Festool Rotex 150 questions..

[Calvin Crutchfield]

I currently own the Metabo 6" ROS, which I like a lot. But have been thinking of taking the plunge with the Festool Rotex 150. But first I have a few questions.

I read about Dual Mode. Are these two modes, Rotary and Random Orbital? The first for more aggressive sanding and the later for fine sanding?

Also, it seems that separate pads are required for sanding. Not simply discs, but “Tool Free FastFix Pads”. This true?

It seems this can also be used as a polisher, could this in fact replace my possible purchase of the Porter Cable 7424.

Lastly, is there a better place than others to buy Festool? I know the price is fixed, but some place online with no tax, free shipping, or here is a thought, great customer service?

[John Lucas]

Calvin,
Let me see if I can answer some of your questions. I have used the Rotex 150 for about 3 years now and I LOVE it. I was a typical woodworker who loved to make things but hated to finish them. The Festool Rotex changed my viewpoint. It is wonderful machine.
Yes, to your description of dual mode. I think your words are more or less accurate. In my words, I use the aggresive mode when I am first sanding rough boards. The aggressive board with 50 grit takes rough sawn marks out quickly. You do have to hold on to the barrel with both hands. For sanding, I use that mode and when I have a flat surface, I switch to the orbital with the same grit and let it smooth things out. Then I stay in the orbital mode and switch to 80, 120, 150 and 180 and I am ready for finishing. That can be appying oil or shellac, or stain and poly.
I clean the rotex off and use it for buffing out the finish once cured (5 days usually). If it is a piece that will get a mirror finish, I use Menzerna buffing compounds and pads on the Rotex. It is fun to see the finish come to life.
Here is a page on that process: http://www.woodshopdemos.com/KoaFin-5.htm



IN fact, I think those pages may answer all your questions.
I love that tool.
There are some other pages that are applicable...check out this sub-menu: http://www.woodshopdemos.com/copy_of...om/men-fes.htm

And do use a vacuum connected...that is half the beauty of the Festool tool. I enjoy having NO sawdust in the air. I use the FEstool CT22 for the vacuum.

[Steven Evans]

I have one and love it. I have it connected to a CT-33 unit. There is barely any saw dust left on the project after sanding. Air flows out the center hole and is sucked up by the small holes around the outside of the disk. The constant airflow keep sawdust moving. It sands faster, cleaner and the paper last longer. Best thing since sliced bread. It comes with on pad which has velcro on it for sanding. I think there are different types of pads for sanding. I have the hard felt and foam pads I have used for polishing and buffing my Harley(LOL). They work very well also. I have very limited knowledge of other uses. I mostly sand cabinet door and face stock with it. Yes you are correct on the dual mode. One rotary+random mode and random only mode. You will need a good dust collector to utilize this sander. I know the Festool tool units are great. I have heard good things about the Feins as well. Festool makes a great truely professional product and has great C/S. I would assume all there dealers are good as well. I know the ones I have dealt with are all top notch. Even when I buy local my tools seem to wind up being ordered from Festool and drop shipped to my shop.

[Brice Burrell]

Bob Marino or McFeely's is where I buy my Festools.

[Hoa Dinh]

Calvin,

I have to go against the grain here....

My first 6" sander is an RO150FEQ. I bought it when it first came out.

Later, I ran into a new Porter Cable 7336 (same motor as the 7424) at a price I couldn't refuse. So I bought it, along with a hook and loop pad, and a dust hood.

Guess what! For finish sanding, I prefer it to the Festool. The PC has less vibration and the surface of the boards is just as smooth. In fact, because most of my boards go through the drum sander, I don't need the Festool for rough sanding. I haven't used it for the last two projects.

Hooked up to a Fein shop vac, sanding with the PC is just as free of dust as with the Festool.

Since you already have the Metabo, and if you don't need the aggressive sanding mode, I'd say save the money the you would spend on the RO150FEQ.

If you live somewhere near SF Bay Area, you are welcome to try my RO150FEQ or my PC7336 for a week or two.

[Jason Roehl]

The two modes are "eccentric orbit" and "random orbit" The eccentric orbit is like a planetary gear motion (small gear inside a larger one). If you leave scratches with this mode, you will see that there are peaks in a circle--it looks like it is tracing a gear from a bicycle. You do have to hang on to the beast when using this mode. Random orbit is much less aggressive, and there is a 3 or 5mm (I forget) smaller rotation while the whole pad rotates.

Great machine--we use one to go over a sanded hardwood floor to make sure we don't have any stray sander marks anywhere.

[Jim Becker]

The Rotex is a very good machine if you want/need the dual mode action. "Fast-Fix" is Festool's name for hook and loop and their abrasives are very good quality...they last a long time and really are not more expensive. They also have the necessary center hole which greatly improves dust extraction. I don't use my Rotex much, but it does what it does well...for general sanding, I use the 150/3 which is a "one hand" machine and with almost no vibration.

[Jeff Wright]

The Rotex is a very good machine if you want/need the dual mode action. . . . I don't use my Rotex much, but it does what it does well...for general sanding, I use the 150/3 which is a "one hand" machine and with almost no vibration.

Jim, I have the Festool 150/3 but would like a sander that was more aggressive rather than trying to use the 150/3 as my "do everything" sander. Do you have any suggestions? Is the Rotex overkill? Could the 150/5 suffice?

[Jim Becker]

Jeff, if you're going to buy a second, the Rotex is the way to go. In ROS mode, it's identical to the 150/5. In "aggressive mode", it's a whole 'nuther animal with abrasives and also does the polishing thing very nicely. Going with a 150/5 isn't going to buy you much, in other words, over the 150/3. IMHO, of course.

[Paul Dwight]

I have a 150/5 and the Rotex 150. I use both on almost everything I build. I keep an 80 grit disc on the Rotex and use it in aggressive rotary mode to quickly remove planer ripple. After I'm satisfied that the board is flat, I switch the Rotex to orbital mode to even out the scratches, and then use the 150/5 to work my way up through the finer grits. I keep both sanders on the workbench and simply switch the power cord and vacuum hose from one to the other. Quick, easy, very effective.

I find the Rotex in RO mode vibrates more in the hands than the RO-only 150/5. The Rotex in RO mode is no worse than what I was used to with non-Festool sanders, but the 150/5 is smoother than I thought any RO sander could ever be. If you're hoping the Rotex will be your single all-purpose sander, I'd suggest you go by a Woodcraft store and test drive one in RO mode to be sure you're satisfied with the vibration level.

Just to be clear, I should add that I've seen no difference in the quality of the surface left by the Rotex as compared to the 150/5. Both leave an excellent surface.

If I could only have one Festool sander, it would be the 150/5. I really love having both, though.

Incidentally, I use my Festool stuff with a Porter Cable vac. I told Bob Marino which vac I used and he supplied the correct hose. The PC works well and is quite a bit less expensive than a Festool dust extractor. Everyone who has a Festool vac seems to love it, though.

Hope this helps. -- Paul

[Jeff Wright]

Thanks Paul and Jim.

Paul, I do have the 150/3 already, so the Rotex would not be my only sander. I'm thinking that getting the Rotex might give me a nice profile of sanding capacity . . . the Rotex in aggressive mode for really doing the heavy work, switch it to the 150/5 equivalent mode, and then finish up with my 150/3 for getting things really fine. I am hearing some good things about the PC 7336 though.

[Gregg Feldstone]

I thought the big difference with the rotex is that one mode is "forced rotation" combined with oscillations....ie, you can't stop it from rotating even if you tried. Only the Makita B06040 and the Flex XC3401 polisher also do this. If anyone knows of another tool that does I'd like to know.
The flex is not a sander( but may work as one) and the Makita has not gotten as good reviews as the Festool.

How is the Rotex when actually used as a polisher? Could one put 7" polishing pads on it?

[Jason White]

You only really need the 2 sanding modes if you do a lot of stripping of coatings, like old paint. Otherwise, the "eccentric" mode on the Rotex can actually damage a workpiece very quickly.

Yes, you'll need to get the special 9-hole Festool paper, but it lasts a long time and is very good quality.

Finally, I always recommend "Uncle Bob"... www.bobmarinosbesttools.com

JW

I currently own the Metabo 6" ROS, which I like a lot. But have been thinking of taking the plunge with the Festool Rotex 150. But first I have a few questions.

I read about Dual Mode. Are these two modes, Rotary and Random Orbital? The first for more aggressive sanding and the later for fine sanding?

Also, it seems that separate pads are required for sanding. Not simply discs, but “Tool Free FastFix Pads”. This true?

It seems this can also be used as a polisher, could this in fact replace my possible purchase of the Porter Cable 7424.

Lastly, is there a better place than others to buy Festool? I know the price is fixed, but some place online with no tax, free shipping, or here is a thought, great customer service?

[Michael Sobik]

I have a 6" Rotex. At first I thought the dual mode thing was kind of scammy, but I needed a new sander and thought I'd give it a shot. I LOVE the dual mode. I use it all the time. On a normal random orbit sander, if you press down with enough force the pad stops spinning. With the Rotex, the harder you press down the more material it removes. You have to be careful, but it works great for flattening panel glue ups. You can buy a firm pad that really works well for getting boards flat. Also, the dust collection is awesome. I have mine connected to the CT22, and it just works.

I've used mine for polishing out high gloss finishes and it works great for that as well in rotary mode.

[Jim Becker]

Gregg, I believe that Festool has a polishing kit for the Rotex...I haven't bought it yet, but it's on my "list". Talk to Bob Marino about the options in that respect.

One thing that I'll mention (probably again) in this post is that the Rotex is ideally a two-hand tool, but that's not usually a problem in polishing and heavy stock removal situations; it lends finesse in the case of the former and extra control in the case of the latter. For general sanding, Rotex isn't my go-to tool...the 150/3 is.