Jason, its not just you, I agree the rubin is much much better than the brilliant. Problem is, they only offer the rubin in the coarser grits - we usually go up to 320-400, so we didn't have any options, so we went elsewhere.
Jason, its not just you, I agree the rubin is much much better than the brilliant. Problem is, they only offer the rubin in the coarser grits - we usually go up to 320-400, so we didn't have any options, so we went elsewhere.
I believe this company also carries abrasives for the Festool.
http://www.performancetoolcenter.com/
Never, under any circumstances, consume a laxative and sleeping pill, on the same night
No - I did mean that for unfinished wood in the 150 + grits, Brilliant is better than Rubin. I'm not a big fan of Rubin past 120 grit. I defer to Brilliant as the option before I use Rubin in that range - especially for soft woods. For finished wood , i.e., wood with paint - shellac - varnish etc. for sanding between coats - I use the Abranet mesh from 120 grit on up - mostly. Using the Festool abrasives, it does make a difference if I am using the RO125 or the ETS 150/3 - 2 different objectives with those tools. Rubin to the RO, Brilliant to the ETS. My experience only... ain't sayin' I'm the final word on the subject . I just prefer the finish quality of Brilliant - I'm not comparing its durability. Again, for durability, I prefer the Mesh.
Last edited by Sam Murdoch; 06-25-2013 at 11:48 PM. Reason: clarity?
"... for when we become in heart completely poor, we at once are the treasurers & disbursers of enormous riches."
WQJudge
Another Abranet fan here. It last better, I get better dust collection and it doesn't clog. I use it almost exclusively for sanding except for the Festool sanding discs that I bought (got to use them up) when I bought the Festool sanders.
Jim
I've only ever used Rubin up to 180. Over that I (rarely) use Brilliant. When I first bought my Festool sander I found I was getting a lot better life with Rubin than the Mirka Gold I previous bought and was only paying slightly more per box, not that there were other options available at the time. Lately I've been reading and hearing a lot of recommendations for the Granat papers having even better life. I've only tried a roll of the foam backed pads for between-coat sanding which have been great so next time I need discs, that's what I'll buy. Granat is slightly cheaper as well ($62/100 vs $34/50---why'd they switch the pack size?)
If you choose to use alternative abrasive disks for Festool sanders, remember that you not only need the correct hole pattern, but also need the center hole which is critical to proper dust extraction.
I find that the Festool Rubin disks are very long lasting for me and haven't felt a need to explore alternatives to-date.
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The most expensive tool is the one you buy "cheaply" and often...
I felt Festool discs were very low quality. Had bought boxes with my sander and after using what was included with my sander returned them all.
Abranet are good, and also if you can find a supplier of 3M that will punch the holes for the Festool pattern they are good too and lower price vs Abranet.
I found these on the Bay, similar price as 2sand.com but free shipping which saves me $10.
http://www.ebay.com/itm/Mirka-Abrane...item3f200e9af3
Last edited by fred woltersdorf; 10-03-2013 at 3:02 PM.
i have just used the last of my kilingspores disc and that god what junk they where from being to large for the pad causing them to catch on face frames sides to not lasting very long about half of what festool or rhino last and my biggest peeve is the Velcro backing coming off when changing out grits
try these they work great last as long as festool ones
http://www.industrialabrasives.com/h...c-201_189.html