Favorite sander?

[patmat2350]

I do A LOT of hand sanding... better control, though it's tons of work.
Sometimes I'll whip out my Makita palm sander, but while it tears through jobs, it creates clouds of dust in a hurry, and is just one step short of a belt sander in terms of being able to rip a model apart.

I've wondered about "mice", but instead took another step down in aggressiveness and picked up a Ryobi detail sander. It's working out nicely on my current job...

http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/2192AMRQNSL._SL500_AA204_.jpg

Pros: Light weight and small motion make it better for the more fragile jobs; it can get into tight corners; easy to "spot sand" with the little corners.
Cons: Hard to hold the sanding surface flat and flush to the work surface (but since it works so slowly, you're not so likely to dig one edge in); If you hold it close to the sanding head for better control, you cover the motor vents; takes special-cut adhesive-backed sanding sheets, $$.

Anyone else got a favorite?

[RC-Archer]

My Ryobi cordless sander. Not having a cord makes it priceless.

[420TEE]

A while ago I bought the MicroMark small orbital sander that plugs into their universal power transformer. When it arrived the sanding plate was off and there were four 1/2" pieces of silicone tubing loose in the box. Also there was no literature or directions in the box. They are the vibration mounts for the sanding plate. They slip onto little studs on the plate and motor. I put them back on and turned it on. The plate immediately fell off. I called and was told some had been shipped with the wrong tubing and they would send me the correct pieces. When I put them on it works OK as long as you keep the plate perfectly flat on the surface. Don't try to use just the end of the paper. Also you have to turn it off and let it stop before lifting off the surface. Anything other than full flat conact and the plate falls off. Not good. :mad:

[Umi_Ryuzuki]

I ususally cut a block of wood, and spray mount sand paper to it. :p

[SilentHunter]

I ususally cut a block of wood, and spray mount sand paper to it. :p

You know it ;)

[patmat2350]

Yep, me too usually... but I gotta tell you, taking down 5 square feet of bumpy resin was a lot easier with power! I'll save the hand work for wet sanding the primer...

[seaphoto]

Most of my sanding is done with sandpaper glued to blocks of acrylic - works better for wet sanding. I also make special shapes out of Evergreen styrene strips, just the ticket for hard to reach places, as you can glue on handles if needed and sand with a pair of tweezers into the corners of bridge wings, for example.

To get nice, crisp inside corners, I use woodworking scrapers (sometimes called cabinet scrapers). These are thin pieces of steel that can be used to scrape away the buildup of paint if you do a lot of priming and filling. They can be ground with a dremel tool and bench grinder easily; I put a 10 degree angle on a small piece and used that on the superstructure of my DDG model, which had a lot of compound angles. It works pretty slick.

The next step up is to use a Fein sander - the difference in vibration between this brand and others I tested is dramatic. To work on large areas, like fairing a subdeck on a 1/100 scale battleship, a Random Orbital Sander works very well. I have a Porter Cable, but other brands like DeWalt work well too. This is also the go-to sander for a lot of home projects.

To square up acrylic, the best technique I found is to feed it into a 220 volt Delta 12" disc/belt sander. That puppy will shave a 2 inch thick block of plexiglass in seconds, hardly slowing down at all - great for making master patterns. Micro Mark sells a unit of the same size, but with about 1% of the power; it bogs down pretty easily, but could be useful for smaller projects if you use a light touch.

Kurt

[toesup]

Anyone else got a favorite?

This is mine.. though in this 'modern' day and age, i would think it's considered to be 'old school'..

Pros: Doesnt need batteries, doesnt need charging, has a wide variety of 'grades', has a wide variety of 'speeds', sanding surface is instantly replaceable, can be used in a wide variety of applications.
Cons: Can get tiring after a while, has a habit of 'doing its own thing if you dont watch it carefully, Accessories are hard to find.. though 'special' shapes are available from the scrap box..

By the way, its known in my workshop as 'Block'.. :cool:

[Kmot]

I think Pat was asking what everyones favorite "power" sanding tool was.

Mine is the mouse.

[patmat2350]

"Power" is in the arm of the beholder... :p

[Kmot]

"Power" is in the arm of the beholder... :p
Oh, okay. In that case, my favorite sander is "everything" Perma-Grit. :D

http://www.permagrit.com/

[windwarrior6682]

I use the Drumel Contor Sander. I like the variable speed control and the differant form sanding blocks.

[charlie eaton]

Wooden sanding block with Armstrong power. Comes in various sizes,shapes,grits. Highly controlable,does get dusty though.

[MILLERTIME]

I went into Lowe’s to buy a Black and Decker "Mouse" Detail Sander.
The salesman showed me the Skil Octo Multi-Finishing Sander.
It was the same price so I bought it. The salesman said if I didn’t like I could exchange it for the B&D sander. I have not tried it yet, but it looks promising. I like all the attachments.

Model #7300-01
8 Detail Attachments
Finger, Slot, Outside Corner, Inside Corner, Concave,
Flex, Extended Delta, and 3 Position Nose Detail
3 Position Nose Detail for maximum use of abrasive
Built-In Work light brightens poorly lit areas
Dust Canister keeps work area clean
Tool-less Attachment System
TOOL INCLUDES
Octo Multi-Finishing Sander, model 7300-01
32 Sandpaper Sheets
8 Detail Attachments
Carrying Bag

[Kmot]

It's an uber mouse! :p

[nick_75au]

My favourite is my GMC random orbital sander, it takes 6 inch or 5 inch disks. It was what gave me the incentive to get the hull close to perfect on the Kingfisher. On gel coat start with 600 and progress to 2000 grit. Takes about 10 minutes to get an area smooth for buffing. My only problem was spending too much time on the coarser grits and rubbing through. Its heavy and too big for most jobs so my second favourite is a Bohler 3d sander except for its quality which lets it down bigtime. Its a great detail sander for curves and has buffing and polishing pads as well.
I want a mouse or something like it with the finger attachment :)
Nick

[RC-Archer]

I have three sanding phases that I go thru.

1. I have a 3" belt sander for very rough sanding. I can turn a tree trunk into a broomstick very quickly with it.

2. Then I have the Ryobi. The Ryobi will let me take off less material and I can usually finalize my shapes with it.

3. Then I use sanding blocks for finishing work. I hand sand only if I don't need to change the shape ie smoothing the surface.

[Kmot]

I have three sanding phases that I go thru.

1. I have a 3" belt sander for very rough sanding. I can turn a tree trunk into a broomstick very quickly with it.


LOL, first time I ever used a belt sander I was amazed how fast it 'dissolved' my wood I was working on! :p

[Shaun Hendricks]

Try that belt sander with 40-80 grit on it and you can 'dissolve' just about anything.

I use a whole array of powered sanders. I like an in-line air sander though. Nice even strokes in a straight line, better than hand sanding for semi-finish. Nothing beats hand sanding for final finish though. Need to feel the wood for any small discrepancies.

[RC-Archer]

There is one more sanding trick that I do....


DO NOT TRY THIS AT HOME!!!! IT IS EXTREMELY DANGEROUS!!!


I steal my girlfriend's fingernail sanding boards. :D