32mm system

[Paul B. Cresti]

John,
I can always count on you enticing me to spend more money How much did the Zentrix and drill cost? and does it work well? I noticed that one is required to have at least 2500rpm for the bits does a cordless drill work to drive the screws?

[Jerry Golick]

John,
I can always count on you enticing me to spend more money How much did the Zentrix and drill cost? and does it work well? I noticed that one is required to have at least 2500rpm for the bits does a cordless drill work to drive the screws?

FWIW - I drilled all my holes free hand with a Delta 18v cordless, with torgue to spare. I used the confirmat step bit and then had to switch to a pozi head driver for the screw. But that Zentrix sounds very interesting cause every now and then I would get the alignment wrong, and the next thing you knew I had a nasty bit of melamine popping up inside the cabinet.

By the way, you can find a pretty good discussion on the use of confirmats and the zentrix jig on WoodWeb at:

http://www.woodweb.com/knowledge_bas..._assembly.html

Thanks for the tip John!

[Greg Mann]

Christian,

Do you use the Festool drilling system and your 1010? any comments/feedback on it?

Paul,

I promised to let you know what I felt of the system once I used it. I have a built-in cabinet in-process and tonight was shelf pin hole night. I set up the 32mm drilling system with my 1010 for the first time, the system having just arrived today. It took about 40 minutes to set up , including calibrating the stops. It might have taken less if I had read the instruction but they are pretty useless anyway, except for the drawings. I always like to see if I can work out the logic of a tool for myself. It seems to stick with me better when I do. Anyway, I digress. Two hours later I was done even though I could not take full advantage of the system because I had not planned around the system to begin with and I needed to match my spacings to the commercial face-frame I was using. I felt it was not bad for 150 holes or so being a first timer. Imagine my surprise when I did the official count: 358 holes! LOML wanted lots of shelf options; she got 'em. I'm a happy camper.

Greg

[Paul B. Cresti]

Greg,
So do you think you could do it faster now that you got the hang of it? and do you thing the price tag was worth it ( I assume you bought the whole system in systainer and the guide rail)? vs something like a jig-it system from rockler (it is a template you use with a drill)?

[Jerry Golick]

Hi Greg,

The two things that kinda threw me for a loop when I first started drilling the holes was the idea that side panels could be balanced, or unbalanced. Balanced means you can use and side panel for left or right, unbalanced means you have to keep in mind which is which (I drilled for "right hand side" panels before I figured that out )

I also had to figure out the difference between upper and lower cabs. Since the upper ones are normally just shelves, the rear offset hole placement is not too critical. For the bottoms, if you are going to use drawer slides, without a jig, you have to get the offset right for the slides you are using. The LR-32 really helped me out once I figured out how to calculate the offset (I built a small excel spreadsheet to jelp me out). Once you do, the drawers slides are easy to install, no jig is required, and everything lines up nice and straight.

One thing though about screwing into the system holes, I found that the short euro screws were the best for mounting slides and hinges.

BTW - I also found it much easier to install the slides before I assembled the cabinets (I figured that out after building the first two!

[Greg Mann]

Greg,
So do you think you could do it faster now that you got the hang of it? and do you thing the price tag was worth it ( I assume you bought the whole system in systainer and the guide rail)? vs something like a jig-it system from rockler (it is a template you use with a drill)?

I bought the drilling system separate of the complete systainer packaged deal. I already had the guiderail and clamps, plus a spare systainer, so it was a cheaper way to go. On this job, a longer rail would have been nice because the built-in will be 84 inches high, but it was not a big deal to slide the rail. Knowing what I know now, I am sure I could cut the time in half just based on planning around the system in the first place. Plus, about halfway through the job, I learned that Festool's pointed 5mm drill can be plunged quite quickly without fear of breakout (in plywood, at least). I drilled through, because since it is a built in, nothing will show and there is also a center upright that will support shelves on both sides.

It will be worth it, as I have plans to do a fair amount of casework. I admit I have a weakness for tools that work the way they are designed to and that are elegant in their execution. Also, having been involved in precision machining all my life, I go a little nuts about accuracy. I know, that with good technique, this system will never disappoint me.

Greg

[John Renzetti]

Paul and Jerry, I'll dig up some info on the Zentrix and get it to you. I can probably take some pictures also.
One drawback that I found is that it just won't fit on any drill. I had an Hitachi that worked. I think Hafele has the drill for around $90. It's a corded drill, plenty of power.
Paul, did you know that those Aigner fence plates are now on sale for only $1k. Aren't you glad I didn't know you before you bought that MM equipment.
talk to you later,
John