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Festool for drywall sanding?

FatRoman | Posted in Tools for Home Building on December 6, 2006 06:26am

I’m in the market for a sander and wanted to know if one of the Festool Rotex sanders would work well for sanding drywall.

I’ve also got a dozen old doors and assorted trim that I’d like to sand 5 layers of paint off of, and I can always take that stuff outside if I’m worried about the dust. But since the drywall stays where it is, I absolutely want to minimize the dust there. And it’s only a couple of rooms, not a housing development of new drywall.

Is this a good choice, or is it taking the Ferrari to the end of the drive to pick up the mail?

Tua res agitur, paries cum proximus ardet ~ Horace
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Replies

  1. peteshlagor | Dec 06, 2006 06:30pm | #1

    I never seen a good drywaller sand anything.

    Paint stripper works much faster than sanding on doors, trim, etc.  Of course afterwards, some sanding is needed, but I've always hand sanded.

    Just get the wife to do it!

     

    1. User avater
      FatRoman | Dec 06, 2006 06:58pm | #2

      Thanks Pete,This is where I confess that I'm not a 'good drywaller', right? LOLSeriously though, my past experience is that that dust gets everywhere, even if it's just a small amount of hand sanding. And absent a fabulous vac system like you have (saw that on my search for all things Festool earlier, and it's beautiful), I'd like as close to a dust free existence as possible.I am doing this project for the wife, and am looking to trade labor for tools from Santa :)Tua res agitur, paries cum proximus ardet ~ Horace

      1. CAGIV | Dec 06, 2006 07:47pm | #3

        I've never used a Festool sander so this is purely conjecture.

        I'd not recommend using any type sander intended for wood working to sand drywall mud, instead look at the Porter Cable drywall sander with a vac attachement.

        It sounds like your primary concern is the dust and the PC system hooked up to a shop vac eliminates 95% of the dust.

         

        1. MikeSmith | Dec 06, 2006 09:09pm | #4

          we bought the PC drywall sanderMike Smith Rhode Island : Design / Build / Repair / Restore

          1. andybuildz | Dec 07, 2006 04:55pm | #10

            Mornin' Michael,
            I was talking to my helper as we were finishing up taping that room above my shop/garage last night. He was asking me how long it will take to sand it all once we were done. He thought a cpl of hours. I told him that if it takes that long I wasn't only firing him...I'd quit the business. I was telling him about the PC sander/vac and was wondereing why anyone outside of a drywall company would need to spend close to a grand for a drywall sander. Although...I did think the vac itself was half the cost and that gets used doing other things besides the sanding.
            I was thinking that if a company has just one guy at the end of a large drywall job running around doing touch up sanding that might warrant shelling out that kinda scratch.
            Do you do all your own drywall work or just areas that cross the line between large and small?
            Be well and say hi to Helen for us
            andy... 

            I have dreamt of an open world, borderless and wide... where the people move from place to place, and nobody's taking sides.. http://www.yusufislam.com

            http://WWW.CLIFFORDRENOVATIONS.COM                                   

             

          2. MikeSmith | Dec 07, 2006 09:09pm | #12

            we usually have our walls & ceilings skim-coat plaster

             occasionally we do drywall..

             the reason i bought the PC is because it captures about 90% of the sanding dust

            and it isn't always our taping that has to be sanded.. sometimes we have to sand 30 year old walls

            anyways.. the sander makes fast work and Clean workMike Smith Rhode Island : Design / Build / Repair / Restore

          3. User avater
            james | Dec 08, 2006 08:04pm | #13

            Andy,

             

            I bought the sander and run it attached to my festool vac ( prior to that it was on the rigid)

            I do on occasion use it to sand wall board but only if I have tons of it to do, it works well for that but we have found that it shines much brighter for other tasks.

            after any drywalling we do comes a primer/surfacer- to get really SMOOTH walls this must be sanded.. the PC makes short work of this. We have also taken to using the primer/surfacer on repaints as it really builds high and kills the DEEP stippling left on walls from mutiple rollings.... so i guess our drywall sander has found a better role as a paint prep tool.

             

            regards

             

            james

          4. andybuildz | Dec 09, 2006 04:09am | #14

            james...Interesting. Although I wouldn't buy that tool specifically for that purpose I certainly can understanding people that do a lot of painting doing so. I too sand my paint jobs between coats a real lot of the time and I wondered if I was the only one that did that so often.
            I especially sand after priming. I find that sanding between coats makes the job so much better than even the results of professional painters work...professional meaning people that paint exclusively.Youre pretty much the only person that does this on a pretty regular basis as I do that I've heard of.
            Nice going dude.
            Be well
            Namaste'
            andy... 

            I have dreamt of an open world, borderless and wide... where the people move from place to place, and nobody's taking sides.. http://www.yusufislam.com

            http://WWW.CLIFFORDRENOVATIONS.COM                                   

             

          5. User avater
            james | Dec 10, 2006 12:21am | #15

            andy,

             

            thats funny as i thought I was the only one. I always sanded trim between coats but didn't do walls untill I started using Tuff-Hide.... that product is spary only and we found that unless you were VERY carefull sanding your wall board you would "fuzz" up the paper a bit and then when you sparyed it would look like poo... I just happened to have the PC sander there so i had at it and it changed my life.. well you get the picture.

             

            james

          6. andybuildz | Dec 10, 2006 12:46am | #16

            james...thats pretty funny. When I first became aware of "tuff-hide" I'd already been sanding my primer for years already. then I looked at the directions on the bucket of TH cause I had no idea what it was for.
            I thought after reading about it....why don't people just sand the primer? Thats when I shut up about primer sanding. I thought people would think I'm more nuts then they already did...lol. Till I saw your post.
            Made me laugh...so I'm not alone, huh? lol 

             http://WWW.CLIFFORDRENOVATIONS.COM                                   

             

      2. VTNorm | Dec 07, 2006 01:30am | #5

        "I am doing this project for the wife, and am looking to trade labor for tools from Santa :)"

        If it were me, I'd absolutely tell the bride that the Festool is it, best drywall sander going - then I'd get myself a cheapo hand sander and smile your way through the 2 rooms you need to get done knowing you've earned a Festool sander for your troubles.

        Merry Xmas, -Norm

         

  2. Richard1 | Dec 07, 2006 11:15am | #6

    I've done exactly what your talking about, you see with the rotex you have a very variable machine both in sanding action and speed.  Only use it in oscillation mode and with a light touch, just go easy with it.  Good luck.

  3. CarpentrySpecialist | Dec 07, 2006 01:31pm | #7

    Here's a tip. When sanding drywall, strap or tape a cheap furnace filter to the intake side of an old box fan.   Or stick it in a window held with a wire coat hanger. Two are better than one and reduce the dust big time. 

    Best to you and yours, Chris.

    Some say I know too much.

  4. MikeHennessy | Dec 07, 2006 03:58pm | #8

    I'm sure it will "work" if you don't mind ruining your new (expensive) Festool. Drywall sanders have special vac filters to hold the fine (er, REALLY fine) dust that is created. You can rent a PC drywall sander for around $50 per day, I believe, plus extra for filter bags and sandpaper. Money well spent, IMHO.

    Mike Hennessy
    Pittsburgh, PA

  5. User avater
    NickNukeEm | Dec 07, 2006 04:25pm | #9

    Although you can never eliminate the dust by sanding the stuff, if you must sand, use the newer Dust Control joint compound.  It creates small balls of dust, which (supposedly) just fall to the floor.  I've used it once, and it does help minimize the dust, though not eliminate it.  I used it for the last coat, the only coat I sand to feather any edges.

     

    "I am the master of my fate, I am the captain of my soul."  Invictus, by Henley.

  6. seeyou | Dec 07, 2006 07:12pm | #11

    I've had pretty good luck using a random orbital sander hooked to a shop vac with a drywall dust filter. Control of the sander is an aquired touch and you need to change the dust bag frequently, but 99% of the dust goes in the vac.

    http://logancustomcopper.com

    http://grantlogan.net/

    http://www.chicagotribune.com/classified/realestate/homeimprovement/chi-010316outdoorrenovation,0,2786095.htmlstory?coll=chi-classifiedhomeimprove-utl

     

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