You may all know this but a tip for cleaning the sandpaper disk after use is to apply an artificial wine cork (not a cork one!) from wine bottles. It wears out quickly so wear gloves but it makes the disk very clean. I have a Record DS300 sander but I tend to use a cheap horizontal belt sander from eBay as it is not as aggressive to level up the bases of bowls if they are slightly out. I never put the disk attachment sander bit on as I have no use for it. I have a Triton TSPS450 oscillating spindle sander for sanding the insides of wood turned vases. They are the cheapest (£127.50 on eBay) but for occasional use it works very well. Another useful cordless power sanding tool is the Draper 99725 Storm force which is sold as a polisher kit but very useful for sanding out pesky end-grain and even catches which even the sharpest tool ignores on occasions. The advise on making your own sander is apposite and the cheapest method for sanding. You can buy self adhesive disks on eBay and Amazon and make up a plate bed with a piece of ply and broom handle to fit in the banjo, and the circular blank with a face-plate, either to fit in a the jaws of a chuck, or one with a thread to go on the head-stock spindle. Most sanding though is probably with small rectangular pieces of sanding paper which should be cleaned regularly with a small piece of carpet. I tend to sand from 40 grit in the extreme right up to 1000 grit at around 400 rpm. I often sand up to the point that the wood reflects light. It is all about personal preferences as one of my friends never goes above 400 grit. There are also turners who don't sand as they use a sharp scraper to do the work. So many ways to skin the cat!
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