Need Recommendations for a Drum Sander

[Mike Henderson]

I'm going to have to bite the bullet and get a drum sander. But I don't know which are the best ones. What would you recommend? I mostly do furniture so I want one that's wide enough to the panels that you'd build for things like a chest of drawers (the sides and top before you put them together).

Any comments, suggestions, etc. will be appreciated. I don't know much about drum sanders so any advice is helpful.

Mike

[David Kumm]

I've used both the Supermax ( Performax ) 25x2 and 37x2 for years. Double drum is nice as a drum can't take much off so it saves some effort. Flat conveyor belt and AL drum makes it a good calibrating sander vs one with padding on the drum. Having said that, if you are in the 3-4K budget range, a 24" widebelt is a step up. The Perfomax machines run in the 1-3K range used for the double drum so the WB isn't much more. Dave

[Kelby Van Patten]

I had a Delta 18/36 for many years, then moved up to a Grizzly 18" wide belt. If you can afford it, there is no comparison between a drum sander and a wide belt; get the wide belt. If your budget dictates the drum sander, I was never happy with the Delta. It had tracking issues that I never could resolve satisfactorily.

[Rick Lizek]

http://woodworker.com/6-x-186-stroke-sander-3hp-mssu-805-874.asp
A stroke sander is far superior to a drum sander. I've used every kind of sander you can imagine over the last 40 or so years in the industry. And one shop we had three stroke sanders and one wide belt. The problem with drum Sanders is drum leaves a ripple effect on the board and more Hand sanding is required before it's suitable for finishing. The stroke sander leaves a surface ready for finishing. A world famous marquetry expert who lives nearby uses a stroke sander to sand his marquetry panels.

A wide belt is a step up from drum sander but only if it has a platen. The stroke sander is the ideal sander for the custom furniture maker. Very simple machine with low power requirements and because most people don't know much about they can often be gotten for low prices. I picked up used Mattison stroke sander for $500 and installed it in a custom metal shop. The owner thought there was no machine that could duplicate his tedious hand rubbed finish. Was he ever mistaken

[Rick Potter]

Give me a shout if you would like to try out my Woodmaster

[Mike Wilkins]

Went from a Performax 16-32 to the Woodtek 25" double drum. Fine machine, giving you the option of running progressive grits on the 1st then 2nd drum. Most of the time mine has a 100 grit on the first and 120 on the 2nd drum. You have to remember these are finishing machines, not planers. Mine is used after planing to remove the planer marks, which are only very slight ripples.
One word of advice; do not run a piece of pine through the machine after you get it home as a first test. Gummed up the sandpaper really quick and was a bear to clean up. Drum sanders do not like resinous woods. Great machines for the budget; if lottery winnings are in your future, go for the wide belt option.

[Robb White]

I've picked up General Dual Drum Sander for 1.2k used from a hobbiest.

http://www.amazon.com/General-International-15-250M1-25-Inch-Horizontal/dp/B002KHNLV6/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1423065892&sr=8-2&keywords=dual+drum+sander

306077

-Rob

[Mike Henderson]

Okay, a couple of you have mentioned wide belt sanders. I'd appreciate more information about those, especially in the 20" to 24" range.

I don't know if I can afford one but I'd like to know the options.

Mike

[Mike Hollingsworth]

After a couple drum sanders that were never satisfactory, I moved to the open end Powermatic wide belt. Had the elevation wheel not been so low I would have kept it. It just killed my aching back. Moving to the shop fox 20" gave me motorized elevation and digital sizing. Runs on a 30 amps fuse with enough left to run my 2hp Dust Gorilla. Drop by if you like.

[Bill McNiel]

I agree with everyone about the advantages of wide belt over drum but I couldn't rationalize the added investment considering the kind of use I projected. I did a bunch of research and decided that the SuperMax 19/38 was the best choice, Afdter almoast two years of CL searching I found a 25/50 SuperMax for a really good price. I've been really happy with it. Stroke sanders are really nice for a lot of applications too.

[Dave Novak]

I have a Performax 16-32 and I absolutely hate it. Used properly it will get the job done, but it takes far too long - it's underpowered, trips way too often and is just too touchy. Requires way more patience than I have, I'll take my work to a cabinet shop and have them clean them up before I fire this thing up again.

[NICK BARBOZA]

I have had a Performax 16-32 for about 9 years. I'm relatively happy with it for most applications, but there are some limiting factors with it. A few reasons why I'll be upgrading in the future are:
I think the open-ended design has too much give and it does flex even when taking light passes. I also find that taking advantage of the 32" capacity is a VERY fussy operation that is difficult to get flawless results. I mostly use mine to sand laminates for bent laminations which it does well with, however it is sloooowwwww. You have to take very light passes, I've only tripped out the built in overload a few times, but I'm pretty cautious when I run it.

Bottom line, the Performax 16-32 opened ALOT of doors for me and I would absolutely purchase again. At the time, this machine was in my budget and fit the bill very well. I've just out grown it. When I upgrade I'll look at a Supermax 37-2 or a wide belt in similar width; both in the used market.

[Bruce Page]

I went from a Delta 18/36 to a Woodmaster 2675. There's a night & day difference between the two.
I picked up the WM for $1500 off of CL. It was in near new condition with several rolls of paper included.
The only downside to the WM is the significant amount of floor space it requires.

[glenn bradley]

I too have heard that wide belts are the superior tool. I did not have room for one that would accommodate the width I was after. I went with the Supermax 19-38 and have been very happy. No tracking issues. No need to readjust once initially setup (of which there was very little to do). Easy paper changes and very good dust collection. The only downside for this machine is the same as all its cousins; the footprint is pretty big. Even still I would never give it up now ;-) I built a base for it with plenty of storage.

306096 . 306097 . 306098

I will add that a solid drum and hard abrasive belt are a must for me. I am sanding to a specific point and the mush of a rubber belt or hook-n-loop drum/paper won't work well for me. YMMV but, something to consider.

[Chris Padilla]

I picked up a Delta 18/36 several years ago for $500 off CL. I had a project where I was cutting my own veneers and I needed them all sanded down nice and even and clean. After fiddling with this drum sander for a Saturday, I got it dialed in pretty nicely and came to an understanding about its design and shortcomings. It sanded all those veneers beautifully down to a dead-nuts on 1/16" but it was an agonizingly slow and mind-numbing process sanding 12 or 13 5' long, 12" wide black walnut veneers. The results were outstanding, however, and I'm a hobbyist so it was my time to kill. I still use it mostly for sanding down wood to use as edge banding or veneers but I've never run a panel through it to level it up. It does leave marks that need power/hand-sanded out. Just remember that it isn't a planer. 1/64" or less of material hogged off is about the max this one can handle or it bogs down or burns the paper leaving nasty marks on your work. YOU MUST HAVE VERY GOOD DUST COLLECTION FOR ANY POWER SANDER LIKE THIS. I have several rolls of 220 grit that I've never used for it as going finer than 120 always seemed to cause issues in terms of bogging down, burning, marks, etc. So I tend to leave 80 grit on most of the time.

Oh, and I still can't get the darn conveyor belt (basically an 18" wide roll of sandpaper) to track correctly as it keeps walking off to one side. That is pretty annoying, too.

[John TenEyck]

There's no comparison between a wide belt and a drum sander, both in capability or price. You would have to be a very enthusiastic (read well healed) hobbiest to justify a wide belt sander. I have a Delta 18x36 and have nothing but good things to say about it. I bought it used for $500 about 5 years ago and have put more hours on it than I think most any other hobbiest ever would in 20 years. It's not unusual for me to run it for 2 or 3 hours straight. I did have one shaft bearing go bad and changed them, which wasn't hard, but that's it for maintenance. It just runs and runs and does a great job. Changing paper is fast and easy, and it never comes loose. I regularly make shop sawn veneer and the Delta is critical to sanding it smooth after it comes off the bandsaw. I also regularly sand panels up to 30" wide or so. The Delta is easy to adjust for that work and return back to normal operation; takes less than 30 seconds.

If I didn't have a basement shop with no access except for a 32" door, I'd get a used Woodmaster, as wide as I could find.

John

[Paul McGaha]

I have the Delta 18 x 36 also. I bought it used from a creeker a few years ago.

I think it's a decent drum sander for a part time hobbyist shop. I've liked having it around and expect to keep it for a good long time. I usually sand up to 150 grit with it, and then use my 6" ROS and final sand with my speed block sander.

If I had to replace mine I'd probably look at something similar from Performax or JET.

Good luck with the purchase.

PHM

[Jim Andrew]

I have the small open end G9983 Grizzly. Takes a 16x48 belt, and the belts are reasonable as a 5 pack from Grizzly. I was used to using a speedsander at a shop, and wanted the belt sander instead of drum. You know what they say, buy the machine you REALLY want instead of buying something cheaper and having to move up later. Much cheaper to buy the right machine the first time.

[Paul McGaha]

I picked up a Delta 18/36 several years ago for $500 off CL. I had a project where I was cutting my own veneers and I needed them all sanded down nice and even and clean. After fiddling with this drum sander for a Saturday, I got it dialed in pretty nicely and came to an understanding about its design and shortcomings. It sanded all those veneers beautifully down to a dead-nuts on 1/16" but it was an agonizingly slow and mind-numbing process sanding 12 or 13 5' long, 12" wide black walnut veneers. The results were outstanding, however, and I'm a hobbyist so it was my time to kill. I still use it mostly for sanding down wood to use as edge banding or veneers but I've never run a panel through it to level it up. It does leave marks that need power/hand-sanded out. Just remember that it isn't a planer. 1/64" or less of material hogged off is about the max this one can handle or it bogs down or burns the paper leaving nasty marks on your work. YOU MUST HAVE VERY GOOD DUST COLLECTION FOR ANY POWER SANDER LIKE THIS. I have several rolls of 220 grit that I've never used for it as going finer than 120 always seemed to cause issues in terms of bogging down, burning, marks, etc. So I tend to leave 80 grit on most of the time.

Oh, and I still can't get the darn conveyor belt (basically an 18" wide roll of sandpaper) to track correctly as it keeps walking off to one side. That is pretty annoying, too.

Chris makes a very good point re the dust collection.

PHM

[Cary Falk]

I have a Grizzly 18x36. If I were to buy again it would be a Supermax.

[Mike Henderson]

I have a Grizzly 18x36. If I were to buy again it would be a Supermax.
Thanks for the recommendation, Cary. I don't know anything about drum sanders, so why would you choose the Supermax?

And, for that matter, to everyone else - which drum sander do you think is the "best" - and why? I'm thinking of one in the 18" to 24" range.

Mike

[Dave Cav]

I had a used Woodmaster. I hated it. I replaced the velcro on the drum and still hated it. Slow, noisy, rippled surface, problems with the paper ripping at the wrong time. I sold it after two years and got a Safety Speed Cut 36 x 60 and couldn't be happier; I run anywhere from 36 to 180 grit. It won't hog off as much as a 30 HP Timesaver, but it works fine to flatten table tops and large glue ups, and with the finer grits and the platten you get an almost finished product although for nicer stuff I usually ROS to 220.

I haven't used a stroke sander since I was in high school in the 60s. I think we only had finer grits on ours because I recall it being very slow. It also took up an enormous amount of room.

[Cary Falk]

Thanks for the recommendation, Cary. I don't know anything about drum sanders, so why would you choose the Supermax?

And, for that matter, to everyone else - which drum sander do you think is the "best" - and why? I'm thinking of one in the 18" to 24" range.

Mike
I think they are built better than the Jet. They have some extra features like the leaver to adjust the drum from perfect flat to slightly elevated when you are sanding something larger than the drum.

[glenn bradley]

Thanks for the recommendation, Cary. I don't know anything about drum sanders, so why would you choose the Supermax?

And, for that matter, to everyone else - which drum sander do you think is the "best" - and why? I'm thinking of one in the 18" to 24" range.

Mike


I think they are built better than the Jet. They have some extra features like the leaver to adjust the drum from perfect flat to slightly elevated when you are sanding something larger than the drum.

I can absolutely state that in looking at a few brands, the Supermax was easily identifiable as more robust and with a nicer fit and finish compared to things like the Jet. I have other Jet tools so this is not a brand thing ;-) There are models that accept drum, brush and flapper heads if that is of interest.

The Supermax benefits from everything learned through the Performax, Jet, Supermax history. The 'Intellisand' feature helps keep consistent results if the material has reversing grain, density inconsistencies or varying widths. Supermax is obviously all about the drum sander format so they are no help if you are looking at a wide belt.

Disclaimer; I am sure there are drum sanders out there that I know nothing about so, I speak from a limited sample. I bought the Supermax because it was the best unit under $2000 that I could find.

[John Kos]

I love my SuperMax 19/38, saves me so much time on end grain cutting boards.

[Elijah Fontenot]

Not too many folks spoke about a Woodmaster drum sander. I upgraded from my Performax 16-32 to a 38" Woodmaster drum sander and I love it. No burn marks, stays cooler than the Performax, heavy duty, and sandpaper is available at the local woodworking store. Take a look into the Woodmasters b/c most folks don't have much to say negative about them.

[Steve Peterson]

I have a Performax 16-32 and I absolutely hate it. Used properly it will get the job done, but it takes far too long - it's underpowered, trips way too often and is just too touchy. Requires way more patience than I have, I'll take my work to a cabinet shop and have them clean them up before I fire this thing up again.

I have a Jet 22/44 and really like it. I believe that it has a 1.75hp vs a 1.5hp motor, so not too much difference there. The belt slows down if you take too big of a bite and an LED indicator light up. I am not sure if the older Performax models have this feature. I have never tripped the 20A breaker or any overload circuit on the unit.

The only feature that I would like would be a locking bar for the open end. Everything is built really stout, but the open end sometimes appears to vibrate a bit on really heavy passes. I have never sanded anything wider than 22".

I picked mine up on CL for $750. I don't know if I would pay full price of around $1700 for one, but it is well worth it for $750.

Steve

[Bernie May]

I have the Jet 22-44 Pro. I love it.
http://www.jettools.com/us/en/p/22-44-pro-3hp-1ph-dro-tables-and-casters/649600
Very stout. Table moves up and down and not the drum. 3 HP.

[Mike Henderson]

I see that Supermax now makes sanders with two drums. Anyone have an opinion on this? Is it worth while? From the description, it sounds like you can have coarse sandpaper on one drum and a finer sandpaper on the other and you can switch between the two drums easily (raise one, lower the other).

Or do you think that most people only use a drum sander for coarse sanding and finish with a ROS? (and therefore, one drum is enough)

Mike

[Chris Padilla]

I have the Jet 22-44 Pro. I love it.
http://www.jettools.com/us/en/p/22-44-pro-3hp-1ph-dro-tables-and-casters/649600
Very stout. Table moves up and down and not the drum. 3 HP.

I took a class from David Marks in his studio in Santa Rosa, CA, and he picked up one these sanders. Very nice but quite large...wish I had the room for one like that.

[Susumu Mori]

Hi Mike,

I recently posted a review of Supermax 25-50 here (http://www.sawmillcreek.org/showthread.php?226346-Supermax-25-50-review&highlight=supermax+25-50). Hope it helps.
I'm also a hobbyist and can't justify a wide-belt sander. I really thought about the closed unit (not a cantilever) especially Woodmaster. In the end, the choice was easy because I found out that the even the smallest Woodmaster wouldn't go through the sliding door of my basement! They would be delivered as a pre-assembled unit. My basement space is not so small but still, the footprint is an important factor. In my workflow, the drum sander is not a frequent player like other heavy weights (bandsaw, joiner, planer, tracksaw, etc). So, I want a drum sander that can be tucked away to a corner.

I was also seriously thinking about Supermax 25x2. I was not very impressed by the cantilever design in the beginning. So initially I was thinking about the closed Supermax model, but somehow, Supermax salesman strongly recommended the 19-38 and 25-50. In my understanding, all the closed Supermax models are actually very old designs. Please let me know if I'm wrong.

[James Baker SD]

The belt slows down if you take too big of a bite and an LED indicator light up. I am not sure if the older Performax models have this feature.

Steve

I am not sure exactly how old my Performax 22/44 is, but it has this feature. Overall it looks very similar to what Jet is selling today.

James

[Gilbert Vega]

Check Craiglist for used Supermax 37-2 drum Sanders. I went from a Delta 18/36 to a Supermax 37-2 that I bought for $800 from a cabinet shop and a PM 075 1900 com dual bag collector for $300. Much much better than the Delta. I sold the Delta to a friend for $250 along with a bunch of sandpaper rolls and extra parts.

[mreza Salav]

I have a supermax 37x2 (with a big Made in USA tag in the front). I've used it a fair bit but I think there are several things with it that need to be redesigned. I guess I should say I'm not very happy with it and once I have the free time I'll most likely swap it with a wide belt sander (which will most likely come from Asia!).

[Mike Henderson]

I have a supermax 37x2 (with a big Made in USA tag in the front). I've used it a fair bit but I think there are several things with it that need to be redesigned. I guess I should say I'm not very happy with it and once I have the free time I'll most likely swap it with a wide belt sander (which will most likely come from Asia!).
Would you expand on your comment, Mreza. Why are you not happy with it and what would you redesign? Or is it the fact that it's a drum sander and not a wide belt sander?

Mike

[mreza Salav]

Mike, I have spent hours adjusting the elevation system, but it isn't smooth always and I have to rotate the handle with two hands. That's a minor issue though.
The bigger issue with the elevation system is there are two small gears that are die cast and are connected to the shaft using set-screws (and only set-screws). They become eventually loose and the gears slip on one side and the whole system goes out of tune. I overtightened one of those set-screws (after being frustrated with it) and it stripped. What I did was to drill it half way into the shaft and tapped it and used a longer bolt instead of a setscrew. Now the screw goes into the shaft and no more problem of gear slipping.
The tracking system involves two machine screws and two nuts that you adjust on the sides. One of the screws got jammed in one of the nuts. Spent a few hours trying everything (from lubes, rotating it different ways, ) but it eventually snapped with a small wrench. Went to a bolt supplier and they gave me better grades of screws/nuts which I replaced. The feed belt is sand paper. Eventually the edges become wavy and when you are sanding thin veneers those edges get caught into the drum which causes it to rip the belt. This last issue might not be unique to this machine (other drum sanders might have this issue).

[David Kumm]

Mreza's issues are fairly common but can be fixed. The gears that operate the table must be adjusted so they don't bind when the table is elevated. Takes some time but once correct, the wheel moves easily and on my two machines stayed in place. The table tracking bolts are too light duty but any hardware store can fix that. The thin belt does seem to get frayed. I found that as soon as a small tear developed, you must cut it off so it doesn't continue to touch and tear. Supermax made some plastic pieces to attach under the table to help with the tracking but i never got those to work well. The thin belt does allow for better veneer sanding though as it allows for a very uniform thickness of the stock. Bottom line is you must adjust the gears to allow for smooth table adjustment before struggling too much or you will cause damage that is hard to fix. Dave

[ed vitanovec]

I had the Delta 18" for years and it worked really well. I now have a Woodtek 25" dual drum sander and it has been a work horse, a real time saver. Projects still need a final finish sanding by hand but that is all.
These machines need to be used as a sander and not a planer, taking small passes. Also dust collection is a must on these machines.