big leaf maple. Truly amazing results and
all from one very versatile machine.
No question about it, the Rotex ma-
chines, along with the big flat pad RS2E,
are my favorite Festool sanders, hands
down. I use the others for special pur-
poses, but day in and day out it is either
the Rotex or the big flat pad RS2E that is
in my hands most of the time.
I use the Rotex with papers of all kinds up
to 1200 grit, with mesh backed screens
up to 4000 grit and with felt pads and
several different grits of polishing com-
pounds. I also use it for applying waxes
when I want a soft “hand” on a piece.
That is what I am doing in this picture.
Here the design of this very modern
kitchen with solid wood countertops
called for a South African Bloodwood
stove vent hood over the top of the com-
mercial gas range. The vent hood goes
all the way to the 14 foot ceiling. The
vent hood was constructed of plywood
and then covered with 5mm thick veneers
of the Bloodwood. After the final sanding
(with the RO 150 and Festool CT22 dust
collector,) wax was used as the final fin-
ish to produce the soft patina look I was
after.
Notice how easy the RO 150 is to control
even with one hand. With both hands on
the RO 150 it is really easy to manage
allowing you to balance even in difficult
locations such as on a ladder without
having to hang on for dear life.
One wax I really like is a combination of
beeswax and hard carnuba wax in a tolu-
ene base that can be somewhat difficult
to apply evenly. Put a 6” micro fiber pad
(available from surbuf.com) on the hook
and loop surface of the RO 150 polishing
pad and waxing becomes as easy and
fast as polishing.
Before I take a piece to a show or put it
into a gallery where I know it will be “lov-
ingly” handled frequently, I like to put on
three coats of this wax since fingerprints
from one day can simply be wiped off be-
fore the show opens the next.
When I did this by hand on large pieces it
was a significant task. Now it is a “no
brainer” that I can do at the last minute,
thanks to the RO machines.
The RO 150 E has a 5mm stroke identi-
cal to the ETS 150/5 and, in random orbit
mode, sands just the same and hence
just as well. The smaller RO 125 uses a
3.6mm stroke and performs in random
orbit mode much the same but a bit more
aggressively than the ETS 125 with it’s
2.5mm orbit.
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