When comparing Festool 571810 RO 150 vs Bosch OS50VC, the Slant community recommends Festool 571810 RO 150 for most people. In the question“What are the best high-end palm sanders?” Festool 571810 RO 150 is ranked 2nd while Bosch OS50VC is ranked 3rd. The most important reason people chose Festool 571810 RO 150 is:
This palm sander has the precision of a random orbit sander and the power of a belt sander. This is possible because of the Dual Mode Sanding technology implemented by the Festool. It gives the tool two working modes: a random orbital mode and an aggressive, gear-driven mode. You can use the random orbital mode when you need a high-quality surface finish, while the gear-driven mode is perfect when you need to remove a lot of material rapidly.
Specs
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Pros
Pro Ideal for heavy-duty projects
This palm sander has the precision of a random orbit sander and the power of a belt sander. This is possible because of the Dual Mode Sanding technology implemented by the Festool. It gives the tool two working modes: a random orbital mode and an aggressive, gear-driven mode. You can use the random orbital mode when you need a high-quality surface finish, while the gear-driven mode is perfect when you need to remove a lot of material rapidly.
Pro Built to last
This palm sander is constructed entirely from massive die-cast, high-quality plastic parts. The exterior plastic parts are coated in tough and rigid rubber. This is used as a solid shell that protects the sensitive electronics and the motor. Additionally, the rubber-coated handles reduce the risk of accidental hand slipping.
Pro Easy to control
This tool comes with an ergonomic and reliable handle, together with an optional side handle. With both hands on this sander, you'll always retain full control, even in the heaviest applications.
Pro Great for surface finishing
This flat sheet sander is an excellent tool when you need to get a perfect surface finish on a flat workpiece. Due to the fast, low amplitude motion, this tool can remove even the tiniest bits of material, without damaging the surface, thus leaving a near-perfect result. When it comes to surface finish quality, this sanding technology is by far more superior than random orbit sanding.
Pro Perfect for corners
This palm sander can work on three perpendicular surfaces simultaneously, making it an ideal tool for sanding right angle corners.
Pro Large work area
While the majority of sheet sanders can work only with ¼ sheet sandpaper, this tool is twice as big and accepts ½ sheet sandpaper. Due to the low material removal speed, the increased working area is a huge advantage as it enables you to work faster.
Pro Feels sturdy and solid
As the body of this palm sander is made from sturdy, high-quality rubber, metal, and plastic, the tool does not feel cheap.
Pro Works with cheap sandpaper
The clamping mechanism of this palm sander is compatible with the regular sanding paper that you can buy at your local DIY store. You can use the provided punch-plate to make any sheet sanding paper suitable for this tool. This will significantly reduce your expenses as the regular sanding sheets are cheaper than the pre-punched sanding sheets.
Pro Vibrations are reduced
This palm sander has a dedicated suspension system, which isolates the handle from the parts that are prone to vibrating (just like a car's suspension damps the vibrations caused by road bumps).
Pro Comes with a dust bag
This palm sander comes with a portable dust container. Having an integrated paper filter, it will keep the level of dust in the air to a minimum. Contrarily to the simple paper bags offered by competitors, Bosch's container is made from high-quality plastic.
Cons
Con Not suitable for surface finishing
The slow speed and large movement amplitude make this palm sander unsuitable for extra fine surface finishing.
Con Very expensive
The $595.00 price is the most noticeable disadvantage of this palm sander. With this money, you can buy a professional belt sander, a high-quality random orbital sander, and a decent sheet sander. Even after that, you'll have some money left to spend on pads and sanding paper.
Con Requires a vacuum unit
This tool will not even start if it's not connected to an external vacuum unit. The vacuum unit must be compatible with the Festool's standard 27mm extraction port.
Con Suffers from dust and moisture
The body of this tool is made from multiple small elements. Thus the moisture and dust protection is significantly reduced. You will need to occasionally clean this palm sander to ensure its long and productive lifespan.
Con Not designed for heavy-duty applications
This palm sander is not powerful enough to be suitable for rapid and aggressive material removal applications. Random orbit sanders and full-rotational sanders perform much better in such applications.