New Performax 10-20 drum sander

[John Gregory]

Pictures to follow.

Does anyone know how long the sanding strips are? I called tech support and the did not know. I want to find out the difference in cost if I "roll my own" I did find a place with the ready to wrap for $23 (four precut strips). But I know you can buy rolls 50' feet long and I think they would be easy to cut to size.

thanks in advance for the help
John

[Mike Cutler]

Definitely cheaper to cut your own strips. I would just measure out the strip that comes on the sander, make a pattern cutting template, and go from there.
I remember seeing a website once that specialized in in sandpaper. It had a table of all the most common drumsanders and how long the strips were.
I can't find it now tho' :rolleyes:
The biggest advantage to "rolling your own" is a wider selsection of grits. The pre-made strips from Performax are limited in the grit selection.
I have the Performax 16-32, and once the free rolls are gone I'll be making my own also.

[Hoa Dinh]

I don't have the sander in question. But here's one way to find out:

The total area of the drum (5" diameter & 10" long) is 5 X 3.14 X 10 = 157 sq. in.

The abrasive strip is 3" wide (I think), so the length needed is 157 / 3 = 53 in. Let's "round up" to 60".

A 50' long roll will give you 50 X 12 / 60 = 10 strips.

[Michael Perata]

I think they have to be longer than your calc since the strips need to clamped at each end of the roller.

It will still be more economical to buy in bulk.

[Charlie Plesums]

The answer isn't easy. If you just cut one, you must allow for the taper on both ends. But if you cut another, they share the taper... except for the last inch or so that is trimmed off.

Be sure to check out www.sandpaperworks.com (http://www.sandpaperworks.com) - far cheaper than the competition, and I can't tell the difference in quality. Watch out for the 50 foot rolls vs. 50 yard (150 feet) vs. 50 meters (164 feet).

[Hoa Dinh]

I think they have to be longer than your calc since the strips need to clamped at each end of the roller.
That's why I "rounded up" from 53" to 60", also for the wastes at either end of the abrasive roll.