Which Belt/Disc Combo Sander?

[Michael T Baker]

I'm looking at a couple Shop Fox offerings - both on eBay with free shipping. As soon as the cash back gets a couple percentage points higher. Anyway...

Shop Fox W1712 or W1676. 220 is not a problem. Price diff is only $40.

Cant seem to get a link from Woodstock International to copy/paste.

[Michael T Baker]

Guess I'll just flip a coin....:rolleyes:

[Kevin Groenke]

I participated in a combo sander comparison test a few years back. The W1712 is definitely the more robust of your two choices. The 2" larger disc (1" effective) will be beneficial. The W1676 comes with only one table which you need to swap from belt to disc - what a hassle. It appears that the W1712 may also have larger/more effective dust collection. The absence of decent, affordable combo sanders is curious and disappointing.

You might also consider:
Grizzly G1276: http://www.grizzlyindustrial.com/products/Combination-Sander-6-x-48-Belt-12-Disc-1725-RPM/G1276
Delta 31-300: http://www.cpowoodworking.com/sanders/31-300.html

Here's some data:
http://www.woodmagazine.com/wood/file.jsp?item=woodmall/charts/158stationarysanders/chart