Mid range disc sander advice - (or maybe a disc/belt combi?)

[Calum Bettison]

I would say the axminster/ Jet belt and disk sander I tested was completely worthless because the bed/ fence moved as the wood was sanded on the disk part.
In the end I bought an oscillating belt sander and have found it excellent, I do not feel I need a disk sander as this machine is so useful and can be adjusted horizontal or vertical and has a pretty big bed to rest the work on. I have made a plywood sub table that sits in the mitre slot for a perfect 90 degrees. Also you can use one end for doing inside curves (to a certain size of course).

For a £500 to £600 budget a big belt sander is possibly a better value proposition than a disk one, also much quicker and easier to change grits because no glue is involved.
Mine is the older version of this Axminster Professional AP2260BS2 Belt Sander - 230V I got the ex display one for a good deal.

Number one recommendation for disk or belt sanders is use a crepe rubber block often to make the abrasives work and last better.

Ollie

Sorry, just seen you said which one you had! I'll have a look!

 

[Sideways]

I tend to need one quite often, for refining the shape of rough-cut circular table tops for example.

Oscillating edge sander.
Surely ideal for jobs like that.
It has a decent sized table and the belt direction will give a better finish since at least part of the time you'll be sanding with the grain.

 

[Calum Bettison]

It has a decent sized table and the belt direction will give a better finish since at least part of the time you'll be sanding with the grain.

Yeah thats an excellent point. I think my reservations with these are based on a lack of experience using them. Can you think of any typical woodworking tasks that an osc edge sander would fall short, in comparison to a vertical belt or disc?

I just had a look at the Axminster one Ollie mentioned, the bed really is much bigger than the other format sanders. Maybe this is this route to go down after all!

Looks like I'll have to be patient though and see what comes up on the used market. Pretty much all the ones I can see new online are £1k + which is just too much of a stretch.

Much food for thought, thanks all!

 

[Ollie78]

Hey Ollie, thanks for the insight. What model did you go for?

I hadn't really considered this type of sander. Would you say its useful for delicate work too, considering the belt is travelling sideways and not down towards a table? I've only ever used a big edge sander once or twice, and not to any great extent. My concern is that the workpiece is getting pulled away to the side and not onto a horizontal surface.

But I'm totally open to all the options, any advice is super valuable. I'm grateful for everyones input!

I went for the axminster one like in the link here Axminster Professional AP2260BS2 Belt Sander - 230V .
Mine is the older one which does not have the wheel to raise and lower the table, I went in there to buy a disk/ belt sander and tried a couple but found them to be a bit rubbish really, poor bed stiffness and laughable mitre guages etc. They had the ex demo belt sander on sale so I bought it. Everything is a grade more industrial than the smaller machines and its very heavy. I put wheels on it.

Your thinking about the work being pulled sideways is valid but easy to solve. I have mine moslty set up with the belt vertical, I have made a plywood board with a bit of wood on the bottom that fits into the slot in the tabe and another piece on the end to stop it being pulled along.
On the top surface of the plywood I fixed a bit of hardwood near the right hand side at exactly 90 degrees to the belt. When sanding parts you use this as a stop so its easy to control and make sure everything is square.

Ollie

 

[Calum Bettison]

I went for the axminster one like in the link here Axminster Professional AP2260BS2 Belt Sander - 230V .
Mine is the older one which does not have the wheel to raise and lower the table, I went in there to buy a disk/ belt sander and tried a couple but found them to be a bit rubbish really, poor bed stiffness and laughable mitre guages etc. They had the ex demo belt sander on sale so I bought it. Everything is a grade more industrial than the smaller machines and its very heavy. I put wheels on it.

Your thinking about the work being pulled sideways is valid but easy to solve. I have mine moslty set up with the belt vertical, I have made a plywood board with a bit of wood on the bottom that fits into the slot in the tabe and another piece on the end to stop it being pulled along.
On the top surface of the plywood I fixed a bit of hardwood near the right hand side at exactly 90 degrees to the belt. When sanding parts you use this as a stop so its easy to control and make sure everything is square.

Ollie

Hey Ollie, this makes a lot of sense. How do you get on with the dust extraction on this sort of machine? Theres a lot of sanding surface area exposed and obviously the dust port is just on the end of the belt. Is it an issue for you at all?

 

[Ollie78]

Hey Ollie, this makes a lot of sense. How do you get on with the dust extraction on this sort of machine? Theres a lot of sanding surface area exposed and obviously the dust port is just on the end of the belt. Is it an issue for you at all?

I have a fairly good extractor and so its pretty good at getting most of the dust.
Because the belt is sort of throwing the dust towards the extraction port it helps it pick it up.
There is always some fine dust it can`t catch and it gets a bit of a buildup on the metal safety guard but I just brush it off when the extractor is on and once in a while give it a blast with compressed air when I am having a full on tidy up.

Ollie

 

[Calum Bettison]

I have a fairly good extractor and so its pretty good at getting most of the dust.
Because the belt is sort of throwing the dust towards the extraction port it helps it pick it up.
There is always some fine dust it can`t catch and it gets a bit of a buildup on the metal safety guard but I just brush it off when the extractor is on and once in a while give it a blast with compressed air when I am having a full on tidy up.

Ollie

Ok nice one, think I’ll keep my eyes out for a used one!

 

[RogerS]

Hey Ollie, this makes a lot of sense. How do you get on with the dust extraction on this sort of machine? Theres a lot of sanding surface area exposed and obviously the dust port is just on the end of the belt. Is it an issue for you at all?

Calum, dust extraction is fine as it gets thrown towards the extraction port.

And, as it happens, if you fancy a short trip down to Carlisle and then hang a short left down the A69, then you're welcome to take a look at mine .....and hopefully buy it as it is now surplus !

 

[recipio]

I have an old Axminster 10" disc sander. It's invaluable for small scale trimming and saving your fingers from blades. It's a velcro attachment - are they even available anymore. ? Dust extraction is vital or your shed will soon be a sandstorm in the Sahara. Now I'm saving for a Hammer oscillating sander - all I need is a new shed.

 

[Calum Bettison]

Calum, dust extraction is fine as it gets thrown towards the extraction port.

And, as it happens, if you fancy a short trip down to Carlisle and then hang a short left down the A69, then you're welcome to take a look at mine .....and hopefully buy it as it is now surplus !

Hey Roger, I might be interested! And as it happens I'll be heading down past Carlisle from Glasgow to Leeds in a couple of weeks time. What model is your sander?

 

[Calum Bettison]

I have an old Axminster 10" disc sander. It's invaluable for small scale trimming and saving your fingers from blades. It's a velcro attachment - are they even available anymore. ? Dust extraction is vital or your shed will soon be a sandstorm in the Sahara. Now I'm saving for a Hammer oscillating sander - all I need is a new shed.

Absolutely! Its always a slight downer when you realise you need to spend almost as much on extraction as you do on machines

 

[Delaney]

I've been down the rabbit hole recently and decided the market is a bit lopsided.

The best disk sander you can get for a bench top is the Hegner. Unfortunately it's £1,200 and they don't come up used very much. Another option would be RJH but again, pricey.
Someone is selling a used Hegner disc sander on ebay, that looks like it's been used in an armed robbery, for £600. I'd offer him £300 after careful inspection.

I bought a record power one as I had some good fortune with an SIP (ITECH) Bobbin sander for the same price.
The record power 300 (or something) turned out to be a complete waste of time.
The disc wobbled, the machine walked off the bench. I took the disc off an faced it on a lathe and it still wobbled to hell. Record took it back and I'm still not sure if they refunded me. They said they would send another but I told them not to waste our time. Mine and theirs.

I've started doing what you're doing. Looking at linishers etc. Hegner make one and so do RJH.

I wouldn't buy Axminster stuff because for me, the quality is generally not there. If a machine does its job, then I suppose fair enough but you can spend too much time faffing about finding the one that fell out of the factory and lined up. I'd go straight for a used volpato, or similar.

I suppose money dictates. It's a tough world in the bottom of the wood working machine market. There's very few bits of brass in all the muck.

 

[Calum Bettison]

Hello Delaney, thanks for this! Looks like a nice machine although I'm quite surprised at the alu table considering the price!

It really is tough trying to work out what models are worth the money and what are tat, especially since so many are rebadged machines or made my other manufacturers.

Your experience with Record Power sounds pretty much the same as mine but with a bench grinder. It seems they just churn out machines with no quality control, hope for the best and just replace them if customers complain!

Its still intriguing me whether the Jet disc sander I posted is the same as the Record Power model. From what I can see it looks exactly the same. Its double the cost so there must be some differences in there. Maybe just a more powerful motor??

 

[RogerS]

......

Its still intriguing me whether the Jet disc sander I posted is the same as the Record Power model. From what I can see it looks exactly the same. Its double the cost so there must be some differences in there. Maybe just a more powerful motor??

Motors are exactly the same according to the spec. I cannot see any difference between them either.

I know that in the food industry when you go into a factory you may see several different production lines ostensibly producing the same item. On closer inspection, you would see subtle differences in terms of product, the mix, the quality etc. On even closer inspection, you might spot signs above each line...Waitrose, Aldi, Tesco. But I can't see how they can pull that type of stunt with something like a disc sander.

 

[Calum Bettison]

Could be the case that Jet are just being cheeky b*stards and trying their luck!!

 

[Calum Bettison]

I'd go straight for a used volpato, or similar.

Just had a look on eBay for used Volpato, they're seriously hefty machines! With a price tag to match. Workshop aspirations though hey??

 

[cowtown_eric]

want a big cast iron top? use your table saw

buy a sanding disc for it., one grit on each side.

Inexpensive and versatile

Drawback is you're limited in max depth of sanding compared to the dedicated sander,, but probably fits 80+% of you needs.

Eric in the colonies!

 

[Distinterior]

want a big cast iron top? use your table saw

buy a sanding disc for it., one grit on each side.

Inexpensive and versatile

Drawback is you're limited in max depth of sanding compared to the dedicated sander,, but probably fits 80+% of you needs.

Eric in the colonies!

A dedicated sander is designed to run at a far lower speed than a table saw blade....!

Applying sideways pressure to a table saw arbor is going to put undue strain on the table saw bearings....!

Sorry Eric, but I dont think your suggestion is good advice....

 

[Calum Bettison]

want a big cast iron top? use your table saw

buy a sanding disc for it., one grit on each side.

Inexpensive and versatile

Drawback is you're limited in max depth of sanding compared to the dedicated sander,, but probably fits 80+% of you needs.

Eric in the colonies!

I've heard of people doing this but have to agree with distinterior, seems like forcing something do what it's not supposed to. Saw speeds are like 3000-4000RPM no?

Even if it was a good idea, my Dewalt job site table saw has a particularly un-flat alloy top anyway

Having said that... Having two grits easily accessible does sound handy

 

[Delaney]

Hello Delaney, thanks for this! Looks like a nice machine although I'm quite surprised at the alu table considering the price!

It really is tough trying to work out what models are worth the money and what are tat, especially since so many are rebadged machines or made my other manufacturers.

Your experience with Record Power sounds pretty much the same as mine but with a bench grinder. It seems they just churn out machines with no quality control, hope for the best and just replace them if customers complain!

Its still intriguing me whether the Jet disc sander I posted is the same as the Record Power model. From what I can see it looks exactly the same. Its double the cost so there must be some differences in there. Maybe just a more powerful motor??

Most manufacturers like Record Power, SIP, Axminster, JET etc.. are for the most part drop shippers. They do not manufacture and it’s the modern way of business. Although some do manufacture a small line. The Cam-vac as an example.
I’m not a huge fan of that as the customer becomes the quality control person (unpaid). I buy my drills from Fein, my machines from SCM or Felder but even those companies and the likes of Mafell, use third party parts and often entire finished products. They just have quality control.

In Records example, they sell enough of these that they can afford to write off, or resell after ‘inspection’, a certain percentage and still make a profit.
Do you blame record power or people who are satisfied with sub par machines, that there is enough of a market for them to operate in?

British woodworking and engineering is generally excellent but there's plenty of ‘Layland Daff’s’ ready to take your money, now more than ever.

The ally table may or may not be an issue on the Hegner. My felder planer has an ally fence and they are pretty durable. Depends on the quality of ally and the design.

Regarding JET, they mostly use 3rd party products with their logo on, or they have special designs that are made in the same factory, that churn out Record Powers stuff.
That’s why JET stand out, or try to. They have the connections and relationships to build specific designs but they are still of roughly the same quality as all chinesium products.
I’ve yet to determine Laguna’s position in all of this other than to say, Itech stuff is looking pretty similar and I think again, Laguna is just having their stuff made to look better quality than it might be, under the hood.
A rule of thumb is this. If it’s made in the far east (except japan), it’s likely not very good quality.
I’ve just paid to have an unused 2016 JET fine particle dust extractor fixed. Some capacitors went on the board. Again cheap components; warranty long gone.

If you buy power tools, buy Fein, Makita, Mafell, etc..
if you buy machines buy SCM, Felder, Valpato, RJh,
If you want to buy the best, buy Altendorf, Martin, Parnhans,

If you have little money; good luck. You could buy some wadkin that’s been used for 50 years daily but I’m not convinced those machines are even remotely accurate compared to even an axminster.
Basically if you have little money, get to known what makes a good machine and be able to test them.
The beauty if buying an altendorf for example, is you know it’s going to work. You don’t have to try to figure out why it isn’t.

The sandwich analogy mentioned above is a perfect description.