Bit by the Festool Bug - CDD 12 a Good Buy?

[Tim Armstrong]

You guys are really costing me a lot of money! ;) I had only barely heard of the Festool brand before I started pointing my browser to this site almost daily.... scratch that, several times a day.. a few months ago.

I started reading about these Festool gloats, did some research, emailed Bob Marino, and I have to admit, I'm up late dreaming about building my own Festool family.

With one on the way (I may have found the last closeout ATF 55 in captivity earlier this week), I'm already looking at picking up a sibling for my soon-to-arive CS. I see the CDD 12s are still available on closeout and it seems like a very handy size and form factor to sit on my bench.

I have a Milwaukee 14v which I love and would buy again and again, but it's a bit big at times. My old Makita 12v is all but dead so... I'm looking at the CDD 12s at this seemingly great price. So, what do you think? It's still a lot of dough for a 12v drill.

Stay tuned... I'll probably be asking about the sanders soon too. :o

[Russ Massery]

I know what your talking about when you say you've been biten. It happen to me about two month's ago.:rolleyes: Your really in trouble if you haven't got to the sanders yet.:eek: I think there the most innovative products in there line. The real only advantages that I can see with the drills is the weight there much lighter than most drills. And the chucks, especially the eccentric chuck. BTW have you been dealing with are own fellow creeker Bob Marino? He's very knowledgeable on all there products. And really helpful in your decision making process.His help is free (except for the tools)And it doesn't cost any more to buy from him.

[JayStPeter]

I just got a TDK last month. It's a nice drill. I would get one if you plan on taking advantage of the right angle and offset chucks. IMO, that's the biggest advantage of the Festool over others. The size of the Festool drills is nice and may be worth the closeout price to you by itself.

Jay

[John Miliunas]

Tim, I have two of the older TDD Festools. Loads of torque for a 12V unit, eccentric chuck, right angle chuck, super-quick battery recharge, compact for tight places, great Systainer and, w/Bob Marino as my Rep., the best Customer Support this side of the Mississippi! :D What more can a guy ask for???:) The CDD is just a bit different form factor w/different battery. Oh yeah...Like Russ says, watch out for their sanders! I've currently got four of them, too!:D :cool:

[Chris Barton]

Hi Tim,

I am infected by Festoolamania as well but, I wouldn't buy the drill. Let's face facts, Festool gear is way expensive and I think there are better items that they make you could sink your money in. The Panasonic was recently tested against the Festool 12V drill as well as the likes of Metabo, Fein, and many other and was rated tops. If you want to complement that ATF55e go with one of their sanders but, that's just my opinion...

[Scott Parks]

I have the CDD 12 and so far really like it. Yes, it was a bit much ($). But what sold me was the size, versatility, and the 15 minute charge. With my old drill, it took a full day to charge the battery, so the 15 minute charge was a warm welcome.

The other advantage is the attactchments. I WISH I would have bought the right angle, and eccentric, but I didn't wan't to spend that much money. Look at it this way: How much would it cost you to buy a good quality drill, AND a good quality right angle drill?

My only complaint is it is a HEAVY drill for it's size. I think a lot of the bulk of the weight is in the chuck. If I use it as a driver, I remove the chuck and use the centrotec. This makes the drill more manageable and lighter. It takes some getting used to, though. Do to the battery configuration, it feels very nose heavy, but after you get used to it, it's not a big deal. The weight balance actually helps keep the bit engaged with the screw head.

Don't let that negative stop you, it's only my opinion, and a very small one. Overall, I really like the drill, and am glad I bought it. Now my next problem is deciding which sander to buy. Problem is, I ran out of tool money....:(

[Dave Falkenstein]

I have several Festools, but not one of the drills. However, a friend of mine bought the CDD12 a couple of months ago and he raves about it. The offset and right angle chucks give any of the Festool drills a leg up on the competition. My friend did check before he bought and was assured the Festool would continue support and parts for the clearance drill (and presumably any clearance tool) for at least seven more years. I am seriously considering adding the CDD12 to my Festool arsenal, so I'll be interested to hear the result of your research. Thanks.

[Peter Pedisich]

Tim,

Keep in mind I don't own a Festool drill, but I want one.:D

The closeout price plus the current rebate makes the CDD12 very tempting. Just thoroughly compare the specs between the drills, because the CDD12 goes only to 1100 rpm which in my experience is too slow to get a nice clean countersink hole in wood - this may not be an issue for you. The new C12 on the other hand goes up to 1500 rpm (nice clean drilling) and has an option for 3.0 amp hour NiMH batteries.
But...the CDD12 has been in production for years and is widely used and liked.
More confusion, right?
I have a RS400 sander on the way and it's 2.7 times the cost of a DW/Bosch/PC palm sander. A year ago I would have thought it was insane to pay that much more, now having owned Festools I don't even think twice.

Pete

"Oats that have already been through the horse will always be cheaper."
-Benjamin Franklin

[Christian Aufreiter]

Hi folks,

As for the CDD 12’s price, I’d like to provide a different point of view. My dad paid approx EUR 470 for the CDD with two 2.0 Ah NiCd batteries, a 45 min charger, the right angle and the eccentric attachment. After having used the CDD for several times, I do think that it’s even worth EUR 470. So if I were you and could get the whole package (with an even better charger) for $ 335 I wouldn’t hesitate any longer.

If you just want a good 12 V cordless drill, you have plenty of choices (Makita, Milwaukee etc.). But once you face a difficult situation (driving screws at tight spots etc.) you’ll will definitely appreciate the CDD’s special features and won’t be sorry for spending some extra money compared to other brands.



My only complaint is it is a HEAVY drill for it's size. I think a lot of the bulk of the weight is in the chuck.

Well, I think that’s partly because the CDD is so small. Compared to other 12 V drills the CDD is not outstandingly heavy.



The closeout price plus the current rebate makes the CDD12 very tempting. Just thoroughly compare the specs between the drills, because the CDD12 goes only to 1100 rpm which in my experience is too slow to get a nice clean countersink hole in wood - this may not be an issue for you. The new C12 on the other hand goes up to 1500 rpm (nice clean drilling) and has an option for 3.0 amp hour NiMH batteries.
But...the CDD12 has been in production for years and is widely used and liked.
More confusion, right?


IMO higher rpm would be nice but the CDD’s 1100 rpm have served me well so far. As for countersink holes, I’ve never had a problems with this kind of countersink (http://www.fine-tools.com/famag13.jpg).

Regards,

Christian

[Scott Parks]

IMO higher rpm would be nice but the CDD’s 1100 rpm have served me well so far. As for countersink holes, I’ve never had a problems with this kind of countersink (http://www.fine-tools.com/famag13.jpg).

I think that type of countersink works best in aluminum, at slow speeds. Yesterday I used one with my CDD 12 to sink about 40 holes in aluminum. Also drilled 96 repeated 1/4" holes with a brad piont drill. It could have been a little faster for the drill, because it was tearing a little bit in plywood.

[Tim Armstrong]

Thanks guys - lots of good stuff to think about. It seems like some of you are saying that it's a great tool and worth it with the full FastFix set of chucks. That really makes sense to me.

That does however now mean that I'm thinking about spending $335 for a 12v drill. :eek: I know, I know.. it's a Festool at a great price. That puts it over the threshold of the LOML 'clearance required' mark. :rolleyes: I think I'm going to sit on this decision for a little while. Maybe I'll put the $ towards a sander/vac combo while the $25 rebate is still in play before the end of the year. Now I just have to decide which sander to buy!

[Scott Parks]

That does however now mean that I'm thinking about spending $335 for a 12v drill. :eek: I know, I know.. it's a Festool at a great price. That puts it over the threshold of the LOML 'clearance required' mark. :rolleyes: I think I'm going to sit on this decision for a little while. Maybe I'll put the $ towards a sander/vac combo while the $25 rebate is still in play before the end of the year. Now I just have to decide which sander to buy!

I wish I had a GOOD sander. That is where I really see the Festool benefit. The only reason I bought the drill was because my old one was was officially declared dead. If you already have a drill, and $ is an issue, wait. Get the sander and vac first. As far as the vac goes... When I first saw them a few years ago, I thought that was outrageous expensive for a shop vac! Now that I own the CT22, I feel it was worth EVERY PENNY! I love it. It is quiet and powerful, and SUCKS! The only regret, is I wish I got the CT33. You get twice the capacity and hose storage. The bags are a bit expensive, so having 2x the capacity would be a better value. It would have been $70 well worth spent to upgrade to the CT33.... I hook up the vac to all the tools I use that have a dust port (Spindle sander, palm sander, biscuit joiner, ATF55, band saw, etc.)... Works excellent. But for shop clean-up, I still use my old beater shop vac...

BTW, I used the CDD12 drill all day today... Still love it...:D

[Mark Riegsecker]

[quote= Scott Parks]Now that I own the CT22, I feel it was worth EVERY PENNY! I love it. It is quiet and powerful, and SUCKS! The only regret, is I wish I got the CT33.

Thanks Scott. I was contemplatting the choice between the two. Now I know. My only other concern was the size. I don't want ct33 to be big and clunky like my 600 hp sears shop power vac:eek:

[Phil Winn]

Mark,
I purchased the CT33 (over the CT22) for the same reasons as Scott did;
it is bigger, but if you can move the CT22 around...you will not have any problems moving the CT33.
Phil

[Tim Armstrong]

Thanks everyone for your input. As an update, I pulled the trigger on this and "Uncle Bob" (Marino) has one on the way to me. I got the full FastFix set with the two specialty chucks.

Here's what sold me - fast charge, unique design, and the off-set chuck. I look forward to many years of great performance given that it says Festool on the side as well.

Thanks to John Miliunas and Bob Marino for the extra help with my questions. Obligatory gloat with pics post will be in my future.:D

[John Miliunas]

Congrats, Tim! :) I sincerely think you'll be both, impressed and quite happy with that system. Yeah, it's a bit of a cash crunch at first, but you quickly forget about that once you use the system to its potential!:) Yup, we'll be waiting on the pics!:D :cool:

[Frank Pellow]

Thanks everyone for your input. As an update, I pulled the trigger on this and "Uncle Bob" (Marino) has one on the way to me. I got the full FastFix set with the two specialty chucks.

Here's what sold me - fast charge, unique design, and the off-set chuck. I look forward to many years of great performance given that it says Festool on the side as well.

Thanks to John Miliunas and Bob Marino for the extra help with my questions. Obligatory gloat with pics post will be in my future.:D
Congratulations Tim! But, you know that you will not be able to stop with one Festool tool. I wonder what the next one will be.

[Peter Pedisich]

Tim,

Congratulations! I am very interested in hearing your thoughts on this drill.
Please let us know after you get to use it. Been thinking about geting either a C12 or TDK15.6 after Christmas and I put a lot of value in reviews by other creekers as opposed to magazines.
Enjoy!

Pete