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Thread: Edge or drum sander

  1. #1

    Edge or drum sander

    I have been trying to figure out which sander would be most useful. I do general case type furniture and some cabinets. Try to do more solid wood than plywood. Don’t do any veneers. A drum sander could do panels and maybe some face frame faces. An edge sander can do edges of doors and face frames. Co7ld also presand some parts before assembly and some draw boxes. I have a rigid spindle and really like the belt feature but it’s really short. I also have a 20” planer so most panel glue ups get planed If you have both which gets used more if you only have one which?
    thanks
    gary

  2. #2
    Join Date
    Sep 2010
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    New England
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    I have both- the edge sander (Jet) is much more useful. It excels at sanding panel door edges, especially the top and bottom because of the end grain. I bought it specifically for that and was pleasantly surprised to find how often I use it for so many other things.

  3. #3
    Join Date
    Dec 2005
    Location
    West Lafayette, IN
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    6,529
    I had a cheap cantilevered drum sander, sold it, and am looking for an edge sander.

  4. #4
    If you are in business both are money makers and will be used on every job.

    An edge sander is compact, affordable and low power. Oscillating is better, non-oscillating is better than none. Longer is better, and a swing-away dust hood is nice for work longer than the platen.

    A drum sander is a poor substitute for a wide belt. For accuracy you want a closed frame machine, for efficiency at the least 10 hp- 20 hp per head is normal for commercial shops, and a platen is desirable. If your budget and power are limited (and whose aren't) you may be able to sub out panel sanding to another shop until you can afford your own.

  5. #5
    Join Date
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    Apples and Oranges but, if I could only have one it would be an oscillating edge sander. I have both.
    "A hen is only an egg's way of making another egg".


    – Samuel Butler

  6. #6
    Join Date
    Oct 2005
    Location
    Camas, Wa
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    WOW! I am surprised about the responses. I have a SuperMax 25/50 drum sander and a Jet 6x89 oscillating edge sander and the used the drum sander 100x more than the edge sander.

  7. #7
    Join Date
    May 2014
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    Alberta
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    I have an edge sander and drum sander. I use the edge sander far more than the drum sander. I purchased this machine used from a friend and was not sure how much I would use it,once I began to use it wondered how I ever lived without it.

  8. #8
    Join Date
    May 2008
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    MA
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    I had various drum/belt sanders for years before I then also got an edge sander.

    For me, the drum sander was critical when working with figured wood (or the occasional reverse grain or knot that would tear out). I put everything through it. For rails/stiles/picture frame type pieces I even stacked them all next to each other, on edge, and run them all through as a batch. Then I am starting with presanded, perfectly sized to each other.

    The edge sander I do use and the use is growing. End grain was mentioned, and the variety of shapes/surfaces that it can handle. One thing that is different is that it doesnt 'size' a piece (just the opposite), and if not careful you can roll off edges or corners that you didnt want to. Simply a matter of operator skill, I am glad I added it and was picked up used for $300 so didnt break the bank. In general the edge sanders may be cheaper than the drum sanders (but sanders may take more space)

    If I could have only one, I still have to have a drum sander (although I had great luck with a small/13" widebelt).

  9. #9
    Join Date
    Mar 2003
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    SE PA - Central Bucks County
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    Quote Originally Posted by Cary Falk View Post
    WOW! I am surprised about the responses. I have a SuperMax 25/50 drum sander and a Jet 6x89 oscillating edge sander and the used the drum sander 100x more than the edge sander.
    That's not surprising to me..."what" people do is going to affect which tools get used more. It's likely that the kind of work you enjoy is more prone to benefit from the drum sander than from the edge sander. I had a drum sander years ago and it sat...largely unused...just because of the nature of the things I was building. I sold it. Of course, now I'm doing some things that could greatly benefit from a drum sander because they are thin and cannot be reliably put through my planer for final surfacing because they tend to shatter. If I were building a lot of cabinets, I'd be all over an edge sander, too.
    --

    The most expensive tool is the one you buy "cheaply" and often...

  10. #10
    Join Date
    Oct 2018
    Location
    New Boston, Michigan
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    My edge sander is critical to maintaining professional products coming out of my shop. I use a stroke sander to flatten panels and doors. My stroke sander is from a kit but I think one would be fairly easy to build if you have a lathe for the wooden drums. Anyway, an edge sander is a great addition to any shop. I generally edge sand parts before glue-up.
    Best of luck
    Ask a woodworker to "make your bed" and he/she makes a bed.

  11. #11
    Join Date
    Oct 2007
    Location
    Cache Valley, Utah
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    1,722
    Edge sander. I use it every day. I had a drum sander, hated it, got a wide belt. I use it on every project but not as often as the edger.

  12. #12
    Join Date
    Jul 2013
    Location
    Flower mound, Tx
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    514
    Like most guys said already, we choose the tools based on what we hope they will help us accomplish. My edge sander is hands down the most versatile machine in my shop. I do a ton of “round” work and for me there is no better fabricator for round work than an edge sander. For flat work, my edge sander touches everything I make. Having owned a drum sander before, I would recommend going with an edge sander and skip the drum sander forever. When you can, get a wide belt.

  13. #13
    Join Date
    May 2008
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    Quote Originally Posted by Gordon Stump View Post
    I generally edge sand parts before glue-up.
    I am going to have to rethink application of the edge sander, I must be under utilizing it. Such as edge sanding... would have never thought I could get them straight/square as what I get on the jointer. But if so, it could save me some swap out on the combo machine...

  14. #14
    Quote Originally Posted by Carl Beckett View Post
    I am going to have to rethink application of the edge sander, I must be under utilizing it. Such as edge sanding... would have never thought I could get them straight/square as what I get on the jointer. But if so, it could save me some swap out on the combo machine...
    I don't think you can, even up to the theoretical limit (think about the floating of the belt, knives don't float.) But in some workflows it could be a convenience.

  15. #15
    I have both an edge sander and tiny open end widebelt sander, and would hate to do without either. Use the edge sander on most every panel, top, frame, door, and drawer front, and use the round end to sand the feet for my chests, end tables, and such, but use the wide belt on every flat surface, as the sander does not tear out no matter what grain, and all the panels need is a little touch up with the ROS. Now that I have both these sanders, they are both essential. The widebelt flattens as it sands, and the edge sander cleans up ends of panels, so saves lots of time using a ROS, and I do not enjoy hand sanding.

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