What a tool....cs17 Peggy-O

[LennieG]

I happened to be offered a deal on an almost new Fein MultiMaster. I didn't know if I would ever need it but ended up buying it anyway, anticipating cutting some notches on the temporary bulkhead......

I can't tell you how great this tool is....used it today for sanding tight spots and it burned thru some epoxy that was problematic with my random orbital sander, which is a good one.......great tool...buy one if you ever get a chance!!! It was great at cutting notches , great for sanding and I believe will work well for other tasks like cutting mast tube....I am sure the other brands work well too.

[rattus]

I happened to be offered a deal on an almost new Fein MultiMaster. I didn't know if I would ever need it but ended up buying it anyway, anticipating cutting some notches on the temporary bulkhead......I can't tell you how great this tool is....used it today for sanding tight spots and it burned thru some epoxy that was problematic with my random orbital sander, which is a good one.......great tool...buy one if you ever get a chance!!! It was great at cutting notches , great for sanding and I believe will work well for other tasks like cutting mast tube....I am sure the other brands work well too.

 

The other brands (Ryobi, etc. even Bosch) aren't even close. They vibrate, they overheat, they don't have nearly as effective a dust extraction system. Last year I succumbed to the siren call of the Fein and there was no stopping.

 

One of the best aspects is the vast array of accessories that Just Work. Tried an aftermarket diamond disk to remove fat joints of sanded grout - lasted a day for $20. Bought a Fein version for $45, it lasted a week of 8-hour days (giant shower remodel) with no discernable wear. Plus, I didn't have to put the tool down every 5 minutes to "let it cool" so as not to burn my hands. Have a dozen stories like that. Their sanding stick pads seem to last 3 times as long, too. I don't use this for a living, but my time is sure worth something.

 

Same goes for Festo tools, too. Good tools pay for themselves pretty quickly.

[Dnjost]

I have a Makita, and like it a lot.  It is great for making all those notches in stringers, and such.  it also excels at removing the bulkhead that you prematurely glassed in place with zero damage to the surrounding area.  

 

it does vibrate more than the Fein.  

[PAR]

There are 4 basic tool groups: disposable, homeowner, professional and career. The disposable tools are typically what you find out of China and Harbor Freight. They're cheap, don't work very hard before you kill them and not well designed for work. You can buy a palm sander (a useless tool BTW) for $5 at Harbor Freight, so a case of these might last you a few decades for not a lot of money. How many of these can you get before approaching half the cost of a Festool.

 

The next step up is what most back yard builders have, the home owner models. These are slight more costly then the disposable tools, but built better and more tolerant of extended use. They still don't work well, but they'll get you by. Black and Decker and a few other brands have whole lines of tools in this range, from crappy power planers, that don't hold an edge worth a darn, to wobbly bearing drills that will make a hole, just not a round one.

 

The most common tool, if you go by numbers sold are the professional models. These usually cost twice as much, if not more then a home owners tool, but they work and usually do the job much better, more efficiently and more precisely too. If you use your tools every day, these are the tools you want.

 

Last on the list are the career tools. You'll buy just one of these and hand it down to your son, when your career is over. You'll have replaced brushes, maybe a bearing or two, usually a cord or on/off trigger, but the tool is still kicking butt, with higher precision then anything else. These are usually twice the cost of a professional grade tool and often exceed mil spec.

 

Unless you plan on 40 years of work with a particular tool, the career pieces are hard to justify price wise. Yes, they do work good, but damn $400 for a shop vac? Really? You got to be one shop vacing fool to justify one of these puppies.

 

Most will do just fine with a home owners tool or maybe a lower grade professional. With some care these hold up, do a reasonable job and have enough precision for the average wood butcher.

[Howard]

Good information Paul. I would also add that even once you decide on a particular brand (say DeWalt), there are also different grades within that particular brand. Years back, not knowing any better, I purchased a DeWalt angle head grinder from Home Depot. When the switch burned out after a little bit of use, I took it to a local service center to be repaired. It was there I discovered that what I had bought was a low cost, cut rate model sold to homeowner type consumers at the box stores. It was not a serious tool. This industrial tool shop also sold DeWalt angle head grinders, but they were a step up in quality. Remarkably, they were not that big of a step up in price. That store is located in a hard to find, hard to get to industrial area and primarily services the professional trades. That is now where I get most of my tools. That even extends to items like sandpaper, which is twice the quality at a lessor price than the local hardware stores or box stores offer.

 

I had the same thing happen to me with a John Deere weedeater also purchased at a box store by a non-profit I work with. It too stopped working right off and since the box stores don't service anything, we took it to the local John Deere shop. It was there we found out that JD only licensed their name to an inferior product sold only at the box stores. The JD shop themselves didn't even sell a JD weedeater and didn't service them either.  The manager at a  local tire shop told me Michelin and other tire companies do the same thing with tires sold at WalMart and other places. As per the tire dealer, the rubber compound and build specs are not the same. It is not just a factor of price.........the product is simply not the same. The only thing they have in common is the name.

 

So in addition to Paul's excellent advice on the level of tools you may want to consider, I'd also suggest you bypass the box stores and buy from a source that offers the higher quality tools sold to the trades. Not only will the tool likely last a lot longer, in the unlikely event it does break, you have a place you can go to get it fixed.

[PAR]

Then again, you could buy a dozen cordless drills from Harbor Freight and likely get the same length of service, as you burn through them compared to a good brand for less money.

[Gordy Hill]

The intangible is that every time I pick up a fine tool, be a Fein or a really nice screw driver, I look forward to the chore. For working on my 1936 Austin I need Wentworth sizes. I have a set of King Dick open end spanners and a set of King Dick ring spanners, and they are heavily chromed and a joy to use. (Had to show off a bit. I've become nearly bi-lingual since I got my British car.)

[Dnjost]

As a professional musician, my tools are my musical instruments.  Same applies.  Every time I pick up my horns I get a sense of great anticipation and joy, even during the most difficult passages.

 

I do own many better quality power and hand tools, and upgrade when possible.  I have had good luck with many Craftsman tools and the parts are readily accessible from a well stocked and managed parts center.  Although, the lower end Craftsman have disappointed from time to time.  (Random Orbit sander).