Small sanders

[Brian Holcombe]

I need a small sander for detail work (chair making) curious to see what's out there. I haven't found much smaller than 5-6" diameter.

Furthermore I have an 150/3 from Festool that I really like but the tool just kills my hands. Whatever level of vibration makes my hands ache terribly within an hour or so of sanding. It's been dragging along a bit of work that should not be taking so long.

Curious to your suggestions.

[Jim Becker]

Weird that you have vibration issue with the 150/3...I bought mine specifically to get rid of vibration from the old PC sanders I used previous to the Festool! I no longer get numb when sanding, even after a very long time.

That said, the RO90 is smaller and has ROS mode as well as the much more aggressive rotary mode just like the larger versions. There are also non-ROS detail type sanders available from multiple names including Festool. I had one, but for the work I was doing at the time, it just never got used so I sold it. I can see that type of sander being quite useful for the chair making process, especially with the "pointy" tip that can get into tight spots with less chance of damage that can come if the edge of a rotating abrasive disk hits something adjacent to the area being sanded.

[Bryan Lisowski]

I would say the Ro90, but if the 150/3 bothers you probably not an option. Maybe an air sander similar to use in automotive applications. I also think this would get you smaller sizes.

[Jamie Buxton]

Mirka offers a 3” electric ROS. They also have a 3” pneumatic sander, so don’t get confused. Metabo sells a 3” ROS.

[Michael A. Tyree]

I have your answer! I also build chairs plus other wood stuff. For the record I have also done much auto body work (as a sideline but at a high level) and own several DA sanders and a bunch of various styles of wood sanders. My hands are falt worn out but like the energizer bunny I keep on making sawdust. Sanders are often brutal to ones hands, mine dislike any tool with vibration as CTS release surgery only buys you time, so to speak and mny surgery was 20 yrs ago.
I recently bought a 2" & 3" orbital sander on Amazon. They are cheaper there than ebay BTW. They come with both size velcro holders too. When I ordered I bought a pack of soft back for rounding/rounded edges too. They are Chinese but have high reviews from experienced users as myself. Makes sense to have a small abrasive disc and a very small, smooth sander that fits in the palm of you hand on pieces like rockers and chair arms, etc.!
I'll share a tip on a deal for the discs- I have had exceptional service from the Korean brand abrasives brand- "Sungold" and it just so happens that Amazon has a seriously good deal o these small discs in that brand, 100 grit only is dirt cheap and I bought 3 boxes myself.
Look @ 2" orbital sanders and the cheap all black ones sold by many sellers. Also compare to the Onyx 320, Astro orbital sander that's more pricey but I was attracted to as well.
The one I bought has already had a good workout! It is very smooth! I do suggest placing some blue loctite on the set screw that holds the sanding disc in place. I am running gold discs on mine and wish I had owned it long ago. Yet another great aspect of these smaller orbital sanders aside from practicality of size is the less expensive discs plus they use very little air volume compared to a full sized sander.

[Brian Holcombe]

I’ve been looking at the RO90, but hesitant. The Mirka 3” looks nice.

Michael, I want to avoid pneumatics as my AC really isn’t built for that kind of volume, it’s only for operating control systems. I use a Dynabrade finger sander for light work and I must pace myself. Not buying a bigger AC as I like mine a lot and don’t have room for two.

[Patrick Walsh]

Brian I have the same problem.

I touch a sander for 5 minutes and my hands are sore burning and going numb almost instantly. Affects my elbows also after maybe 15 minutes.

I use air Sanders daily. Don’t do it they are worse than Festool.

I don’t know the answer other than not sand. Oddly enough I can hand sand for quite a while before I have similar issues.

My favorite sander from a sanders perspective is the iron shaped Festool. I also have the new brushes 150/3 and it’s better than a air sander but still wreaks havok on my hands. Sadly I think the answer is not to sand.

The RO90 is brutal FYI!

[Brian Holcombe]

Thanks, Patrick. I do very little sanding but it seems impossible to avoid for sculpted chairs. I suppose there is no magic bullet.

[Doug Garson]

Have you considered the sanding attachments for an oscillating multi tool? I use my Rockwell Sonicrafter for detail sanding. The smallest pad doesn't work very well as it heats up and the velcro fails but the larger pad works well.

[John K Jordan]

I need a small sander for detail work (chair making) curious to see what's out there. I haven't found much smaller than 5-6" diameter.

Furthermore I have an 150/3 from Festool that I really like but the tool just kills my hands. Whatever level of vibration makes my hands ache terribly within an hour or so of sanding. It's been dragging along a bit of work that should not be taking so long.

Curious to your suggestions.

Are you looking for electric sanders or can you consider pneumatic?

I use two kinds of small pneumatic - I like them because they are very light weight and transfer no vibration to my hands. One is a Grex that came with a 2" disk and I bought a 1" disk and extensions for it. (I like this so much I have two) The other is a 3" palm sander from Woodturners Wonders.

grex_ROS.jpg sanding_IMG_20171212_094330_319.jpg

JKJ

[Bob Hinden]

Two suggestions:

Try turning down the speed and vacuum force. That might reduce the vibration.

You might also try to Festool ETS 125, it has a 2mm stroke and have very little vibration.

Bob

[Tom M King]

3M makes some nice ones, and other clones, or companies that seem to have the same thing, like Surf Prep.

[Greg Parrish]

I had similar prob with a regular RO making my hands burn and numb. I got the 125 EC festool and it’s been wonderful. Can sand for hours with no issues in hands now.

[Brian Holcombe]

Thanks gents!

[Tom Bain]

I know that gloves are generally taboo in the shop, but might be worth a try (if you haven’t already) before forking out for a new sander.