best way to start power sanding.

[cody michael]

i want to be able to start power sanding. i started using my orbital sander on the outside of bowls and it makes life so much easier. where is the best place to get what i need to be able to sand inside and outside of bowls? i see alot of people have sander discs they put on drills is this the best route?

[Rich Aldrich]

Cody,

I am new at turning as well. A lot of the people here buy sanding products from http://www.vinceswoodnwonders.com/

You can use the pads with a drill.

[David E Keller]

I use a drill with a three inch disc. I'll probably get a smaller disc as well.

I got mine at WC because it was convenient, but as usual with WC, there are cheaper places to get the stuff.

[cody michael]

would one of these be a good place to start? i do mainly 7-10inch bowls what size should i start with?

there are 30$ ceramic kit or a 21$ kit that is different style are the ceramic ones worth extra price?


http://www.vinceswoodnwonders.com/Sanding_Starter_Kits.htm

i am planning on get a right angle drill from harbor freight. is that the best cheap way to go for the drill part? any model that works best?

[Reed Gray]

Do check out Vince's site. He does tell a lot about sanding as well as sell his products. I have been using his stuff for several years, and prefer them over anything else I have used.

You will need a drill, which can run from $30 to $170 or so. I prefer the slow speed ones, but have been using the high speed one for a bit, which I will get around to talking about in another thread soon. The rechargeable drills don't work well.

I will use the 3 inch discs on any bowl I can get them into because they have twice the sanding area of a 2 inch disc. I do keep some 2 inch discs on hand.

You will need a mandrill to put into the drill to put the discs on, and some interface pads: an extra pad that goes onto the mandrill, so when it wears out all you have to replace is the pad, not the mandrill which is a lot more expensive. I like the firm ones with the quarter round profile on the edge which gets into the insides of bowls better than the ones with a square profile. I use them for all grits, but some times switch to a soft one for the finer grits.

You will probably need 80, 120, 180, 220, 320, and 400 grit discs. You can get the higher grits, but I only use them on very dense woods which polish up nicely. You will need one of the eraser sticks as I call them, which are rubber and will clean off your discs some what.

You will want a dust collector, and a hood to go over the bowls when you sand as the power sanders throw dust out more than hand sanding. You will probably need a dust mask of some sort if you don't already have one.

robo hippy

[cody michael]

is the starter kit that is on vinces site a good place to start? he offers 2 and 3/8 or 3 and 3/8 for medium sized bowls would the 3 and 3/8 work?

[Steve Schlumpf]

I agree with everything Reed just stated. Only difference is that I use the 2 3/8" disks and the cheapest variable speed electric drill that I could find. Bought one 3 years ago and figured I would just throw it away and get another one when it died.... it's still going strong!

Vince's starter kits would work just fine to get you going. The only big decision is what size disk you want to use.

Also - Reed wasn't kidding about the dust these things can throw out. At the very least - make sure you have something to protect your eyes and lungs!

[Richard Madison]

Cody, Pretty much ditto what Reed and Steve said. For the size bowls you mentioned the 3" discs would usually be a bit too big. Although I have a couple right angle drills, I use a straight, corded drill 98% of the time.

[Bernie Weishapl]

Ditto again what Reed and Steve said. I use a Harbour Freight angle drill. Bought it on sale for $23 and figured like Steve when it was shot throw it away and get another one. Well it is hanging on now for 3 yrs.

[Steve Kubien]

Another thumps-up for Vince. I picked up a starter kit of 2" and 3" blue and just recently placed a restock order. I cannot imagine what would make me switch to another kind of disc.

[cody michael]

ok should i go with the more expensive ceramic or cheaper blue ones?

which drill?

http://www.harborfreight.com/cpi/ctaf/displayitem.taf?Itemnumber=92956

http://www.harborfreight.com/cpi/ctaf/displayitem.taf?Itemnumber=3670

the right angle one is on sale for like 23$ the normal one is cheap at like 14$

[Brad Vaughn]

ok should i go with the more expensive ceramic or cheaper blue ones?

which drill?

http://www.harborfreight.com/cpi/ctaf/displayitem.taf?Itemnumber=92956

http://www.harborfreight.com/cpi/ctaf/displayitem.taf?Itemnumber=3670

the right angle one is on sale for like 23$ the normal one is cheap at like 14$
This is the one I have I like not having to keep a key for the chuck
http://www.harborfreight.com/cpi/ctaf/displayitem.taf?Itemnumber=95877
Brad

[Reed Gray]

The most difficult part of a bowl to sand out is the transition area from the sides going to the bottom of the bowl. If the bowl is gently rounded, then it is easy. If the sides are more square/straight, and turn sharply to go across the bottom, it is more difficult to sand, as well as turn. Getting the disc into that curve is hard, and smaller discs do fit in a little better than the bigger ones. I still prefer the larger discs. I turn the lathe speed down, and the drill speed down. The larger disc gets the job done a LOT faster than the smaller discs. The outsides are easy.

As to the ceramic or blue discs, Vince just sent me some ceramic ones to try out. I did have one once from him, and didn't notice any real difference in performance. I did get some of the Norton Dry Ice discs from the Sanding Glove, and they lasted just the same amount of time as the blue discs, and were more than twice as expensive.

I prefer the close quarter drills, and some come off at an angle, like 30 degrees or so, and I prefer them to the right angle drills.

robo hippy

[John Tomasello jr]

I had a extra 1/4in. 90 deg. collet type air die grinder. Have to put up with the air compressor noise. Use 2in & switching over to wave pads.

[cody michael]

should i go with the more expensive ceramic or cheaper blue ones?

[Charles Bouchelle]

I bought the 23/8 starter kit in the blue from Vince and a bunch of extra discs.I used them for the first time today and they work fantastic.

[Mary Thompson]

I recently got into power sanding with this kit http://www.industrialabrasives.com/bowl-sanding-kit-01710-p-1279.html
It seemed like a good value a 10.95.

[cody michael]

hi should i go with the more expensive ceramic or cheaper blue ones? what is the better value in the long run?

are the blue ones hook and loop?

[John Keeton]

I have gotten very good mileage with the blue disks. Vince sent me a couple of the fiber disks to try out, and I really like those for the finer grits. I think when I reorder I may get some more of those.

And, yes, the blue ones are H&L.

[Steve Kubien]

Cody, I have not used the ceramic disc so I can't comment on them. If you go with the blue ones, I doubt you'll ever have a good reason to change. Yes, they are hook-and-loop. In fact, Vince sells these amazing backup pads with some sort of micro hooks. These puppies hold really well! Email vince and he can give the low-down on them.

As for a drill, I use a regular POS 3/8" drill, not a close-quarters or angle drill. That's what I have on hand. There are certainly times when I would like something smaller and when my regular drill dies, perhaps I will.

HTH

[Edward Bartimmo]

There is another good source of a variety of sanding products and components focused on turning:

www.thesandingglove.com

[cody michael]

would it be a better value to get the cheaper blue discs or the more expensive ceramic ones?

[Reed Gray]

Cody,
Did you read my post at the top of this page?

robo hippy

[Don Jarvie]

There was an article about sanding using a grinder in the lastest issue of Woodturning Design. Pretty interesting and detailed article.

[cody michael]

Cody,
Did you read my post at the top of this page?

robo hippy


now i did, sorry my computer wasn't showing alot of the newer posts. i thought it didn't go through thats why i repeated myself. thanks for your advice i think i'll just get the blue ones thanks