Milwaukee 5" ROS advice,,please!!

[Chris Brault]

I bought the 5" Milw. ROS a couple of months ago after seeing some good reviews on it, etc. and figured I'd have a spare also if nothing else , because I have a bosch also. I really took a liking to this sander,,,, hardly ever grabbed the bosch !!!(LOL) until something snapped free in it?????? Now when you start it up , it spins like crazy, (regardless of speed) and sands way too aggressive like a belt sander. Called the local authorized milwaukee service center,, only one around here, and even only being about 2 months old, told them I had no receipt and the problem I was having. (couldn't believe I had lost the receipt!) They said, " no problem, we'll track the serial number on purchase as long as your in the 5 year range like your saying, it won't cost you anything. They kept it like 5 -6weeks and I finally called them to check on it. Oh, ya, we checked it out and the bearings and everything are fine,,, we didn't see anything wrong with it. It's a finish sander and etc.etc. etc. I went and picked it up and used it tonight. It's totally screwed up still, nothing changed. Thank goodness i've got the bosch as a spare. Do you guys have any idea what could be wrong with this thing? I thought about dumping it on craiglist or trying,,,,,,,, but have no receipt ????? Even thought about trying to fix it myself?? But not to mechanically inclined. Is it pretty basic to tear one of these apart and diagnose the problem?? The guy did mention when I picked it up , " Ya, it's fine,, got to be honest with you,, they don't pay us particulary well on fixing this stuff on warranty." That statement makes me wonder a little. I just hate to bring it back to them and insist they fix it and then have them think I'm a real jerk! I dont' know,, I'm outta answers. A fairly inexpensive tool, yes, but would like to do something with it,,, just not sure what????????? That same company fixed my dewalt CMS on warranty and it's worked great ever since.

[glenn bradley]

It is our responsibility to help manufacturers understand how to give us the level of service we require to keep buying their products. It sounds like the guy who said "we didn't see anything wrong with it" doesn't know what the tool is supposed to do. You should have seen the look on the (primarily construction and demolition) Bosch guy's face when I brought in my Colt. He didn't have a clue as to what it was; fixed it though.

I would at least do something. To paraphrase Teddy R. "the best you can do is the right thing, the worst you can do is nothing". Take your Bosch in with you and show them how the sander is supposed to work. It has NOTHING to do with you, that their compensation agreement is inadequate in their opinion.

If you are opposed to taking it back in, I would email (or better yet call) Milwaukee customer service and tell them what you have just told all of us. They should take care of you . . . . Whoa . . . . Whooops! I just fell off my soapbox ;-)

http://www.milwaukeetool.com/us/en/site.nsf/frmContactUs?OpenForm&nav1=cu

Milwaukee Electric Tool Corporation
13135 W. Lisbon Road
Brookfield, WI 53005
1-800-SAWDUST (729-3878)

[Chris Brault]

Thanks glenn, ya I think I'll get ahold of milwaukee and see what they can do. I'll let you know how it comes out.

[Joe Scharle]

Porter Cable uses a plastic belt for a brake and looking at the parts catalog for Milwaukee, it looks like they use a brake pad. On a PC, when the belt breaks, the ROS goes nuts.

[Chris Brault]

Thanks Joe, I'll betcha anything that's it. Because it's running fine motor wise, just goin crazy, and when you shut it off it takes forever for it to come to a stop. I tryed touching up a cutting board with it when I got it back,,,,, and it was pointless. I'm surprised I messed up that pad already though,, have only had the sander 2 months. The bosch I've had 3 years and haven't had a problem yet. Thanks again-

[Chris Brault]

Hey Joe, is that hard to tear that thing apart and fix that myself?

[Joe Scharle]

Hey Joe, is that hard to tear that thing apart and fix that myself?

Go to milwaukee tools and look up your parts breakdown.
The Porter Cable is just a couple of screws thru the pad. Pad pulls off and you're in. I used a rubber O-ring once to finish a sanding job on mine.
I've never seen the inside of a Milwakee ROS, but if it's like my router and drill, it should be well built and fixable.

[Chuck Tringo]

Didnt see in your post, but if you bought it at a big box (HD sells these, wher i got mine) their return policy is fairly liberal....i bring stuff back with no reciept all the time. Go in, talk nice and try to switch it out for a new one. Have done it numerous times....like when my Ridgid OSS/Belt sander started smoking in my garage.