Bosch vs. Festool vs. Fein sanders and vacs

[Tony Jester]

Hi. I have A LOT of sanding to do, including the entire timberframe of my house, plus hundreds of square feet of 1X4 T&G fir we're using on an inside wall. All this sanding is going to be done INSIDE an almost finished house, so dust would be a big problem. I think a 6" random orbital sander would be the best choice and am considering the Festool RO150 and the Bosch 1250 DEVS. I'm sure they both do a go job of sanding, but is one better in terms of ease of use? If one was even slightly less tiring to use, I'd go for that considering how many hours I'm going to be spending using it.

My other dilema is the dust extractor. Festool CT Mini, CT Midi, CT 22 vs. Fein Turbo II. I like the outward design of the Festool models, but the Fine _seems_ like the winner based on noise. 72 db vs. 57.8 db is a big difference. Has anyone heard them both? Is there really that much difference between them?

I would sincerely appreciate any help from those who have experience with the different models. Thanks!

-Tony-

[Leon]

Bosch sanders and drills seem to break when I use them. :~) I have the Festool Rotex and if you need there to be a minimum of dust, that sander and the Festool vac work great together. the Fein vac is said to be quite good also. The RO150 and RO125 in the aggressive modes can keep up with a belt sander. I can edge sand 3/4" stock with basically 2" of the 5" disk overhanging on both sides and no dust gets away, well maybe a trace after a couple of hours. The Rotex has a 3 year warranty and a 30 day money back guarantee so there is no risk. The Festool sand paper seems to be quire reasonably priced and last along time with the superior dust extraction. The Festool sander is louder than the CT22 vacuum. I cannot hear the vacuum on full speed when the sander is turned on. That goes for their lighter duty ROS also. Turning the suction down on the Festool vacuum makes it even quieter. Quiet is good but IMHO quieter than the tool you have hooked up to it is plenty. I think if you try both models out, most Festool dealers will let you to that, you will find the Festool is up to the task.

[marc rosen]

Hello Tony, My experience is with the Festool CT 22 but I think the Fein would do the job just as well based on comments made by some Fein users I know. I have the older Festool 150 (the Rotex) and I've used it in inverted and angled postions and it got heavy. (4 pounds, I think). I've had to switch hands often or use two when possible. I use mine in a log home, sanding the beams, walls, underside of ceilings, etc. Dust collection was excellent. I ended up buying the smaller DTS sander for my wife because she did not like using the Rotex on any surface other than horrizontal. Plus the delta shape pad allowed me to get into corners that a round pad would not.

One thing I think that makes the Festool preferable to the Fein is the Festool has a flat rectangular top that provides a good platform to set your tool, and if you have other Festools, their carrycases securely mount to the top. I think you'd also benefit from the larger of the three- the CT22 vs the Mini or Midi.

Marc

[Lew Hodgett]

Two (2) things JUMP out at me.

"Lots of sanding" and a "6" sander".

Based on my experience building a boat, they are simply incompatable"

I beat the crap out of a Bosch 3727, it's a great sander, but IMHO, much to small for a big job unless you have a crew and multiple sanders.

Take a look at 8" units, the provide (64/36) 1.77 times the sanding area.

Have fun

Lew

[toolman946 via CraftKB.com]

Hi Tony,

I've used the Bosch 1250 DEVS extensively and I've been very pleased with its performance. I've not used the Festool but in comparing features as found on the internet you'll see that the Bosch (6.5 amps) is rated at slightly more power than the Festool (6.0 amps). It's only marginally heavier (.03 lbs) but that shouldn't even be noticeable. The Bosch is rugged and powerful with a "soft-start" system that reduces fatigue from torque at start-up. "Constant Response" circuitry maintains power under varying loads. I don't use a vacuum with my sanders but I found this image of the Bosch sander married to a Fein vac:

Bosch sander is considerably less expensive than the Festool (almost 1/2 the cost) and the savings will purchase a lot of sanding disks.

I have quite a few Bosch power tools (11) and I've never had any durability or performance issues with any of them.

That's my 2 cents.

Cheers.

Michael

[Robatoy]

I have invested in both Fein and Festool. Fein makes an 8" sander which is in a class by itself. Lightweight, aggressive and reliable. It does one job for me; on-site solid surface seams when my big sander can't get under the upper cabinets.

My main sanders, aside from my 15"/4 pad sander are now exclusively Festool. The vacs are now Fein with a CT 22 Festool in back-up. The Fein vacs have massive capacity and keep sucking even when the bags are almost full. The bags (at least here in Canada) are cheaper too. The Feins also can be used as wet vacs.... and quieter too.

So there you have it. Festool Rotex sanders and Fein suckers.

But that's just lil' ol' me.

r

[RicodJour]

Festool vacuums are also wet vac capable.

R

[Robatoy]

Right you are. That's why you have a bigger 'r' than I do :-)

[Leuf]

You can get cheap third party HEPA filters that fit the Fein, I don't know about the Festool. You'll need an adapter between the Fein and Festool sanders.

-Leuf

[Robatoy]

Yes. I made my own adaptors. You cut back the rubber adaptors that Fein sells.

[Tony Jester]

Michael,

Where does one get that hose? The one in the picture doesn't look like the one that seems to come with the Fein vac. Thanks.

-Tony-

[Tony Jester]

I'm not sure how much fun you can have sanding :-) but I'll take a look at the 8" models, thanks.

[Robatoy]

d2@uwe...

[Tony Jester]

What about the hose? Where do you get that?

-Tony-

[Tony Jester]

Thanks, I missed it on their website.