SuperMax 19/38............am I the only one?

[Jim Fox]

Who has this unit (bought mine in 2019)? I always struggle changing the paper, specifically the right side. The final clamp.............I usually have a hard time getting it to cinch down or not at all. Tonight I thought I had it and then turned it on and slap slap slap slap slap. The right end came out. Anyone else struggle with this or am I just the village id10t?

[Zachary Hoyt]

I bought mine in 2018, it has been good for me. It's possible to get the end of the sandpaper in between the two halves of the spring loaded clamp arm instead of into the clamp, I have done this but now I know how not to. Maybe I'm just lucky, but I can put a roll of sandpaper in mine in under a minute once it's cut to size. I only use 80 grit most of the time, for leveling rather than final smoothing. I usually have to tighten up a new piece of sandpaper after sanding for a few minutes. It only takes a few seconds to do this once the drum has stopped turning.

[roger wiegand]

Yes, it's a horrendous design. It helps to start at that end, as you can see what you are doing and (sort of) get a finger in on the left side when you're trying to finally pull it tight. Trying to make the final connection on the right side is essentially impossible for me. I almost never get the paper fully tight on the right even so, often ending up with a small overlap in the spiral on that side, and never with the paper completely square to the drum. But for installing the paper this could be one of my favorite machines. I use it on pretty much every project for fine thicknessing and it is continually frustrating-- i put off paper changes far o long to avoid dealing with it. I'd pay a fair amount for an improved aftermarket solution.

I've heard of people putting velcro on these drums, does that work?

[Gabriel Marusic]

I bought mine in 2018, it has been good for me. It's possible to get the end of the sandpaper in between the two halves of the spring loaded clamp arm instead of into the clamp, I have done this but now I know how not to. Maybe I'm just lucky, but I can put a roll of sandpaper in mine in under a minute once it's cut to size. I only use 80 grit most of the time, for leveling rather than final smoothing. I usually have to tighten up a new piece of sandpaper after sanding for a few minutes. It only takes a few seconds to do this once the drum has stopped turning.

Same experience regarding the spring loaded part of the clamp arm. Now that I'm completely cognizant of it I can change paper very quickly.

[Joe Hendershott]

Always frustrating. Just when I think I have the routine down- no, it will not want to slide in and clamp down. Hate it, love it. Would never buy again. You get what you pay for.

[Zachary Hoyt]

I love mine and if it ever dies I'll buy another one, if they're still available. It has saved me an enormous amount of time and labor and increased the precision of my work.

[Jim Becker]

Yes, the right side clamp on mine can be exasperating. Fortunately, I don't change the abrasive very frequently. The Performax 22-44 I owned years ago was the same way...it's not unique to the Supermax. It takes a bit of careful attention to be sure that that right end is actually secured below the spring loaded retainer and it's hard to actually see that.

[Doug Dawson]

Is the mechanism on the 25/50 the same as the 19/38?

[Mike Henderson]

Is the mechanism on the 25/50 the same as the 19/38?

Yes, I have the 25/50 and it's the same as the 16/32 I had before it. I don't find it that difficult to put new paper in. After I use the sander one time, I go back and tighten the paper - it seems to get loose for some reason.

But I don't have any problem attaching the end on the spring clamp. If your end (of the paper) is too wide, it won't work well. I take a pair of tin snips and trim the paper if I need to.

Mike

[I cut my strips from a roll, using the old strip as a guide.]

[Doug Dawson]

Yes, I have the 25/50 and it's the same as the 16/32 I had before it. I don't find it that difficult to put new paper in. After I use the sander one time, I go back and tighten the paper - it seems to get loose for some reason.

But I don't have any problem attaching the end on the spring clamp. If your end (of the paper) is too wide, it won't work well. I take a pair of tin snips and trim the paper if I need to.

The reason I ask is because I use the SuperMax-branded paper on the 25/50, and this hasn’t been an issue at all. The OP mentioned cutting the paper to fit. I wondered if this might be an issue with aftermarket papers being “stretchy” or otherwise unexpectedly non-uniform, in some sense.

[Mike Henderson]

The reason I ask is because I use the SuperMax-branded paper on the 25/50, and this hasn’t been an issue at all. The OP mentioned cutting the paper to fit. I wondered if this might be an issue with aftermarket papers being “stretchy” or otherwise unexpectedly non-uniform, in some sense.

I don't think the material is stretchy but I probably don't wrap it tight enough. Then, when I use it the paper is pulled taunt which gives a bit of slack at the end where the spring clip is.

Mike

[Zachary Hoyt]

I think the looseness after the first use is like when you put new strings on a guitar, they're not stretchy but they do stretch slightly under load when they're first getting used to being under tension. I cut my own strips, using a factory strip as a template. I have a pair of huge and very old all-metal scissors that I keep in the shop to cut sandpaper and anything else tough.

[Robert Hayward]

I struggled terribly changing paper with my 16-32 when I first got it. The right side clamp was impossible, or so I thought. I cut a three or four inch piece of the right end of a dead roll. Put a bright light over the right end of the drum so I could clearly see what was going on. Practiced installing and removing several times, until muscle memory kicked in. Now I do not mind changing grits or when a roll is used up. Only takes a minute or two.

[Jim Fox]

I finally got it. Yes that right side is a pain. Like many others I don't change the paper very often. So you have to learn the little nuances every time!

[glenn bradley]

Although better than many of those that came before, it seems this could have been a little better thought out. A better throat design to guide the end of the abrasive into the jaws maybe. At any rate, I make sure that the outside end has room to be made tighter, load the paper, tighten from the outside edge, and then additionally tighten at the inner clamp. Seems to work for me but, as the paper gets soft (from grit changes) it becomes more awkward to get the inside clamp threaded correctly.