extraction, and a plug-it cord. This sander is pricey, but worth every penny to me.

Shop For Sanders <<

RAS 115 4 1/2″ Rotary Sander (570738)
-Get your safety glasses on and fire this sucker up. The RAS is the ultimate stripper. The pad spins in one direction and will take paint off a house like crazy. Excellent sander! Once again, special application, but worth it if you need it.

Shop For Sanders <<

DX 39 E (567738)
-Detail sander, random orbit, tight pattern 3/32″, gets into tight spots, dust port for vac, small barrel to fit in your hand, gear driven. This is a go to sander for the shop. Junkieville uses the DX in the shop primarily for edge work. Great dust extraction when hooked up to a vacuum.

Shop For Sander <<

Just remember kids, whatever sander you choose, make sure you buy it with a vac. If you are only doing sanding, don’t spend the extra dough on the CT 22 and CT 33. Do yourself a favor and hook it up to a CT mini or CT midi. There are some great Festool accessories for the dust extraction systems out there. Many will make life much easier in the shop. As always,
Dust-ain’t-cool!!!

Shop For Sanders <<

Shop For Sander Packages <<

Shop For Festool Abrasives <<

Timmy

One of the most under-rated Festool Sanders is the Festool RS 2 E half sheet sander. Festool Junkie would like to than Mr. Brice Burrell of Burrell Custom Carpentry for his recent review on this awesome tool. Anybody that is flattening large horizontal surfaces has got to check out his review.

Thanks again Brice! You rock!

Timmy C.