Older Craftsman belt sander worth repairing?

[Don Morris]

A 10yr+ cast iron base 4X36" craftsman beltsander I've had some occassional use for all of a sudden sent out enough smoke to choke me out of my shop. And it smelled electrical...motor burn...For a second I had to think where I kept my First Alert Fire Extinguisher. I've done some looking at newer belt sanders but normally good names like Delta have gone to plastic gears and several other brands have "plasticized" their versions as well. And the user reviews are alarming. I'm hesitant to take it in and have it repaired as that cost will probably equal the cost of a new one; but the newer ones ($100.00+) make me nervous. Comments?

[Steve Flavin001]

You speak of repairing a Craftsman sander - e.g., the machine itself - and then you discuss the motor.

If the motor is (you don't say) an external belt driven motor mounted under it, then the price of a motor purchase is easy for you to check - it probably is in good shape by itself since you say rarely used. And, you did say it was Craftsman, not their cheap Companion line.

If the motor is internal, then undoubtably NO it isn't worth it.