I've done quite a bit of restorations in the past and do more these days, w= ith my upholstery work. These days, I do more A)chair, sofa, ottoman, etc.= type furniture, than B) dining tables, armoires, dish cabinets, cupboards = etc.
For A) I rarely use a machine. Mostly hand sanding, detailed work, lots o= f curved pieces, etc.
For B) I have a variety of sanders and the task dicates which to use. I se= e several suggestions have been offered and all good. A warming: Before u= sing a belt sander on a large flat piece, learn well how much a belt sander= chews up wood. I would advise: Never use a belt sander on a large piece= . You are asking for trouble, unless you really know what you are doing.
If I were to suggest a first sander, it would be an orbital sander.
In the mean time, as Bill suggested, do some reading. Before buying many b= ooks, check out this link:
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through the main titles of this "outline" (format) to zero in on wood = (or metal) topics/titles, get an idea of what articles are here. Get some = ideas of what you are in for, in a specific field (wood and furniture items= , maybe some metal furniture items). There is a wide range of expertise wi= thin these articles. Let these articles guide you to furthering your knowl= edge base, then later you can buy specific books, as need be.
Another suggestion: No one person can learn all the different finishing/re= finishing techniques (.... and maybe wood repair techniques, as well. I of= ten have to improvise). In starting out, learn 1 or 2 good basic finishing= /refinishing techniques, i.e., master them, then move on to others one at a= time, to further your finishing/refinishing abilities. Select your begin= ning projects to coincide with your skills and advance your projects as you= r skills advance. *This pretty much goes for any craft, skill and/or exper= tise.
One never stops learning, especially with all the info and resources availa= ble. Sonny