Thinking about Supermax 16-32

Looking to get the supermax 16-32, I plan on getting a wide belt but will be a few years out on that. Not really trying to compare between the two just trying to figure out if the 16-32 is worth it, figure I could get at least 50% back on resale.

I just can’t seem to convince myself it’s worth it, would not be looking to thickness or finish sand, thinking 80-100 to clean up planer marks and for thin strips/ veneers. also not production just a few commissions a year and other personal stuff

Concerned about - burning, belt tracking constant fiddling To get the thing to work well (after the initial setup)

How well does it actually do wider than 16” total not convinced on that

Any input would be appreciated

I have been impressed with its ability to sand wider boards without leaving a ridge. But there is a special procedure that must be done for that to happen. My only disappointment is that the belts are not easy to tighten as much as they need to be. A screw tightening method would be much easier on arthritic fingers. And the foldable tables are a very worthwhile accessory. Just plan on sanding slowly and you will not have problems.

I recently bought a (lightly) used Supermax 19-38 drum sander...ostensibly for surfacing thin materials. I have intention of attempting any kind of "finishing" sanding with this machine. It seems to work well for my purposes. I doubt I'll ever use the "wider" than the machine sanding capability, but that process seems pretty approachable with a small lever adjustment to insure there's no mark in the middle based on the manual.

Burning can be an issue if you try and take "too much" in one pass. The best practice for these machines is to be patient and take very light passes until you get to where you want to be.

My 16-32 has stayed adjusted for well over a year since my initial set-up. Tracking is not an issue and so long you keep your passes light and run good dust collection, burning isn't an issue. If you have questions, feel free ti PM me.

So sounds like “light passes” slow is the theme here, what is a light pass? 1/64”? Will it be slower than using an ROS?

I have a Supermax 16-32 and love it. I've not had any need to adjust it since the initial set up about 18 months ago. Burning has never been an issue for me. The auto-feed speed adjust feature helps prevent that, I believe. I generally feed 1/64" (one-quarter turn) per pass and that seems to work well. I cannot imagine how this would be anything but considerably faster and more even than a random orbital sander. I've not used the two-pass, wider than 16" feature, though. I've just not had a need to do so. The only feature of the sander that's not been useful to me is the digital display. I rarely use it as I'm measuring for thickness when I'm trying to get to a specific dimension. Your mileage may very with that.

I have the 16-32 and have not touched tracking or any other adjustment since taking it out of the box. I do hobby and craft work so no heavy production. As said above light passes produce successful results.

My 19-38 has impressed me to no end. Understanding its limitations is essential, but seeing its capabilities has been eye opening. Mine holds settings to a couple of thou from side to side when sanding veneers.

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Originally Posted by Mark e Kessler

So sounds like “light passes” slow is the theme here, what is a light pass? 1/64”? Will it be slower than using an ROS?

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They are not comparable tools other than both being sanders. A drum sander provides a surface that's flat and uniform. You will still be using your ROS to do your finish sanding....even if, for some reason, you decided to do a lot of work and change grits on the drum sander to sand up to higher/finer abrasives. Many folks who own these machines stick to using just 80 or 100 grit abrasives to level and fine tune thickness since they are not "finishing" tools. I only have 100 grit abrasives for mine.

Your passes may be "as much" as 1/64" or less than that...it depends upon what you are sanding.

I have had a 19-38 since spring 2018. The only time it will burn is when the sandpaper gets damaged or badly worn out. The 'intellisand' box is supposed to slow down the feed to prevent burning from feeding too fast and it does a good job. I mostly only use 80 grit in mine, I bought a big roll and cut a new piece when needed. I have never had to adjust the belt since I got the machine. As Jim Becker says I use mine for flattening and do the final sanding with a ROS. One of the things I sand very often is rings of 18 blocks of hardwood, each block about 2" long and 1-1/8" wide. I do a half turn per pass when I'm leveling these, the feed will slow down at the ends and speed up in the middle. It's very efficient for that job.