Do you use your spindle sander?

[Jeff Monson]

Looking for some advice on a spindle sander,

1st off I use sanding drums on my drill press right now, not too impressed but it gets the job done.

So those of you who have a spindle sander do you find other uses besides sanding curves?

I'd like some recemmondations also, was looking at the grizzley 529 spindle and disc sander combo, just not sure if I could justify the machine unless there are alot more uses than I know of.

[Paul Johnstone]

I have the delta BOSS. It gets used occasionally.

It can be used to sand a bevel on boards, altough since the table doesn't tilt, it's not the easiest thing.

Also, it is useful when making toys and other things that are cut with the bandsaw. It does a good job sanding off the bandsaw cut marks. Obviously, it's not the best tool for sanding a straight edge, but it can do a passable job on small toys, crafts, etc.

If it were me, I'd wait until I had a project that really justified buying one.
Do you use the spindles on your drill press a lot? If so, it would be worth getting one, as it's a lot better than that. If you only use your drill press splindles maybe once or twice a year, then it wouldn't be worthwhile.

Hope that helps.

[Jim Becker]

I do use my OSS (a Delta BOSS), generally for sanding curves, although I have also jigged up for edge sanding a circular table top as well as a quick fence for dressing the edge of a straight piece of stock.

I also have a combination disc/belt sander...and wish it was an edge sander since I have yet to use the disk outside of one time when moving the machine to get to the belt for a quick job was inconvenient. But that's largely a function of the kind of work I do...many folks find the disk more convenient.

[Keith Outten]

Jeff,

There are are only two stationary sanders that I feel are must haves in my workshop, the spindle sander and the edge sander. Both are used on most projects and reduce the sanding chore to less of a burden. I did own a disk sander many years ago, I will never miss it as it wasn't worth the shop space it occupied.

You can't compare a spindle sander with a drill press and sanding drum. There is a significant difference between the two in performace. A spindle sander with a very small diameter spindle is very useful for detail work, I keep mine in the center of my shop simply because it is used often....adjacent to my edge sander :)

.

[John W. Willis]

I think rigid makes one that converts from spindle to belt?

[Dan Forman]

If you do much curved bandsaw or jigsaw work, it will come in very handy, otherwise not much call for it.

Dan

[Bruce Page]

Dito what Dan said. When it comes to curved work, I wouldn't want to be without it.

[Noah Katz]

Make the decision easy - get the Ridgid combo oscillating spindle/belt sander.

$200 and highly reviewed.

[Jeff Wright]

I got the inexpensive Rigid spindle sander that was well reviewed. Great for sanding curves. The smallish belt attachment is not much help; don't use it. I also refrain from using a drum sander on my drill press for fear the sideward pressure could cause unnatural wear on the spindle alignment over time. I have seen some gadgets that go in the chuck on one end and the other end is somehow secured to the press table. That gizmo may eliminate the side pressure issue. Like Jim, I'd like a 36 or 48 inch edge sander, but my once large 2-car garage workshop is getting smaller by the day.

[Howie French]

ditto Bruce and Dan, I have the jet oss, really nice machine


Howie

[Jason Beam]

Top uses for my OSS:

1. Sanding toy cars and trucks cut from the BS. There is NO faster tool for this job.

2. Sanding sweeping curves in many of my furniture pieces. It'd be nice to have a 12" diameter drum, sometimes.

3. My favorite: set up an L-shaped "fence" and use it as a drum sander, sideways. I used it to smooth out some very small maple strips that I laminated to the top of my tissue box cover.



It isn't a daily-use tool, but when you need one, not much else will do the job. I used the ones in the drill press for awhile, but they clog too easy since they don't oscilate. I considered rigging up a wiper motor to my drill press to solve that, but then someone sold me their old craftsman OSS for $35 bucks and I couldn't pass that up :)

[Tom Cowie]

A spindle sander is one tool that you will extremely appreciate or hardly use.

For me I can spend a lot of time using mine. To me it makes sanding the edges a lot more enjoyable.

With the right set up and using the 4" drum I've jointed small boards instead of using my jointer.

I had one bad experience with a Microplane 2" drum on a drill press (more my fault than the drum's) since then I've never regretted buying a spindle sander.

Mine is a floor model Jet that gets used regularly.

Tom :)

[Art Mann]

I have the Ridgid belt/spindle sander. I use it all the time for cleaning up curves done on the bandsaw. The 4 X 24 belt is useful, but I would eventually like to get a big edge sander. For $200, it is money well spent IMHO.

[Doug Shepard]

I did the DP mounted drum route many years ago before getting the Delta BOSS. The OSS is a huge improvement. Dust collection for one is a lot easier with the OSS than trying to rig up a hood at the DP. Plus the up/down movement will make the sanding sleeves last a lot longer and you'll avoid the glazing that the DP mounted drums can sometimes cause. One other use that an OSS can do is as a thickness sander both for flat and curved stuff if it's narrower than the drum height. Clamp a rounded end fence to the OSS table and run the pieces between the fence and drum, and you can get pretty decent results sanding wood to a certain thickness. I've got a 12" Disc/6x48" Belt combo too, but the OSS comes in very handy too for certain types of work.

[Eric Wong]

I have the Jet benchtop spindle sander, and it gets used for almost every project. I can't think of the last thing I built that didn't have some kind of curve somewhere...

But if you are just doing cabinets or something like that, you might not use it much.

[Mark Singer]

I have the Jet and use it often....profile work and shaping...templates

[Al Willits]

I think for occasional or hobby use its hard to beat the $200 Ridgid unit.
Both the belt sander and spindle set up works well for me and if you remember the size of this thing it does a pretty nice job.
Those who make their living at woodworking will probably find its a bit lacking...and will buy the more expensive equipt.

Al.....its all about the money. :)