Sanding gear?

[Dan Forman]

Well, I'm beginning to acquire a few rough turned bowls which ought to be ready to finish turn in a few weeks, so thoughts are turning to sanding equipment. It seems the HF angle drill gets good reviews, so I think I'll start with that, but there seems to be a bewildering array of disc holders and sanding discs, including the wavy ones and "power lock flex edge" discs, all in a variety of sizes.

Any suggestions as to what to get, or what to avoid, will be greatly appreciated. The wood I have to start with will provide bowls from 5" to 13" or so.

Dan

[ROY DICK]

http://aroundthewoods.com/sander.shtml
Dan,
These are quick and inexpensive to make. I use the wavy discs from csusa, I had a link or thought i did 'bout another place, but i guess I lost it. I am sure it will show up in your post tho.
The hf drill is a good find imo.

Roy

[Jeff Nicol]

Dan, Here is the place where I get my hook and loop sand paper and I cut my own to what ever size I need. The prices are good and the material is great! For the price you can't go wrong, I use an old pair of scissors to cut the discs and it works great. I mostly use 2" or 3" discs and buy the holders from whoever has them at the many woodworking suppliers. Check it out and you won't be dissapointed!

Jeff


http://www.onlineindustrialsupply.com/holosaro.html

[robert hainstock]

I have several differant sanders, A PSI 2" bowl sander, (ball bearings) and two drill mount 2" velcro heads, one soft which I use most often, and one hard which I seldom use. The softer head follows bowl contours extremely well. Klingspor will give turning club members a 20percent discount on all abrasives if the club president sends them a members list. Thier aluminum stearate abrasives are excellant. Good luck!
Bob

[Bernie Weishapl]

Dan I use the HF angle drill and the wavey disc. They will feather your sanding and won't dig in on the edges. I have the 2" and 3" velcro disc holders. Use a light touch and sand away.

[Cyril Griesbach]

Dan, I've tried most everything on the market and found this to be the best for me.

http://www.vinceswoodnwonders.com/

[Burt Alcantara]

My HF angle drill bit the dust after about 6 months. The head cracked and I couldn't get the sanding mandrel out. That was replaced with a reconditioned Milwaukee angle drill. So far, so good. I may get another so I can keep a spindle extender on one for hollow form insides and a regular mandrel on the other for the outside.

I've grown fond of Vince's (http://www.vinceswoodnwonders.com/) discs. I have them in both 1" and 2" sizes. Prior to these discs I'd been using Klingspor. The difference is amazing. My finishes are substantially smoother with less scratch patterns.

I also use sanding pads for difficult areas that I don't want a spinning disc to touch. As my cutting techniques leave much to be desired I have to use sandpaper as a shaping tool. With a pad, I can feel ridges much better and won't over sand.

You can buy paper, sanders and mandrels as well as a number of other supplies from the following:
Vince's WoodNWonders (http://www.vinceswoodnwonders.com)
Klingspor (http://www.woodworkingshop.com)
SandingGlove (http://www.thesandingglove.com)

[Dave Schell]

If you want to get into sanding for real cheap, visit the scraps bin at a Klingspore store. You can pick long belt-like scraps that cover the whole array of grits and get enough to last a very long time for less than $15. They weigh it by the pound and it is very reasonable. I then just hold the paper directly to the wood using a backing pad and go up through the grits.

[David Drickhamer]

I get my sandpaper from the same place Jeff does. Good prices and good sandpaper. Like Bernie I like the wavey edge so I just cut mine square and get the same effect.
Dave

[Reed Gray]

Another vote for Vinces supplies. I have tried everything out there except the purple ceramic discs from 3M, which are supposed to be the best according to Mike Mahoney who goes through about $200 worth of abrasives a month. The thing I don't like about them is that they are only available in PSA (pressure sensative adhesive or sticky backed), and grits only up to 220 (from the Sanding Glove). They may win best over all quality, but I give Vinces discs best buy (most for your money) as in long lasting, about 2 or 3 to 1 over any other disc I have used, are fairly cheap, and are oversized (2 3/8, and 3 3/8 inch). The over size is for his firm interface pads which have a quarter rounded profile which works great on the inside of the bowls. The only thing I don't really like about them is that they have a micro hook and loop, and are difficult to get off the pads.

As far as the cheap angle drills, I have only tried one. It lasted less than about a month before the casing wore out (plastic around the bearings). This was probably 60 to 80 bowls. I use the slow speed Sioux/Milwaukee angle drills (not the 90 degree/right angle drills). I get 400 plus bowls before the bearings are shot (drill in the $150 plus range, and $80 or so to redo the bearings, and ocasionally brushes and casings). I do need to get another cheap drill and do another demolition test on it to count how many bowls I can get out of it before it is done. I do tend to work my tools hard.

robo hippy