by Eric the Viking » 06 Jul 2022, 07:47
I have the 700 (XL) with a Seneca adapter to use smaller cutters, realistically down to 6mm. 5mm and 4mm ones woud be technically possible, but silly, and awkward because of the depth adjustment amongst other things.
I rarely use it, which ought to mean I can't justify the price, except...
Good stuff
... It will easily do things you just can't with a morticer, for example joining handrail at mitred corners (that one's coming up real soon now!), and pretty much any end-on morticing (yes, I know that's what tenons are for, but sometimes you just need to).
We have big rooms in this house with tall skirtings ("baseboard")... I can join mid-run, without needing a backing plate of any sort, and I can do it with better accuracy than using dowels or loose tongues or whatever - really quick: cut a square end on the skirting, cut the domino slots, then re-cut the square end to be the scarf. I have the "alignment wings" for it, so can plant a mortice about 5" off the reference edge, without any trouble (or reference off another mortice already cut). And it will, with thinner dominoees, allow you to build up moulding profiles (that's another essential in a place like this), without faffing about with long loose tenons - way too much 'fun' single handed (yes, I know, get more clamps!). That stuff is so easy!
I also bought it with one eye on making a fresh set of interior doors. They're big: 33.5" x 81" on the ground and first floors (four panels, with four rails altogether). The rails are really fat: 10.5" at the bottom, lock rail is 11", and top two are 4". The lower two would have to be made up from 4x2 staves, because of cost and availability (I think the originals are yellow pine).
I worked out that the stock saving alone by using dominoes instead of traditional M+T would be around 56-60" of 4x2, per door. That's not to be sneezed at on its own, and when you consider that shorter lengths also mean less wastage, dominoes start to become really economical. Our plans have changed; we probably won't stay here long now we're both semi-retired, but if we did there are quite a few of these doors to make...
Downsides:
There are some issues with using smaller cutters, notably that the fence stops at 10mm away from the C/L of the cutter (this isn't a problem on the smaller machine). If working with, say, MDF sheet, you'll want to plant dominoes much closer to the surface than that.
So I currently have a slab of 10mm Perspex in the study, waiting for a sensible attachment plan to use it as an auxiliary fence. That will take it down to basically half the narrow width of the mortice. I think I've got this now so will make it up when I next need to do that.
I think Festool's DX ports are terrible. The one on the Domino is pretty bad (and I don't like the one on the Kapex either, although it's bigger). You do neeed extraction with the Domino: although it not a thicknesser, it will clog quickly. The power connector on the back of the machine is also pretty poor (it's Festool's "standard" for handheld tools, and rubbish in comparison to those from the likes of Neutrik and Canon), but at least it has a good long rubber-covered cable.
Do I like it?
All in all, I am glad I bought it, especially before they really racked up the prices recently. I intend to keep it until I can no longer use it.
I fully intend to 'beat the system' over dust extraction: it infuriates me that ther's no standard for DX ports on handheld kit* after decades of power tool use in DIY and small workshops. Some other manufacturers (lookin' at you, Makita!) can't even standardise between their own sanders! At least Festool hoses don't fall off in the middle of a job. But paying over 100 quid for a vacuum cleaner hose is really ridiculous and I WILL NOT do that on principle, even if it takes me a while to contrive my own.
I like the machine, but I haven't suddenly turned all green'n'black as a consequence.
E.
*In my working life in technical marketing, it was very obvious that open standards boosted sales across the industry. Closed systems ("you can only use our own accessories") caused customer dissatisfaction and a lot of brand switching - no matter how good the products, customers couldn't wait to escape what they perceived as a trap. Closed systems rarely, if ever, improved overall profit. I know it's not quite the same in this industry, but still...