Paper For Supermax Drum Sander

[Ken Krawford]

It's time to re-stock paper for my sander. I was looking at various sites and came across something puzzling on Klingspor's site. It seems they have a Good-Better-Best offerings. The cheapest one - Klingspor Abrasives Shop Roll, 3"x 50Yds, 80 Grit, J-Flex Cloth Backed Aluminum Oxide has a disclaimer that it is not recommended for drum sanders. Their next offering - Klingspor Abrasives 3" x 50MT 80 Grit Premium Aluminum Oxide Drum Sander Rolls is $24 more for the same 50 yd roll and the only difference seems to be the backing.

When I replace paper on my sander it's always because the grit on the paper is worn away and/or clogged up after a couple of cleanings with SimpleGreen. The backing has never been an issue.
Am I missing something here? What do you use?

[Curt Harms]

I've used these guys - https://www.industrialabrasives.com/industrial-abrasives-sanding-belts-c-73.html?zenid=scdghq35gttl90rlrnv3m3od36

I've read good reports on these guys, never used them: https://www.supergrit.com/

I use a one of these to clean sand paper. Open the lid, turn the sander on, hold the eraser against the paper, done https://www.supergrit.com/beltcleanspec.html

[Zachary Hoyt]

I got mine from Supergrit, it was pretty cheap at the time and has performed pretty well for me. I bought my roll of 80 grit in 2018 and have still not finished it, I am not making cutting boards or cabinet doors so mine doesn't get used hard, though it gets used often. As of now their 80 grit 3" x 50 yard roll is $60.

[Stewart Lang]

1. Buy from supergrit.com

2. Buy the Abranet mesh and put hook and loop on your drum sander. You can run 220 on hard passes and it won't clog up. Stuff is amazing.

[glenn bradley]

The backing has never been an issue. Am I missing something here? What do you use?

The backing is the structural component of the product and influences how the product can be used, how well it performs for a given task, etc. Obviously the abrasive, glue, resins and coatings contribute to the whole.

I have used Klingspor and Industrial Abrasives, both with good result and long life. I'm stating the obvious but, good dust collection is very influential to performance on drum sanders. I tend to buy several sets of various grits since shipping is not Amazon-ish from these suppliers. I'm guessing the next time I go to purchase I will have the sticker shock I felt when I went to buy building materials at the BORG a few months back!!! Good luck on trying other suppliers and please come back and tell us how they work.

P.s. I almost forgot to throw in one of my "sayings" . . . Cheap Abrasives are a False Economy. By this I mean that bargain abrasives often actually cost more due to unpredictable results, poor performance and poor life.

[George Yetka]

P.s. I almost forgot to throw in one of my "sayings" . . . Cheap Abrasives are a False Economy. By this I mean that bargain abrasives often actually cost more due to unpredictable results, poor performance and poor life.

My cousin is a GC and asked if I had sanding disc recommendations as he spent a day and 100 discs and couldnt finish one side of a house. I recommended abranet with a vaccuum and he used less than 50 on the rest of the house and did it faster