Review of the Festool RAS-115 Rotary-Action Sander

If you saw my Sculpted Mahogany Vanity series, I used the RAS-115 a lot for shaping the surfaces into very tactile undulating waves.  That's not a normal thing to do, but shows how the RAS combines rapid stock removal, excellent control, and (most important!) dust collection!

As the name suggests, the RAS is a rotary-action sander with no eccentricity (other than any caffeine-induced shakes from the operator trying to finish the vanity late at night).

What makes this Festool different than the others is this is the only one I own that is a go-to tool when you don't expect it; if you have it around, you'll find it in your hands an awful lot.

In this review, I talk about the parts and an optional FiberFix pad used for fiber wheels and polishing heads (for stone, not your car). We'll take it apart so you see the components because not all of them are needed when you use the RAS: you can remove the dust shroud for polishing (this time, your car).

At the end, I'll do a demo of dust collection and shaping similar to what I did to the vanity surfaces; while you won't be doing projects like that, it demonstrates much of the dust collection concepts explained earlier.  Some close-up slo-mo clearly shows how even with the dust shroud in the wrong position, the RAS collects a lot of dust.

In the video, I list some uses; here they are listed in case you didn't have a pencil handy:

• Paint and varnish stripping; use Cristal papers for durability, no loading, and speed
• Shaping wood; use Rubin or Cristal papers.
• Coping; to me this is shaping, but in case you skipped that item
• Honing natural stone tile edges nearly dust free; needs FiberFix pad
• Scuffing or leveling concrete/thin-set; use Saphir paper.
• Cleaning metal including for priming; use Vlies pads (an abrasive pad).
• Coarse sanding of metal; use Saphir
• Smoothing cut metal edges; use fiber disc with FiberFix pad and optional metal dust collection brushes and a spark trap on your dust extractor.
• Polishing using Shinex pads.

There are no polishing heads specifically made for the RAS-115, but the now available Shinex has a number of larger 150mm (6") pads.  They also have an M14 arbor like the RAS pads.  Now the RAS runs from 1,400-4,000 rpm whereas the Shinex runs from 400-2,100 rpm; that means the RAS speeds 1-3 will somewhat match the Shinex speeds 3-6.  Is it as good as having a separate Shinex?  Likely not.  But if you have a RAS-115, you have the option of popping a Shinex pad on it for some polishing situations.  Note that this isn't outlined in the RAS manual as it predates the Shinex and Festool would likely only recommend polishing with the Shinex, not the RAS.  So, your mileage will vary.

Just as a reminder, the RAS-115 comes with a normal power cable (very long one at that!) and not a Plug-It tail like I have; I got that from one of my moles in the UK :) (thanks, mole!)  

Okay, popcorn is ready by now... cue up techno music...

Review of Aqua Coat Grain Filler and Festool Granat Sanding Sheets

Well, that qualifies as the longest title I've ever written... :)

Charles Neil gave me a can of Aqua Coat clear grain filler when I was in Tucson with him because he had been watching my sculpted Mahogany vanity series and though it would eliminate all the wet sanding.  At the time, I had only one panel remaining to wet sand so I didn't use the Aqua Coat fearing the panel would look different than the others.

In this review, I used Aqua Coat on an offcut of the vanity and compare it to an equivalent offcut that was wet sanded.  It definitely worked well and at a quarter the labor, possibly less.

While preparing the sample boards, I had a chance to pick up an assortment of Festool Granat hand sanding sheets from Tom Bellemare.  Normally it is sold in huge single-grit boxes, but Tom makes assortments by hand.  I chose the full assortment.  In the video, I compare using the Granat to Mirka hand sanding pads that I've been using for awhile.  Both work very well, but I suspect the Granat will last longer.  If the Granat sampler I had with the RO-90 is any indication, it will last a long time.

Festool Rotex 125 and 150 Reviews

On a forum, I saw a question about the differences between the Festool RO-125 and the RO-150 Rotex sanders.  I wanted to post a link to my blog entry about it only to realize that I never made one with the various review videos of those two sanders.
So, if you have followed my blog for the past year, you likely saw these.  I'm adding them here for completeness.

The following video reviews of the Rotex sanders are mostly about each individual sander, functionality, speeds, etc. with a little comparison between the two.  The fourth video is a comparison directly between the models.

Let me apologize up front for the lighting in the videos; they were among the first 5 I ever did and I had no softboxes (directed diffuse lighting).

Read up after the videos for some additional thoughts...

First up, the RO-125 review and demo:

Next, the RO-150 review:

and separately the demo (I was too new to YouTube to be allowed a longer video at the time :)

And lastly, a video comparing the two models side by side:

Additional thoughts (some of which were eluded to in the videos):

I like the RO-125 because it fits nicely in my hand; I can easily grab the knob top and whirl it around a bit like an ETS-125.  It's less aggressive, however, than the RO-150, but I normally don't need to hog off material (for that, the RAS-115 is a beast).

The surface of the RO-150 is 44% larger than that of the RO-125, which is significant if you are sanding/polishing the hull of a boat, less significant if you are sanding face frames.  Actually, if you are mostly sanding face frames, the RO-90 is the sander of choice.

Whichever sander you get, be sure to order the hard pad for it.  You want that when sanding most anything flat.  The semi-soft that comes with the sander will follow minor undulations that you may not care about in the field of a piece, but near the edge, it can "dub" the edge.

If you decide to get the RO-150, I highly recommend the auxiliary handle that attaches to the front of the sander.  You are so much better balanced for leaving the pad flat on the surface.  With the regular side handle, it's too easy to dip the front or back of the pad and add scratches from the edge of the pad.

For their papers, I like using Rubin paper from P80 to P120.  From P180 up, I use Brilliant-2 papers.  Now that Granat is available, I'd be tempted to replace Rubin with it as it seems to last longer plus if you work with mixed media, Granat doesn't clog on resins or plastics.

Sculpted Mahogany Vanity - Sculpting!

Finally getting to the sculpting! In this episode, we transfer a pattern I drew to the panels then mark them for pre-sculpting. The pre-sculpting is done with a router so I took the opportunity to give you a side-by-side view of the OF-1400 vs the OF-2200 each working a panel. The dust collection on both is fantastic.

Then comes the sculpting of each panel. In real-time, each panel took close to an hour depending on the complexity.  I won't put you through watching an hour of sanding :)  The clip is about 4 minutes to highlight certain aspects of the shaping process. I have a couple tips to share about using the RAS-115 and RO-90 at the end that get demonstrated.

Lastly, you get to see the three panels side-by-side in a fairly rough state; the embossing will be lowered considerably, but I talk about some effects I can use while they are still pronounced.

This week, I'll work on removing the old vanity as I need to get any plumbing changes done first before planning the depth of the drawers.  My neighbor (my plumber) has been out for a week so I'm behind on this!  Once the drawer sizes are decided, we'll go through doing those.  In spare time (!!) I'll complete the shaping of the panels as they won't be needed until after the drawers are built.

In the video, I mention using Iwasaki rasps and plane files.  I got some of mine through Highland Woodworking. D'oh! I shouldn't have gone there to get the link... there are so many more I'm interested in for other projects :)  Even if you don't plan on shaping anything, I'd recommend getting a set of the very fine files.  With the flat one, you can adjust tenons very quickly, clean mortise sides, and any number of other 'flat' corrections.  You'll be impressed by how they cut.

So scratch-n-sniff an offcut of Mahogany for that right-in-the-action sensation! Cue it up...

Now earlier this week, someone on the FOG had some questions about handling the RO-90 especially in rotary mode.  They wanted to see some raw footage basically so I took the raw footage of sculpting, removed the RAS-115, and sped it up.  Are you an insomniac? This is the cure!  Again, it is raw footage so just me sanding with the RO-90 for 8 minutes... the tune is good, though!

Upgrading a Performax 16-32 to a SandSmart Controller

This project definitely comes out of left field...

I have a Jet Performax 16-32 drum sander that just predates the addition of a SandSmart controller.  When I first got the sander, I looked into swapping out the controller.  Well, the box of parts has sat for a long time, but I got it done this past weekend.

SandSmart is the controller that runs the conveyor belt.  It allows you to set whatever variable speed you want, but if you set the feed too fast for the drum, it automatically backs off the conveyor speed to keep the drum at full load, but not pop a breaker.  For anybody who has popped a breaker by taking too much off a board or hitting an unexpected high spot during flattening passes, you know why this controller can be a big deal.  When the breaker pops, the conveyor stalls almost immediately and the drum spins down very slowly.  The heat of the drum slowing will always leave a very large burn mark.

The "doesn't pop the breaker" benefit is the most touted, but not the best reason in my mind.  Drum sanding is slow, it's boring.  I like the idea that on the first several passes to simply 'hog off' stock, I can set the speed much higher than it could handle and let the SandSmart controller back off the speed to the maximum speed allowed given the abrasive, stock, and amount you're trying to take off.  That's why I want SandSmart.

In this video, we take a tour of the drum sander insides if you haven't seen one up close.  Below the video is a list of parts you'd need to accomplish this.  They are all available from Jet's replacement parts program.

Even if this upgrade doesn't interest you, if you have an older pre-Jet Performax drum sander, you might want to consider ordering the new dust hood with the 4" port versus the older 2.5" port.  The stock number for this new dust hood is 80-2002.  Depending on your older model, you may have a knob to open it (like you see in the video thumbnail) or a D-shaped handle.  If you want the knob (which the replacement dust cover is drilled for), the knob is 80-3137 and the corresponding latch 40-3168.  Note that the SandSmart controller assumes a 1.5hp motor. If you have an original Performax, you may have a 1hp motor, which will draw a maximum of 8 amperes. The 1.5hp motor will draw a maximum of 11 amperes.  SandSmart's hysteresis is based on current so the 1hp will never get in the self-regulation range of the controller.




Parts List:

Stock Number	Description
72-2250	SandSmart Controller, 1Ph 110V
72-2250-01	Knob - 2244Plus
72-2250-02	Label Speed Adjusting
40-4903	Bracket Base Controller
40-4904	Bracket Housing
40-4022W	Cover Base
20-0777 (qty 2)	Screw Pan Head Self-Threading

Parts desk: 888-804-7129

Review and Demo of Festool RO-90 DX Tri-Mode Sander

I've been using the RO-90 sander for a couple weeks now; few of the projects were normal woodworking projects, but it excels at so much given its small maneuverable size and power (well, to me, sanding the skin of a '39 Ford is an odd job...)

This weekend, I created a video review of the tool along with two demo videos.

The review video talks about the sander and compares it to its larger Rotex cousins and to the DTS-400 delta-headed sander.  There's also a tour of some interesting accessories.  I know, I know, "but it's a sander!" and it's true that few things can be more abrasive to talk about than a sander (sorry, had to...), but this sander's size and three modes actually make it interesting.

The first demo shows it in use to strip old varnish off a Teak door I'm refinishing.  That demonstrates the disc and ROS modes.  I then use the flat panel as a substrate to run the RO-90 and DTS-400 side-by-side so you can see their efficiencies at this task.  The DTS-400 is one of my favorites, by the way.

The second demo shows it in use to strip old varnish and flatten an Oak cabinet I have neglected for too many years.  In this demo, I show a few usage techniques you might like.

Here's the playlist... click through to the main YouTube page to see it in full-screen HD.

DC Hose Lift for the Drum Sander

While drum sanding a project yesterday, my pet peeve about drum sanders reared its head: that the dust port is on top of the door.  There's no good place to put the hose.  You put it over the carriage housing and it'll fall off changing the height knob or fall the other way and pop open the door to the drum, which sends dust in hundreds of directions (all towards your face).

I recently added a number of circuits to my garage shop specifically because I rarely used my drum sander... it needed to be plugged in the family room via extension to use the DC unit with it.  Now I needed to address the lack of decent DC connection.

The solution is woefully easy: a stick with a 1/4" groove in the edge to grab onto the carriage housing and the bottom end cut like a half-lap so I could fit a bolt into the drum sander's base.  On top, a spring-clamp-like holder for the hose.

Note that the top of my Performax 16-32, I put a Dust Right compatible connector.  The new hose I added also has a Dust Right handle since it will be handy for the floor cleaning attachment as well.

As you can see, I have a Ridgid 12" lunchbox planer installed into the Performax stand (if you want to do this, realize that you have to take the stand apart and build it around the planer... not fun, but a space-saver!).  I ran a hose up to the stick and mounted it with a similar spring clamp.  Now I can just move the hose connector over when I used the planer.  While this isn't ideal having to lift chips so far, I've found in the past it wasn't an issue.  If it is after this modification, I can simply disconnect the planer hose and lay it on the floor with the DC connected and use the spring clip as a convenient stow.

Now, my drum sander is very convenient to use; it'll touch every project here on out.