Help me pick a new drum sander

[Rick Peek]

So I’m finally going to pull the trigger on a new drum sander. I leaning towards a
Supermax but would consider a Jet. Question is size. So first off I have pretty much
decided on an open ended unit because I will be using it for smaller table tops so
it needs some capacity but I don’t need it for large table tops. Secondly I have
some space but a large wide belt is out of the question. Third is I can’t spend
Much over 2k.I have always been a bigger is better guy,but when I bought my
Festool track saw I went for the 75 over the 55 and find it
a little large and clunky.Last question,is the oscillating feature worth the extra money
on the jet 22-44. On the Supermax trying to pick between the 19-38 or the 25-50.

[Mike Henderson]

Go with the 25/50 and be done with it.

Mike.

[Cary Falk]

I like my 25-50

[Rick Peek]

Thanks guys,thought I’d have few more opinions, but your input is appreciated.

[Dave Zellers]

Thanks guys,thought I’d have few more opinions, but your input is appreciated.

Yeah me too. I bought the Super Max 19-38 a few months ago and could not possibly be happier. The only problem I'm having is it is clogging the filter on my dust collector. My two choices are put a separator in front of the filter or buy a cheap blower (Harbor Freight) and just duct it directly outside. Kind of leaning that way.

Without any real evidence whatsoever, I'm getting the feeling that Super Max is getting the lion's share of the drum sander dollars these days. It seems like if Jet's oscillating DS was a big improvement, we would be hearing about it. Maybe it's advantage is that it can take a bigger bite without burning. You learn real quickly that drum sanders are designed for finishing, not heavy removal. That's not to say you can't put on a 60 grit wrap and have at it, but primarily it shines with fine grits on wood that has difficult to plane grain.

It's hard for me to imagine you not being happy with a Super Max.

Full disclosure- I get thousands of dollars every time I type 'Super Max'.

NOT!

[Earl Rumans]

I have the Jet 22-44 OSC and I love mine. I think the oscillation feature is great. with 120 in the machine I hardly have to do any hand sanding anymore, everything comes out finish ready. I would definitely buy it again.

[Brian Nguyen]

I'm a happy owner of a Supermax 19-38

[Van Huskey]

My first suggestion is to look for a used Woodmaster, but if you live in a used machine desert or simply want new I would get the 25-50.

[Ken Krawford]

I just used my Supermax 25-50 yesterday and love it. It's a beast. If you're not in a hurry, they go on sale for 10% off occasionally.

[Zachary Hoyt]

I have a 19-38 and am very pleased with it. I didn't need any more capacity than that. I had a well used Woodmaster 718 planer/sander/gang rip saw machine a few years ago. I was very happy when I sold it to someone and didn't have to see it anymore.
Zach

[Ken Krawford]

https://thisiswoodworking.com has 10% off Supermax til July 8th

[Corey Pelton]

I just bought a Supermax 19-38 from Acme, only because the 15% sale actually works for the machine, so I pulled the trigger. Was hoping to find something used, but couldn’t pass up the deal.

[Nick Decker]

Lucky man. The things I'm usually looking to buy are always on the "excluded" list.

[Bill McNiel]

I did a ton of research before buying a SuperMax 25-50. I believe that the guys who originally designed/developed the Performex, now Jet?, left with the rights to manufacture the SuperMax because of quality/corner cutting (strong possibility I am confused once again). I planned on getting the 19/38 but found a barely used 25/50 for $500 on CL (I had been looking for well over a year) and couldn't resist it. Super happy with it.

The table extensions are a real asset IMHO but the base and wheels pretty much suck. Minimal storage to say the least, build your own base.

[ray grundhoefer]

I second Van Huskey's comment about a used woodmaster . I found a used 3875 a couple of years ago and it works very well.