FESTOOL Woodworking/car Polishing

aben1975 · 09-13-2020, 07:37 PM

For any of you Diy'r that may need to justify two hobbies and in need of a great polisher the Festol Rotex RO150 is an awesome tool. I've been doing woodworking well before getting into detailing my car(s). It just so happens this machine covers both. Its not a cheap date but killing 2 birds with one stone sure helps. The web is full of 5 star reviews for woodworking and I've done 3 paint corrections as well now.. Just thought I'd throw this out as anyone needing fine or aggressive wood sanding and a high class polisher look into it.. may not be something people see in the same machine. When paired with their vac is dust free for wood, and a H&L polishing pad set to polish it is fantastic. I know kind of an odd post but his might ring with one or two out there.

nighter · 09-16-2020, 06:23 AM

Hi Aben - I have the same tool and was thinking of using it for my x5 once I receive it. Would be interested to understand what your process is for polishing with RO150 / festool system.

Thanks!

aben1975 · 09-16-2020, 06:57 AM

For polishing, the Festool should be in the Rotex mode which is the top motion switch to the right. The Rotex mode is for polishing and coarse removal if you were on wood. This is the more aggressive mode for wood which may seem counterintuitive, but its the imbined rotational and eccentric mode spin for polishing. The left hand mode is random orbital which is not suitable for polishing.

As you probably already know the Festool is a joy to use no mater what your doing. Excellent quality, dead flat pad and very ergonomic. I typically operate the polisher at the 5 speed setting. There's one video from Festool on auto polishing on you tube but it isn't very good. Bottom line is a high quality polisher like Rupes or Flex is $500 that only polishes. For those that only do this a few times the Festool will also tackle almost any other abrasive job like sanding down a deck. This thing is a beast but also a presice tool.

Aside from the mode selection, the entire process is the same as any other polisher and paint correction process. I have simply used an Amazon set of foam polishing pads along with compound and polish. Ive been using Chemical guys v36 and v38 which work just fine. The polishing pad are the below pads from Amazon. I've bought other Festool polishing products for wood fishinhes that I have polished but use the below as disposable pads for the cars.

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B017GAGHMQ..._nYEyFbF3Q0Z0X

09-13-2020, 07:37 PM	#1
aben1975 Enlisted Member 35 Rep 30 Posts Drives: X5 40i Join Date: Sep 2020 Location: MN iTrader: (0)	FESTOOL Woodworking/car Polishing For any of you Diy'r that may need to justify two hobbies and in need of a great polisher the Festol Rotex RO150 is an awesome tool. I've been doing woodworking well before getting into detailing my car(s). It just so happens this machine covers both. Its not a cheap date but killing 2 birds with one stone sure helps. The web is full of 5 star reviews for woodworking and I've done 3 paint corrections as well now.. Just thought I'd throw this out as anyone needing fine or aggressive wood sanding and a high class polisher look into it.. may not be something people see in the same machine. When paired with their vac is dust free for wood, and a H&L polishing pad set to polish it is fantastic. I know kind of an odd post but his might ring with one or two out there. Last edited by aben1975; 09-14-2020 at 09:35 AM..
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09-16-2020, 06:23 AM	#2
nighter Registered 0 Rep 4 Posts Drives: BMW G05 Join Date: Jul 2020 Location: Melbourne iTrader: (0)	Hi Aben - I have the same tool and was thinking of using it for my x5 once I receive it. Would be interested to understand what your process is for polishing with RO150 / festool system. Thanks!
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09-16-2020, 06:57 AM	#3
aben1975 Enlisted Member 35 Rep 30 Posts Drives: X5 40i Join Date: Sep 2020 Location: MN iTrader: (0)	For polishing, the Festool should be in the Rotex mode which is the top motion switch to the right. The Rotex mode is for polishing and coarse removal if you were on wood. This is the more aggressive mode for wood which may seem counterintuitive, but its the imbined rotational and eccentric mode spin for polishing. The left hand mode is random orbital which is not suitable for polishing. As you probably already know the Festool is a joy to use no mater what your doing. Excellent quality, dead flat pad and very ergonomic. I typically operate the polisher at the 5 speed setting. There's one video from Festool on auto polishing on you tube but it isn't very good. Bottom line is a high quality polisher like Rupes or Flex is $500 that only polishes. For those that only do this a few times the Festool will also tackle almost any other abrasive job like sanding down a deck. This thing is a beast but also a presice tool. Aside from the mode selection, the entire process is the same as any other polisher and paint correction process. I have simply used an Amazon set of foam polishing pads along with compound and polish. Ive been using Chemical guys v36 and v38 which work just fine. The polishing pad are the below pads from Amazon. I've bought other Festool polishing products for wood fishinhes that I have polished but use the below as disposable pads for the cars. https://www.amazon.com/dp/B017GAGHMQ..._nYEyFbF3Q0Z0X
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