Disc sander recommendations please!

[gasmansteve]

Hi folks
Thinking of getting this www.axminster.co.uk/recno/2/product-Axm ... -21335.htm
for sanding segments for bowls and wondered what other folk use? also wondered what Axminster are like for dealing with?.
Cheers
Steve

 

[OPJ]

Axminster are, in many people's experiences, an excellent company to deal with. Great all-round service and they'll always be happy to supply you with any spares if necessary.

I can't comment on this particular sander but, if you've got yourself a lathe, have you thought about making a simple sanding disc attachment for that? You'll save yourself a bit of bench-space too. :wink:

 

[OLD]

I have a FOX m/c that is very similar in looks but has two discs one either side of the motor it runs very smoothly and works well.
http://www.amazon.co.uk/Fox-F31-122..._1_3?ie=UTF8&s=diytools&qid=1210011919&sr=8-3

 

[gasmansteve]

Hi OLD and Olly
Yes I do have a little Draper lathe and have tried a sanding disc on it but only had an old collet type chuck for it and it wasn`t very successful and making these segments for the bowls I plan needs a fair bit of accuracy which I hope the Axminster as opposed to the cheaper Perform,Draper etc types will give.
I quite like the double sided Jet but the bench setup needed wouldnt fit in my shop. Its quite demanding getting the accuracy I need for cutting/sanding these segments and I`ve had to make a few adjustments with my new Ryobi table saw as `normal` cuts don`t seem accurate enough, all part of the fun(??) .
Cheers
Steve

 

[TheTiddles]

I've tried on several machines like a large disk sander, my own small one and a couple of other machines to get the accuracy for segmented bowls and I've never got it, maybe it's me but I've never found sanding to be too accurate even with my best efforts at a jig. Would be interesting to know how you intend to get the angles just rightm as presumably you need an accuracy of +/- half a degree or greater?

Aidan

 

[gasmansteve]

Hi Aidan
I`ve made a sliding sled that fits in the mitre grooves in my saw bench, you`ve probably seen em on sites like this www.turnedwood.com/framesled.html
It seems to work ok now I`ve sussed out that my blade needs adjusting for vertical differently when using the sled!!. Couldn`t understand why the mitre cuts where not as good using the sled as without it so must be a bit uneven in the groove somewhere. The disc sander is just for the final finish to the joint prior to gluing.
cheers
Steve

 

[gasman]

I have the 300mm axminster disk sander and it has been excellent for what I need - with a mitre fence accurate enough to take very small amounts off mitres etc to make frames fit perfectly. I have no issues with it except it has an odd sized dust port - 2 and a half inches

 

[mister henderson]

I used to have that model of sander too, and found it very good. The machne itself is capable of producing very good work, the issue is to ensure that the job is presented accurately to the disc and in such a way that prevents any part of the sanded surface becoming rounded off

 

[gasmansteve]

Sorted just ordered one thanks again all.
Regards
Steve