Edgetech Disc sand for TS

[JayPique]

Has anyone used one of these? I was helping a buddy this weekend and he showed me a video of a guy using one, but I can't find much info - this is about it...

This really seems like a superior way to edge sand, to me. Leave each edge say a 32nd oversize and sand it dead square and parallel. There is a similar product here...

Thoughts? The Woodtek one is $37 and discs are $7 each - you have to set up an account to see the actual Edgetech price.

JP

[J. Clarke]

If the blade isn't making a dead square and parallel, then a sanding disk on the same machine isn't likely to do any better.

On the other hand, if you need a disk sander and are willing to put up with changing out the blade for a sanding disk every time you need to sand something, this sort of setup works.

[Jay Pique]

Agreed. And I think you have to tilt the blade slightly for it to work properly, so you'll need to check for square.

This is really only a "disc sander" in the sense that it's disc-shaped. In my mind they serve different functions. To me this is really an edge sander.

JP

[Spalted Walt]

[Jay Pique]

e showed me a video of a guy using one, but I can't find much info - this i s about it...

edge say a 32nd oversize and sand it dead square and parallel. There is a similar product here...

et up an account to see the actual Edgetech price.

Those appear to be flat discs - for use as a disc sander. I'm interested i n the ones made specifically to sand an edge - they have about a 3 degree b evel to the sanding surface, which you then square up to the table of your TS. It looks like Woodtek has one. I was wondering if the Edgetech one wa s better.

-JP

[Leon]

A solution for a problem with technique. With a properly set up saw and a good blade the most you should need to clean up an edge would be to simply make a pass or two with a scraper or lite hand sanding.

If you are taking off 1/32 you would surely wear out the sand paper rather quickly.

[JayPique]

e showed me a video of a guy using one, but I can't find much info - this i s about it...

edge say a 32nd oversize and sand it dead square and parallel. There is a similar product here...

et up an account to see the actual Edgetech price.

So you've never used one, Leon?

[Leon]

Never.

I have seen them come and go over the past 30 years. Interest renews and they show up again.

[Leon]

Many grits are offered, seems that you will be changing paper to get rid of the coarse sanding marks. Start with a finer grit and you will likely burn the wood.

[Jack]

Many years ago, before I had a disk/belt sander and before dust collection, I made a plywood disk for the TS and attached sandpaper to it. It worked, but the TS is the wrong tool, it turns way too fast and created a huge amount of dust, and tended to burn the wood due to speed of TS. You would need really good DC on the saw, both top and bottom.

My experiment led to immediate purchase of a 48" belt/disc sander combo. The disk is one of my most used tools, and would hate changing the TS Blade out every time is used it, even if it did work well, which it doesn't.

I never used the one mentioned here, but I don't think a disk sander is any where near as good as a TS in getting dead square and parallel edges. Disk sanders are good at sanding curved edges. IMO, if you aren't getting good edges off the TS, you need to tune up the saw...

[Spalted Walt]

What is the URL of this elusive video you mentioned: "he showed me a video of a guy using one" ? There are several 'flat' TS sanding disc vids on YT. I didn't find any (table saw); tapered, conical, or convex sanding disc videos.

Master box maker, Doug Stowe, uses a TS tapered disc to 'thickness' sand small parts:

...as does this luthier:

FWIW, Shopsmith offers a 'Conical Sanding Disc' as well ;)

[Leon]

[Scott Lurndal]

OTOH, disc sanders are the bees knees for miter joints, not just curved edges.

[Leon]

I guess. While I will agree that the disk sander will form "a" good miter, like a 45 miter, IMHO using one to do so is like using a jointer to resurface all sides of a rough cut board. It will look good but will you end up with the exact measurements? My TS and miter saw deliver expected length cuts and exceptional fitting miter joints.

BUT if the disk sander had a jig or setup to guarantee exact length results it would work better than with out.

My experience is that a tool should be equipped with a fixed reference to insure precise results, ie. a surface planer bed, TS rip fence, TS miter gauge fence stops.

[Scott Lurndal]

Oh, indeed. A jig/fence is required. I don't use it to form the miter, just to clean it up a bit and maybe nudge it a bit towards true if the stock wasn't held tight against the SCMS fence.

[Jay Pique]

6 minutes in.

[Jack]

I've used it on miter joints more than once, but I don't think I'd call it the "bees knees". If your saw is set up correctly, you generally have no need for a disc sander to fix miter joint problems. The main secret to TS miters is preventing the wood from sliding when cutting, so sandpaper on the fence of your perfectly made miter saw table is a good idea.

[Scott Lurndal]

Personally, I cut a lot of miters with my H.C. Marsh miter vise (subsequently sold by Stanley as the #100 miter machine ) and a backsaw. So cleaning up the cut on the disc sander works well.

"perfectly made miter saw table" sounds expensive :-). My 25yo Delta chopsaw isn't perfect by any stretch of anyone's imagination, but works well when building fences and doing construction (nowadays I keep an abrasive blade in it for cutting unistrut and EMT).

[Leon]

Got'cha! ;~) Sneaking up on a perfect fit. It will do that for sure.

[Jack]

I can see that. On a TS however, generally no reason to use a disk sander, particularly a disk sander on a TS.

I should have put that in quotes, and included "homemade". It was meant as a light reference to another thread about making miter tables for the TS. They are super easy to make and about guarantee perfect miters every time, and cost almost nothing but a small amount of time to construct. Miter joints in my cabinet shop are not used that often. I made the "perfectly made miter sled" when I was making lots of picture frames, which is where 99% of my miter joints are used in my shop.

My 25yo Delta

I don't own a chop saw. I considered buying one once when I did more carpentry work than I do now. When I built my shed with a gambrel roof I borrowed one which made things easier, but other than that, I just used a plane old CS to cut up construction wood for decks, steps porches, sheds etc.