Festool ETS 150/3

[Mike Scallon]

Does anyone use there Festool 150/3 for polishing & buffing a finish with auto compounds?

Or is the RO 150 FEQ the ideal sander for polishing & buffing?

The sale ends 10/31 for the 150 FEQ.

Just wondering if I need both.:confused:

[Jim Dailey]

Hi Mike & "Welcome" to the creek,

I have both the 150/3 & the older Rotex 150. Both are great sanders. The 150/3 has great balance & is the finest of finishing sander. The Rotex is a work horse that will strip like a belt sander, yet go from rough sanding to finish sanding. Plus act as a buffer. I've yet to try buffing with the Rotex but ironicly had a conversation with Bob Marino this week about this same subject... I'd suggest you speak to Bob Marino to get his recommendations.
http://www.bobmarinosbesttools.com/

On the Festool users group awhile back was agreat post about this subject http://groups.yahoo.com/group/FestoolOwnersGroup/message/12594?l=1

Hope this helps, jim

[Dave Falkenstein]

The Festool 150/3 is a finishing sander with a 3mm sanding stroke. The RO 150 has a 5mm sanding stroke in random orbit mode, and can be used for buffing or polishing in rotary mode. You might be happy with the 5mm stroke for random orbit sanding. I'd suggest you try the RO 150 for buffing and polishing as well as random orbit sanding. If you feel you need the finer 3mm stroke, you can always add the 150/3 at a later time.

[James Biddle]

I just used the 150/3 with the Menzerna compounds for my latest project. It worked just fine for me, but I don't have any experience with the Rotex to know how much better it could be.

[Per Swenson]

You want to polish, get the rotex.

Polish in eccentric or rotex mode.

The 150 as stated is the best darn electric finsh sander on the market.

But it is not a polisher.

The first pic is blurry cause my father was working to fast.

That is a joke folks.
Second pic is wet sanding.
Third the result.

Per

[Bob Marino]

Mike,

Yes to all the responses. Most any sander, with the appropriate pads, can polish. However, the Rotex, in the "rotary" mode is a way better and faster polisher than the 150/3 or 150/5, or any other sander. More power and you can really bear down.
At a demo last week in NYC, the Festool trainer took a couple of rough glued boards and took it from rough to mirror finish in less than 10 minutes - 80 to 4000 grits.

Bob

[Doug Shepard]

Cr#p - I guess Santa's coming early. I been debating whether to pull the Festool trigger and the sale just made me lose all self control. At least I'll lose a little weight from the deal as I wont be able to afford food for a couple of weeks now.:D
Bob - There's an order in on your site. Any unpublished Holloween discounts out there that apply?:D

[Mike Scallon]

Thanks guys for your replies.
Hey Per!! That bar looks awesome!! I can't wait to try the Menzerna polish.
I was hoping to get by with just my 150/3.
Looks like the Rotex 150 is the way to go for polishing & buffing.
Just wondering how much better it really is.
-Mike-

[Gary Keedwell]

Mike,
I'm still sitting on the fence, myself. I need a new vacuum (ah..excuse me...dust extractor) but am undecided on what to purchase. I almost ordered the Fein about a hundred times, but something in the back of my dense gray matter tells me to go towards Festool. Problem is that I can't afford to lose any weight. (lost 20 pounds when I went on " the wagon" 7 months ago)
I do have their 15.6 cordless drill with all the fancy chucks, though. I just love to pull the trigger and watch the drill go around and around without "running- out." ( see what sobriety does to you!!!) LOL

Gary K.
PS. Seems I have extra money now that I drink grapes that aren't fermented.

[John Gornall]

Using a combination of the 150/3 sander and a Festool extractor how good is the dust control?

I've been frustrated by sanding dust for a long time - will a Festool combination solve the problem?

[Jim Becker]

Using a combination of the 150/3 sander and a Festool extractor how good is the dust control?

I've been frustrated by sanding dust for a long time - will a Festool combination solve the problem?

I get near zero dust when I sand with the 150/3 and CT22. (Same with the Rotex) It's very efficient for dust extraction and the abrasives last longer due to the design with the "center hole". The very low vibration also means I can sand for hours...something I couldn't do with the PC333s I used to own.
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To the OP, the Rotex is what you want for polishing as well as sanding when you want both. The new Rotex handle design should prove to be more comfortable than the old in this respect, too.

[Dave Falkenstein]

Using a combination of the 150/3 sander and a Festool extractor how good is the dust control?

I've been frustrated by sanding dust for a long time - will a Festool combination solve the problem?

I'll second Jim's comments about dust-free sanding using the Festool sanders and dust extractor (vacuum). Just about everyone that has experience with Festool sanders will tell you that the dust control is close to perfect. Well worth the expense, IMHO.

[Larry Crim]

Mike
I purchased the rotex based on Per's suggestion and I can honestly say it was the best tool purchase I have made in a long time, using it with the CT33 vac you will hardly see any dust, I actually had the sander off with the vac on and set the sander on a maple board and it stuck to it and lifted it with vac pressure alone. I am sure I will be in the market for a 150-3 in the future.
Larry

[Jim Becker]

I actually had the sander off with the vac on and set the sander on a maple board and it stuck to it and lifted it with vac pressure alone.

Exactly why the variable speed on the CT22 and CT33 are so important! You want to get the dust but not make the work harder. I generally run my CT22 at about half speed when sanding with excellent extraction. (And even lower noise levels than the already low output of the CT)

[Gary Keedwell]

Jim, that's a good point. If it is quiet at full throttle, and you can turn it down half way and still function, LOML will be very happy with that set-up.

Gary K.