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Jack

On 3/6/2018 9:32 PM, wrote:
If it was me, or only me and a trusted assistant I would buy Festool for almost all my needs. And yes, under those conditions I would take them out to a job site when needed. The only tool I wouldn't buy that they make is their drills. Too much value these days in the lifetime warranty (and recent brushless models) for me to buy something else.

I have multiples of all the tools I use, and most are of different models from different manufacturers. Over the last 40 years of doing this as a contractor for myself I look for value, durability, and repeatability in use. NO manufacturer makes all their tools in all their models to that standard. I have had DeWalt tools that are garbage. Had DeWalt tools that are great. Bosch has a pretty good track record with me and their oscillating tool, the old American made circulars saws were great. PC was a good brand, never great, but they turned out some real crap and have now fallen off the radar. Makita? Depends on what you are buying. The list goes on.

Festool, and probably Fein are the only commonly available tool that you can buy with complete confidence. For those that take care of their tools and rely on them to make their living, I think in most cases Festool is unmatched. Personally, I say all that bull**** about "contractor rated" or "full time use" and all the other marketing crap is just that. I watch some of the videos out there and always remember that 99% of the uploaders don't actually use their tools to make a living. They use the videos to supplement their income so it is important to say or do something that attracts attention to their videos for the almighty "click".

I first saw the Festool track saw in use when visiting Swingman and Leon. Swing took out the saw and showed me the setup, cut a piece of plywood, and we talked about the strong points and weak points. For those of us that know Swing (bless his heart), he is blunt and proud of his opinions. He was enormously impressed with the track saw, and after seeing it in use and its ease of setup, I was too. The cuts would rival or exceed most table saws, and the blade should (literally) last for years.

Leon's opinions concur, and again, having seen the saw, the setup and the final product I think it is a winner. If I needed a track saw, I would get that one.

So why don't I have all Festool? What is the place of Harbor Freight and other discount tools? Employees that don't take care of your tools as you do, employees that don't know how to use tools correctly, the very real possibility of job site theft, and for almost all the needs on a construction site there is no need for the kind of quality work that their tools are capable of doing.

Comparing HF, or others to Festool has to be with a grain of salt. I only know of two other contractors that use Festool out in the field (and one loves those damn drills) and neither of them have ever had a failure. One is a cabinet installer that specialized in remodeling projects, so Festool's Kapex miter saw and his dust collector is his weapon of choice. He is one of the very few craftsmen I trust, and he tells me that the Kapex is as accurate now as it was 5 years ago when he bought it, used over countless jobs. So what is "job site rated" or the opinion it might not stand up to long term use worth? Festool seems to do just fine with full time professional use. He has small Festool track saw at his shop and since he hates the mess of his table saw, uses it for all his "one off" cabinet builds, from carcass to shelving, not just breaking down sheet goods.

HF tools have their place. Good for rough work, some good for rough treatment, and the thought that you live with varying quality depending on the tool. No real tears when you see them thrown in the bed of the truck for transport, when one of your idiots is using your miter saw to cut job site trash into smaller chunks, and no real fear of lending them to a worker to finish up a job, and no undue screaming at your workers when they leave them out in the rain while they huddle under the eaves of a roof so THEY don't get wet. They are adequate and affordable. They have their place.

Comparing HF to Festool in just about anyway is just stupid. One is a tool designed and manufactured to the highest tolerances for dedicated woodworkers or exacting professionals, and one is a utility tool that fits a certain need. I have never heard of a professional saying, "man, one day I would really like to have one of those HF miter saws".

Don't get this one...

You don't get that the fact that you know "pro's" (yourself even) that
uses HF tools does not infer that HF tools are great tools designed to
last any more that a pro using a festering tool mean they are balls to
the wall best tools ever made...

--
Jack
Tolerance is the virtue of the man without convictions.
http://jbstein.com