Festool -- Worth it?

[James Phillips]

I am debating a festool sander and/or jig saw. The main reason being health and I do not like breathing dust. I have an air cleaner and I wear a respirator at least 75% of the time I am in my shop. I really want to avoid the fines produced by sanding. I cannot believe a festool would do a better job of sanding than any other, but if it is healthier and more comfortable I might could be pushed over the edge. I will definately only buy one so recommendations are welcome.

Bottom line is the sander and vac worth the $700 or so that it cost?

[Russ Massery]

In one word.......... Yes!

[Mike Cutler]

James.

Good vacums are expensive. Festool or not. Getting vac's with those CFM numbers and ppm ratings is going to cost you regardless of manufacturer.
The question is; is the sander and the integrated system worth the extra $$$? I belive that answer is yes. The vacum works with most, of the Festool equipment. Once the vac is paid for, it's plug and play for the rest.
If I didn't already have a Fein vac, which wasn't cheap either, I would have bought the Festool.
The sander is very highly regarded on this forum, and other forums. I'm waiting for my Makita to die so I can justify one.

[Dennis Peacock]

Agree.....the answer is YES it's worth it....AND you will never look back nor regret your decision.

[Reg Mitchell]

Like Russ and Dennis....every Penny. But what I did to save a few bucks was to order the vaccum hose and hooked it to my shop vac.
Reg

[Jim Becker]

Yea, I'm on the "worth it" side, too...the dust extraction is incredible on the sanders and because of it, the results are better, too. (Not to mention abrasives last longer since they don't crud up so fast) Buy the vac/sander combo to save some money, too.

Personally, I like to buy my Festool products from Bob Marino (an active 'Creeker, no less).

[ryan smythe]

yes they are definately worth it. not only is the product great but the customer service that comes with it when buying them from someone like Bob is unbeatable in my book. i think i got one of the very few festool sanders to have a problem and i had a new one the same day i sent the other one back. not very often you get service like that.

[sascha gast]

a big YES from me. trust me, I am not a fanboy, but once I had my first sander and the vac, I almost bought the whole line becaue it just performs, amazing

[Brian Walter]

I don't want to be the only one that says it may not be worth the extra bucks, so I won't say it. With that not said, I have a bosch random orbit sander and when I connect it to my shop vac, I really don't get any dust that I can see. I outfitted my shop vac with one of the heppa filters, so I'm not blowing the fine dust back into the air. All together, I've probably got about $250 - $300 in the combination.

So I would like to ask, of those of you that think it really is worth the extra bucks, what are you comparing it to? Were you using something similar to what I'm using, and still think the performance is worth the extra outlay? If so, then they must be awfull nice and I may have to try one out.

Brian Walter

[Jim Becker]

Brian, the design of the Festool sander enhances the dust collection...the center hole, for example, makes a huge difference in that as well as in maintaining abrasive life. And yes, I did use another vendor's ROS with a vac prior to moving to Festool. Night and day...

Oh and the variable speed on the CT-22 makes for much easier sanding, especially when you are getting up to the "higher" grits...less "stickiness".

Lastly, near zero vibration. I could only use my old sanders for maybe a half hour max before my hand and wrist became numb from the vibration. With my 150/3, I can sand for hours (and have...) with zero physical discomfort.

[sascha gast]

I was on my third Dewalt ROS and finally gave up, they are aweful compared to Festool. try one out and you'll end up getting all of them, I got 3 right now and love them, love the sanding and love the paper. no dust anywhere, and I mean anywhere

[Brad Naylor]

Ah well, here goes...

I've got two sander/vac set ups - one in my main shop, and one in my finishing room next door. One is all Festool, and one is a Bosch ROS hooked up to a cheap vac.

I really don't see that much difference in performance between them, both in terms of sanding efficiency and dust collection. The Festool gear however, cost more than twice as much and has spent a large proportion of its life in the repair shop. It was while it was in for repair one time that I had to buy the Bosch to keep me going.

I feel a bit like the little boy in the story of 'The Emporor's New Clothes'!

My Festool router and jigsaw are great though!

Cheers
Brad

[Dan Clark]

Obviously, I'm biased. But that's normal once you have tried Festool tools.

The major difficulties with Festool are two-fold. First is the initial cost. They are fairly expensive. Many people have difficulty justifying the price or believing that that they are worth it.

The second difficulty is that once you get used to the quality, it's very difficult to buy other, lower priced tools. After a while, your perspective changes. You start thinking, "Hmm... It's normal for a tool to work they way it's advertised. It's normal for tools to feel VERY solid. It's normal for tools to produce little or no dust. It's normal for a vac to produce little noise and REALLY suck. It's normal for tools to work as a system.

Festool owners don't wake up every morning and think, "WOW, I have really great tools!" You just think, "I'll just use my normal Festool tools and get my job done."

Unfortunately the downside of this is that other tools start looking "abnormal". As in... "That's odd, the storage boxes don't snap together." Or, "You mean that circular saw doesn't have a guide rail?!? How very strange!" Or the ultimate, "Why is this tool making so much sawdust!?! It must be broke!"

I have an 2002 Audi. It's not the most reliable of cars, but after almost 6 years and 45,000 miles, the doors still close with a solid "Whumph" sound. There's not a single rattle! Not ONE! When I hop into my wife's Subaru, it still takes me a second to remember that the it's normal for the doors to close with a hollow "clung" sound. The Subaru is a VERY reliable car, but it just doesn't "feel" right to me now.

As they say... It's a slippery slope!

Regards,

Dan.

[Bob McGovern]

Hi, James. After burning through two Dewalts, a Makita, and a Klingspor (Bosch DVS relabel); and after fighting loud Shop Vacs, lousy & staticky hoses, and ridiculous clip-on dust cannisters; I finally sprang for the Festool items. I might spend eight to ten straight hours bench sanding, & I have asthma issues. So buying up seemed appropriate.

I was surprised at the smoothness of the Festool 5" ROS. I got the little one because it is light and easy to work one-handed on edges. It's more comfortable than it looks, with multiple gripping positions. Very little vibration or noise, but it does bog down when pushing it hard or if the vac is turned way up. Its H&L pad lasts at least twice as long as the others, too, which will pay for the Festool upgrade on one year.

I also bought the linear sander, to save my elbows. It has made a huge difference in productivity and joint pain. Sands edges, rebates, and door frames a treat. It is noisy, tho, and the top handle somewhat limits hand positions. Still a terrific and rare beastie. (I wonder how long its bearings will live. Anyone have experience?)

Finally, the CE22 dust collector. It sits neatly under the bench, is half the racket of the Shop Vacs, and doesn't need filters cleaned twice a day. I didn't realize how much better it made life until my girlfriend observed I don't cough and hack anymore. And she's right. (The bags leak, tho, and using that rear filter cleaning handle is kinda pointless -- the dust just goes right back to the filter.)

Upshot: If you have extra dollars and desire the best, or if you sand or saw all day long & want quality results, durable tools, and good health, Festool is worth it. If woodworking is a weekend love affair, you might better spread the money around -- lesser quality tools, but a more versatile array of them.

It's Festool for me, from now on.

[Gary Keedwell]

I don't want to be the only one that says it may not be worth the extra bucks, so I won't say it. With that not said, I have a bosch random orbit sander and when I connect it to my shop vac, I really don't get any dust that I can see. I outfitted my shop vac with one of the heppa filters, so I'm not blowing the fine dust back into the air. All together, I've probably got about $250 - $300 in the combination.

So I would like to ask, of those of you that think it really is worth the extra bucks, what are you comparing it to? Were you using something similar to what I'm using, and still think the performance is worth the extra outlay? If so, then they must be awfull nice and I may have to try one out.

Brian Walter

$250-300 will not be enough money for the vacuum, alone.
Gary K.