Hot or Not? Festool MFT/3 Basic Multifunction Table
By Gordon DeWitte
Festool’s MFT/3 basic multifunction table looks like a piece of thick pegboard with some legs from a card table. It’s more than that, we think. It also comes with rails and a lot of options and accessories; however the $475 sticker shock that comes with it is a lot to take.
The folks at Festool call it “The Evolution Of The Workbench,” but the next generation workbench weighs 54 pounds. That doesn’t seem very “Next” to us. It does feature a 43 3/8″ × 28 1/4″ work surface, a 35 7/16″ working height, and can be folded up to 7 3/32″ thick for stowage, which is cool.
Our question is: what does this have over the Vika Twofold that doubles as a scaffold and runs about $130, or maybe a hollow-core door across two saw horses? What do you think — are we missing something, or is this a little on the steep side for what it delivers? Let us know in comments.
Festool [Manufacturer's Site]
Vika Twofold [Manufacturer's Site]
Street Pricing [Google Products]
July 27th, 2009 at 10:19 am
Like all Festool products, the price is 3x what it should be. It’s hard to look past that if you are looking for value. This table only makes sense combined with the Festool rail-guided circular saw; together they can almost replace a table saw for some people. The price of that combination is ridiculous of course.
July 27th, 2009 at 11:28 am
I just don’t get it - Festool has some nice products but their prices are ridiculous - are they that much better than DeWalt, Bosch, Makita, etc? I don’t think so! Ever see a Festool product in a contractor’s job box? Nope!
July 27th, 2009 at 11:43 am
Hot and Not, Hot if you have already invested in Festool saws, routers and clamps and are not really bothered by the price. Not if your going to use it on it’s own, where you would probably be better served by something like Kreg’s KKS2000 Klamp Table or the Walko work bench system or even the above mentioned Vika Twofold.
July 27th, 2009 at 1:26 pm
Looks like a great card table to use out in Vegas!
July 27th, 2009 at 2:55 pm
Re:
Forde Swan Says:
I just don’t get it - Festool has some nice products but their prices are ridiculous - are they that much better than DeWalt, Bosch, Makita, etc?
————
No,purely monetarily speaking, they have SOME better features and engineering, The main difference is that they are NOT made in China by some one making the equivalent of a dollar an hour. They are made by people that earn enough to support them selves in western democracy, in a country that does not currently have a favorable exchange rate against the dollar.Most things manufactured in Europe are equal to or more expensive than things made in USA (bought an American or Swiss made watch lately?) Good luck finding that made in USA circular saw or equivalent system to the Festool, though.
July 27th, 2009 at 3:04 pm
As a stand alone piece it seems “not very NEXT” and definitely over priced. It’s made to work with all the other Festool stuff (which some also call overpriced) but as a kit it’s definitely NEXT.
A cheaper system (some say better - there are religious wars about it) is made by Eurekazone.com but there’s is not a stand alone workbench either. The benefit is using it as a complete system.
July 27th, 2009 at 3:53 pm
hot!
yes, the price is steep. but man is this a useful table.
while it is too light replace my wooden bench for using hand tools- it is the perfect compliment for power tools and makes a great assembly table.
With the guide rails and the festool plunge saw-it takes over where my sliding compound miter saw leaves off cutting wider boards or sheet goods. the versatile clamping system makes possible to quickly and securely hold pretty much any sort of workpiece while, sanding, routing, cutting, and assembling. just like every other festool product i have used it is surprisingly robust, versatile and a pleasure to use.
i’ve been using mine for over a year and a half now and can’t imagine working with out it. if i had more space (money) in my small shop, i would think about getting a second and joining them for a larger working area. if i had one complain i wish it came in a larger size. It really would be nice if it were several inches longer and were at least 4′ long.
July 27th, 2009 at 5:09 pm
I’m still looking at how cheap and cheesy those legs look - like a card table, as previously mentioned. Sure looks like something I’d be afraid to sit on for lunch break - something would surely “break.”
July 27th, 2009 at 11:14 pm
I’ll chime in on the “hot” side of things, but I’ve strongly bought into the Festool system. As a basic table, yeah, go for the Walko or any of the various other stand-alone folding tables. If you have a Festool circular saw (or even the DeWalt or Makita knock-offs, although, oddly, they don’t seem to be really any cheaper than Festool), get this with the rail and the fence and its part of a package that lets you do a heck of a lot.
Looking at the table in isolation is kind of like looking at a single bolt and asking if its cool.
July 28th, 2009 at 6:20 am
NOT for me right now.
For my usage the Vika seems much more useful. I just can’t wrap my mind around buying a Festool at retail. I have used one of their saw/guide rails - sorry Forde, it was a contractor friend of mine and he did pull it out of his tool box
-and liked it, but can’t spring for a new one while I can still cut most of my work in my shop on my Table saw.
I do scour Craigslist for used Festools though and have narrowly missed some bargains.
July 28th, 2009 at 8:11 am
Not… this is something they should throw in with the loan you have to take out in order to buy their tools.
July 28th, 2009 at 8:26 am
NOT. it is a card table with a pegboard top.
the accessories better be top notch for that price.
November 3rd, 2009 at 8:40 am
[...] at Woodcraft, the $90 Vika Quickbench is way less expensive than the $475 Festool MFT/3 (see TM 7/27/09), and 40% less than the $150 Vika Twofold™, but does it warrant a place in your shop or garage? [...]