How much usage do you get out of your disk sander?

[travis howe]

I have a chance to pick up a higher end 12" disk sander and a great savings over retail. I do a little bit of everything in my woodworking. I'm just wondering how useful they are and how much use they get in your shops?:confused::rolleyes:

[Joe Pack]

I have a 6x48 belt/9" disc sander combination. I pretty much keep the belt sander in the upright position for the end grain sanding I do, but I can flatten it out in 30 seconds if I need to do so. If I didn't have the belt sander, I would miss it terribly. If I didn't have the disc sander, I wouldn't care.

[glenn bradley]

I also hardly ever use my disk. If I could pick up a HF one like dad did on sale for around $70 and had the room, I guess I would. No way would I pay what Delta and others think theirs are worth. Necessary is not a word that comes to mind. Dad loves his so it depends what you do and how you do it I suppose. If you haven't been stumped being without one so far, I would say you are probably in the "nice to have but, don't need it" club. YMMV.

[travis howe]

that's what i suspected.... i was able to pick up the jet 12" 1hp that was nearly new for less than half off new...but i'm not sure i really have the "need".

[Van Huskey]

There are a lot of people that use the heck out of them, however chances are if you don't know you need it then you don't. A disc sander is pretty far down on my list of sanders I NEED.

[Rick Fisher]

Had a disc sander for years.. never used it .. Gave it to a buddy.. he doesnt use it either.. I gave it away when I got a basic 6 x 89 Edge Sander.. I use it a bunch..

Edge Sander is 10x the tool IMO of a disc sander..

[hank dekeyser]

I use the disc sander quite a bit, actually I have 2 of them. I guess it depends on how you were taught to do things and how your brain works. I don't "need" them, but I do use them. I would never spend more than $75 on one. It's like do you "need" a grinder ? probably not, but it sure is nice when you do need it. If the price is right and you have been thinking you need one - buy it

[Montgomery Scott]

I do a fair amount of segmented turning and that tool is indispensable for truing up the ring segments. What brand tool are you buying? I have a grizzly that is pretty low quality. The disk is not flat and the belt sander part doesn't keep the belt flat on the platen.

[Brad Patch]

I have a chance to pick up a higher end 12" disk sander and a great savings over retail. I do a little bit of everything in my woodworking. I'm just wondering how useful they are and how much use they get in your shops?:confused::rolleyes:


I have a Delta combination 1X42 belt and an attached disc sander. I have never used the disc, but I use the belt sander a lot. I personally would not spend money on a dedicated disc sander.

[Anthony Whitesell]

I managed to pick up an old craftsman 6" belt/9" disk sander for $50. I finally purchased disks and belts for it. Since buying I have found needs for it. It is definately nice to have one or the other. For finer sanding (inching toward the line) of medium sized parts the disk is nice because it is so stable, compared to the belt sander (completely supported and no seam). I don't think I would have bought it new, I just don't see it's worth that kind of money. 50% new, I would have to think about and would grow more tempting as the price dropped.

[Kevin Gregoire]

i have a Jet combo sander and rarely use the disc on it, mainly because i have a smaller disc/belt sander on my bench plus the way the Jet is positioned & located in my shop.
i used the smaller disc sander a LOT for many different things. if i had the money i would have a big disc sander mounted on my bench and then have a big edge belt sander

[Mike Hollingsworth]

Useless compared to a 6x89 edge sander.

[David Weaver]

I have two - i use them a lot. One is used to square up/flush wood/metal (especially handy for making planes), and the other has a leather disc on it with honing compound - also extremely handy, but can burn an edge or throw a sharp tool if the user is careless.

Have a buddy who loves to use a disc sander to fit/tune miter joints.

[Dick Brown]

I have a 10"disc, 6x48 belt combo that I use a lot. Would hate to be without it. Also have a Drill Dr. but use the disc sander to touch up my drills unless I have a bunch of them to do. D.Dr. would go way before the sander if I had to part with one of them. I am not bashing the D.Dr. but find many more uses for the sander than I ever thought I would. I do a fair amount of metal work in my shop and use it a lot there also.

[Thomas Hotchkin]

I built 12" steel face plate, and installed on my wood lathe. Along with adjustable table top supported by tool holder. Works great, must use it almost daily. Not as nice as a 24" Max. Tom

[Bruce Page]

I have two of them. I wouldn’t put them in the “must have” category but they sure are nice to have when you need them. I am currently making a “stable” for my granddaughter that has a lot of individual piece parts and the disk sander has been invaluable.

[John Nesmith]

I have a 12" Harbor Freight model that I paid something like $70 for. It was worth it. Works fine. I only use it once or twice a month, but it comes in handy for wood and metal. Sharpens pencils too!

[Chip Lindley]

I do more metal than wood on the Rockwell 12" disc sander. Great for touching up metal parts to an exact 90 deg. The 6x48" belt sander is great for flattening things--like a warped pot metal TS insert.

+1 on sanding exact miter joints to an inexact angle. Great for sanding wooden cubes to exact dimensions for kids building blocks, etc.

The machine is there when I need it. I won't be getting rid it it!

[Gary Herrmann]

They're very handy if you turn. And if you happen across a really good large one for cheap, you'll find uses for it. I've only used the belt for sanding flats on turning blanks for mounting and rough rounding the corners of boxes.

[Jeff Duncan]

My first thought is what really is a "must have" if your doing woodworking as a hobby?;)

So from there I would say that a disc sander is down the list of nice to have tools but..... since one can never have enough tools, why wouldn't you buy one if it came along at the right price???

FWIW I have a 15" State which is a very well made machine. It certainly doesn't get daily use, but it sure is nice to have on occasion. Oh and it did get used today!

good luck,
JeffD

[Sean Nagle]

I have a 12" Delta disc sander (no belt) that I've been very pleased with. As Anthony mentioned, I find it invaluable to sand a convex curve "to the line" after rough cutting on the bandsaw, just as I use a spindle sander to sand a concave curve. I probably would never do without a disc sander, either standalone or on a sanding center.

[Bruce Wrenn]

I build little cars for Toys for Tots, hundreds of them. They are cut in the shape of a Volkswagon Beetle on band saw. Then it's off to the disk sander. First, I flatten the bottom. This gives me a reference plane to work from. Next I do the two sides, and finally do the radiuses on the body. With disk sander, this just a sweeping motion. Without my disk sander, I couldn't build anywhere near as many cars. I have the Delta 12" bench top unit, and a really cool one that I picked up off CL for $35. A machinest made it from aluminum.

[Mike Schuch]

I have a heavy old 12" disk 6" belt. It is occasionally very handy for wood projects. But when it comes to welding projects it is invaluable! I don't think I have done a welding project without using it at least a half dozen time per project.

The graphite pad on the belt platen is great.

[Glen Butler]

I use to have one so I used it, but I don't miss it. I mostly used it for metal, anyway.

[Doug Shepard]

I've got a 12" Disc/6x48 Belt combo and use the heck out of the disc but not so much the belt. I'd definitely want to replace the disc if it failed but think I'd rather have an edge sander than the 6x48 belt. Turning small circles on the disc is real handy as well as squaring up the ends of pieces or fine tuning miters. Beveled edge sanding with the table tilted has also come in handy.

[Phil Thien]

I've got one of those Ridgid oscillating belt/spindle sanders and I kinda wish I had a 12" disc sander instead. The belts kinda round everything over and I don't use the spindles enough that I couldn't have just chucked a drum into the drill press on occasion.

When I was a kid in shop we used the disc sanders a lot and they were very handy.

[Ole Anderson]

If my shop were bigger, I would love to have a 12" disk sander, but first on my list would be an edge sander, correct me if I am wrong, but wouldn't an edge sander do whatever a disc sander does? Sure it is lots bigger, but also a lot badder!

[Joe Cowan]

I use my mine alot. On narrow boards, as a habit, I touch up the ends to make sure they are square. On molding, I use it to get down to the exact length. Not useful on wide stock, but I like to cut long, and nibble away on the finish length.

[Cary Falk]

correct me if I am wrong, but wouldn't an edge sander do whatever a disc sander does? Sure it is lots bigger, but also a lot badder!

This is kind of my thoughts. I see only about 1/4 of the actual disc usuable since the bottom of the disc is blocked by the table and 1/2 of the top is pulling the piece of fthe table. I love my oscillating edge sander. A 20" or 24" disc sander might be a different story.

[Jon McElwain]

I have got a 12" delta that sees a lot of use. The large table makes it easier for me to sand curved pieces than on the belt sander with a much smaller table. I would love to have an edge sander too, but the disk sander with its downward stroke pushes the piece into the table instead of off the end of the table. If I was not a wood turner, and if I did more case work that was square, I would not find it quite as useful I do not thing. I also spent 4 years working in a boat shop where NOTHING was square. The 20" disk sander we had was invaluable. All that said, for some, a disk sander is just a really heavy paper weight.

[Callan Campbell]

Hey Hank, since I'm in the 'not much use for a disc sander camp', can you describe what you DO use yours for. Might help me and others with rethinking the ole disc sander gathering dust on the right side of my combo Grizzly machine. Thanks. I still have the original disc mounted that the sander came with almost 6 years ago[yipe!]

[Van Huskey]

Hey Hank, since I'm in the 'not much use for a disc sander camp', can you describe what you DO use yours for. Might help me and others with rethinking the ole disc sander gathering dust on the right side of my combo Grizzly machine. Thanks. I still have the original disc mounted that the sander came with almost 6 years ago[yipe!]

They do make really good circles, especially ones too small to be comfortably done with a router.

[Jim Becker]

For the work I typically do...I get almost no use out of my combination sander which includes a 12" disk. If anything, I use the belt once in awhile. I've only used the disk once since I've owned the tool. I'd actually liquidate it for the space, but every once in awhile it comes in handy for some shaping work that would be more cumbersome using other methods.