Hey all
I am contemplating buying a spindle sander for some repetitive contour sanding. Does anyone have recommendations on purchasing one in a price range of less than $300? I am looking at the Grizzly, Delta and Ridgid.
Thanks for your suggestions
Gary
Fine Woodworking recently had an article on these. Check out:
Read a very old FWW article (reprinted in their "Making Machines" book) on how turn the head of a cheap drillpress upside down, drive the quill feed shaft with a slow motor and crank and make your own.
Having recently skip-dived such a drill, I'm working on my own right now. It's a lot better than spending $400 !
Oscillating is a very favororable feature as the paper lasts longer and you get a surface with fewer sanding marks. IMHO you do not want to cut corners here. Heavy helps keep the unit in place and a tilt table is helpful. In my shop the larger 3" diameter spindle is the one that gets the most use. I have the Jet Mid-Bench top model and am happy it although it is probably a bit out of your price range. Mine is too tall for a bench top and too short for the floor. It sets on a surface that is about 20" off the floor and its table top is about 36" off the floor. One with an induction motor makes it quiet and a pleasure to use with out hearing protection. You may find as I have that this tool can do multiple tasks that pop up that you normally would have used another tool for. Also very handy to have is a 12" disc sander. Great for mitering short pieces of wood safely. A bit on the high side of your budget but a very handy combination would be
I have the Ridgid oscillating belt/spindle sander and can give you my impressions. I have no direct experience with the others so I cannot do a comparative review.
The Ridgid tool is pretty easy to set up and works fine in my hobbyist workshop. I use it primarily for edge sanding in the belt sander configuration. It is quick to change belts or to switch to the spindle mode. Dust collection is OK with my shop vac hooked up to the exhaust port. It does a reasonable job for me, but is not a heavy duty tool.
It is reasonably sturdy is quite stable sitting on a workbench. The construction is pretty solid. The tilting table is convenient when sanding angled edges.
I recommend getting a tool with the oscillating motion rather than just a straight rotating spindle (or belt). The oscillation gives smoother results, closer to that of a random orbit sander, and also spreads out the wear on the sanding belt/sleeve.
The Wilton is identical to the Grizzly G0538 except for color, but qualifies for free shipping on amazon and for their discounts. I got it for about $100 shipped but they've since raised the price to match the G0538 and then raised the price on both. I have a pretty extensive review of it on amazon.
I've only ever once wished it had a tilting table. I just cut a piece of scrap at the appropriate angle and put the stock on that. It's light enough to carry around easily, but heavy enough that it doesn't move around.
However at the full price of $150 I think you're probably better off going with the ridgid for another $50. A small oscillating belt would be nice to have, and you just can't get that on any other machine AFAIK without forking out for a huge edge sander. But if you can catch one of amazon's deals and get it for $100-125 then it's a great value.
-Leuf
I found that FWW article #188. They gave the Rigid EB 4424 their "Best Overall" and their "Best Value" awards.
It was the only model that converted into a belt sander.
Thanks for the link, good review. Though I already have a belt sander, the fact that this converts, really adds to it's function. The only negative I saw on a review was that most of the housing was plastic. It looks like I will be looking seriously at this sander.
Gary
Agreed, I defeintely want a spindle sander which oscillates.
Good advice
Gary
I saw lots of plans to make homemade spindle sander, but I think the oscillating part is too important to give up, besides I already have attachments to have 2" diameter drum sander on my drill press.
Sturdiness is key, I believe plus what the maximum diameter of the drum it will receive.
Thanks
Gary
I don't know of any spindle sanders that of themselves require hearing protection--the shop vac on the other hand . . .
Most folks with the Ridgid seem to find that the belt is more generally useful than the spindles.
My variety as well. Neat mod I made was to make an insert that will accept PC guides. Makes pattern sanding a nice option with the smaller spindles.
Only thing I'd change is to get a bit higher rate of oscillation. Other than that, great sander.
Belt types just never perform as well as a good plane, so that was not a factor in my decision, but the newer types seem to be headed there.
Fine Woodworking recently did a review. If you're interested, email me direct and I'll give you specifics.
Traditionally I used a small drum on my RAS (okay), I tried a set that fits on my drill press (lousy) but recently bought a Harbor Freight osculating version.....cast table, nice fit and finish, runs smooth and quiet enough, good dust collection (with a vac attached)assortment of sizes and does exactly what I'd expect......mine between a coupon and sales price cost around $70 regular price I'd expect is around $100...... No tilt but I'd expect a home built slanted table would work......Rod
I had the Delta B.O.S.S and really liked it. The only concern was in a little over a year only found the need for it twice . Sold it on Craig's list and reverted back to the drill press spindle sander attachment. Never looked back!
Bill
I have the Delta BOSS.
I can't understand why they did not integrate a spindle lock for changing the drums.
Whenever I use this tool I wonder "what were they thinking?"
No spindle lock means that it is not only tough to change drums but you can't torque down the drum and compress it so that the sleeve does not slip.
It's otherwise solid smooth and quiet. Sadly I can not reccomend it.
-Steve
This is the second or third time I recall that someone has posted a link to a FWW story that, when invoked, comes up with a short summary stating "membership required" in order to read.
Doesn't do me any good - I'm not a member. Nor, I suspect, are many who read this group.
In the future, I'd appreciate it if anyone posting such a link would at least let us know we have to be members to read it.
The Ridgid and the PC #121 use a universal motor.
Noisier than an induction motor sander.
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