drum sander help please

[Jim Colombo]

I'm looking at the Jet drum sanders and wonder if there is any advice or problems with them that I should know about. My primary use would be 12" max. and I won't be using it for any heavy work, so I'm thinking the 10x20 would be OK except it's motor seems small. Or should I be looking at another brand altogether?

Thanks,
Jim

[William C Rogers]

I can't comment on the Jet as I have the Supermax 19-38. However in general you say 12 inch max would be your width. When you use the sander where you will need to use the maximum capability you will need to set the sander in that mode. On the Supermax you adjust the table to use the 38 inch capability. I am not sure what you do to set the Jet in that mode, but I believe you need to adjust the drum. Unless it would be very few times you would use the 20 inch I would get a larger sander. I would suspect the motor size would be ok as most of these sanders have a limiter where they slow down the feed rate if you try to take off too much. I have yet to use the 38 inch capability of my Supermax, so I don't know how well it does in that mode.

[David Kumm]

If possible I'd look at wider. It is very easy with a drum sander to develop a burn line, especially with finer grits. The ability to move the stock side to side and finally to avoid the bad spot saves some paper changing. Used 25" come up periodically. Performax are good machines ( Supermax now ). Dave

[Bill Huber]

I have the Jet 10-20 and love it. I use it a lot more then I ever thought I would, it just does a great job.

The 10-20 does not have a lever to change when you go wider then 10" like the SuperMax, you just set it up that way to start. I have mine set up so the outside edge is just a few thousandth of and inch higher then the inside this way you do not get a sanding line when you flip the board around.

I run 80 grit in it when doing end grain cutting boards and run 100 or 120 grit for normal work. It does leave sanding lines on the wood but they sand out with the ROS in no time at all.

The only problem I have had was with me, I did not watch the tracking on the convoy and screwed it up right off the bat. I got a new one and installed and took the time to really get it set correct and have had no problem with it at all, So getting the belt to track the way it should is a must and it does take a little time. You just have to make the adjustments a little at a time and don't try to get it to track right in 5 minutes, take your time and do it right to start with.

Installing the sanding belts can be a real pain until you get used to it, I have found that I now shorten the belt a small amount (1/2"-3/4") and I have also waxed the drum. I can now change the sanding belts in no time at all and will switch back and forth as needed.

You do need dust collection, I started out with a shop vac and it just did handle it, now that I have the Dust Cobra that works much better. I have started sanding and forgot to turn on the dust collector and it like fogged the shop before I could shut it off.

The wheel on top to lower is nice and 1/4 turn is 1/64" and I never take off more then that at a time. I have set the drum to low a time or two and when I started to same the overload kick out shut it right down. I run things though 3 times on the last sanding, this make sure I have all parts the same.

In-feed and out-feed table are nice to have if you are running boards though that are say longer then a foot, you can get snipe if the board is not supported on the in-feed or out-feed when sanding. I have one of those rollers I use on the table saw that I use on the sander's out-feed when I am doing longer boards.

Bottom line is I don't know how I ever worked without a drum sander, I use it that much and if for some reason the one I have gave out I would be in route to get a new one as fast as I could. I made a base for mine so I can move it around my little shop.


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[George Bokros]

Your drum sander looks awful clean Bill. I know you take good care of your tools.

George

[glenn bradley]

Bill Huber is not a man to suffer poor tools. I would take his opinion to heart on this machine. In his post he says of paper changes " I can not change the sanding belts in no time at all", I believe he means "I can NOW change the sanding belts in no time at all". This is a biggie on sanders. If paper changes are a pain, you won't do it. If you don't use the proper grits, you get sub-optimal results. This can lead to you blaming the sander for your unwillingness to fight the paper change . . . it a viscous circle :D. It sounds like Bill has it down to a science. I too have the Supermax 19-38 and really love this machine. A large part of my satisfaction is the ease of paper changes. For your needs the 32" x 42" footprint of the "small" Supermax would probably be unreasonable but, a setup like pictured in Bill's post could be just the thing..

[Art Mann]

I am thinking about buying the 12 inch Grizzly drum sander. Obviously, you can't use it for anything wider than 12" but I like the idea of a drum that is supported on both sides rather than using a cantilever design that you have to adjust. This model uses a 1-1/2hp sanding motor whereas the Jet uses a 1hp motor. It also costs $654, including shipping, which is cheaper than the Jet. I know this isn't my thread but I hope someone who owns one of these might offer some comments for the OP and me.

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[Steve Peterson]

Jim, the overall quality of the Jet machines goes up on the larger versions. The 10-20 appears to have made a few compromises to hit the price point. There is a lot less difference between the 16-32 and the 22-44.

I found a 22-44 for less than the price of a new 10-20. It took a while of searching on CL until one came up, but it was worth the wait. It is great to be able to sand a full size cutting board in a single pass. Two passes always has the potential for digging in or not sanding perfectly flat. If you have the room and budget for a larger version, then you should at least consider the 16-32. Woodcraft has it on sale for $899 for a few more days.

Steve

[Jim Finn]

I had one of those Grizzly "Baby drum sanders" and had nothing but trouble with it. The motor that drives the feed belt kept dying, just out of warranty. Three $155 motors later I finally scraped it out. Grizzly would not help me (out of warranty).

[Art Mann]

I just noticed that CPO Outlet has the Jet 10-20 on sale for $650 and includes shipping. Might be a good time to buy.

Thanks, Jim, for the warning on the Grizzly.

[David Hawkins]

I've had a Jet 10/20 since 2008 and I find it a bit underpowered for my needs. That being said for what it costs it does good work and I haven't had any real problems with it and for a home shop it would be fine, just remember to take small "bites" and the wider the work piece the slower your feed rate.