Best value for a small footprint wide belt sander?

[Erik Loza]

I've been researching this only to find out that the rabbit hole goes deep. You can't just buy a wide belt sander without really learning all about how it works so you can make the right configuration choices. I'm not sure how one really gets that knowledge as from what I've read, many commercial customers with wide belts may not even be buying, using, or configuring the machines properly...

YUP!

WB's are probably the most application-specific machine in our industry. On the surface, they are pretty basic machine in terms of what they do. In fact, you don't really even need a technician to set one up correctly. However, there is a whole range of potential applications that will dictate how the machine is configured. Believe this or not, I actually had to complete both an in-person and advanced online training program in order to be able to sell them. There are literally dozens of possible configuration within the same frame, depending on what the customer is wanting to accomplish. That's why it's a bit of a minefield to shop for one. That being said, a "basic" 37-inch single-head unit with some type of pneumatic pressure control on the platen is really enough for most shop needs. Most every shop I visit just uses theirs for calibration sanding finished faceframes and that sort of thing. Unless someone is planning to do lacquer sanding, MDF, or aggressive stock removal, simpler is better.

Erik

[Randy Heinemann]

To me, it depends on the frequency of use and for what the sander will be used. I bought a 16-32 Supermax because my need for anything wider is almost never and my use of the sander period is infrequent. The times I've used it and the testing I did of boards wider than 16" give great results. With heavy use, though, a heavier duty machine might be a better buy.