ive got the woodtek and it does fine so long as you dont try to remove too much material at one pass. [ dont ask how i know this ! ] its great being able to sand 2 grits in a single pass. i use 80 and 120 respectivly and the stuff turns out great. BTW dont try removing old finnish with it. dont ask that one either!!!!!!!!!!!!! it gums up the belts. if ya wanna check it out in person im outside youngsvillle. coffee is on me! lol
I've got the GI. It works ok but like Skeezic said with the woodtek, it doesn't take much to bog down the 3 hp motor! It's also ok for rough sanding but I've found that trying to sand with 220 usually ends up burning the wood. 150 grit works fine. Trying to parallel the front and rear drums is also fun since the manual sucks and doesn't say which way to turn the cap screws to raise or lower so it's a bit of trial and error. Today I've had problems with the sand paper slipping on the second drum but I think this is due to an error in my cut of the paper (to steep of an angle). If you do buy any of the three make sure you have extra sand paper because there's a bit of a learning curve. I like the panic off button because when one of those long sanding strips lets go it makes an awful lot of racket!
I've got the General, it is heavier and maybe a bit more quality controlled than the others I've seen, which are all very similar for sure. There is some difference in belt drive motor ratings as well (1/20hp to 1/6hp I think I saw). I have 80/120 on it so far, I have not been able to bog down the motor yet, most I've done is 3 pieces of
5" alder at the same time though, still I can't imagine trying to take that much material off in a single pass. Belt speed can also be slowed down for heavier cuts.
Keeping the belts from heating/expanding/moving looks like it needs carefull attention, mine came with paper already installed for "testing", it was poorly cut and installed, and has loosened up many times. It's got rips and worn edges from overlapping, but I've used tape right overtop of the ends to keep it tight to the drum, and taped any large rips/flaps, mark the location of the tape on the front and keep going, not everything you sand will be 24" so you can keep the paper going for quite a while. The paper still seemed to expand and loosen from the drum so I used a bit of spray glue on the paper only and let dry for a bit before mounting. Think I'm going to try some PSA paper since that's all I can find 150 grit in locally.
So it's only due to buildup that my crepe block wont touch do I have to change this first wrap of 80, and I've probably thrown over 2000' of wood through it. So avoid glue squeeze out and green sappy wood, take light cuts, and use the crepe often.
-------------------- Steve Jensen Abbotsford B.C. snipped-for-privacy@canada.mortise.com chopping out the mortise. BBS'ing since 1982 at 300 bps. Surfing along at 19200 bps since 95. WW'ing since 1985 LV Cust #4114
Nothing catchy to say, well maybe..... WAKE UP - There are no GODs you fools!
I have one of the Asian dual drum sanders. They are all pretty much the same except for the feed belt. Some have a reversible belt... I dont see this as being a big deal. Some use old fashioned conveyor belt material which does not have sufficient grip. Mine has a kind of soft rubber open weave belt which is excellent. It does a very nice job of SANDING. It will not remove any amount of material without trashing the paper..there are DIMENSION sanders for this and they cost a lot more. My big problem is getting the paper to attach to the drum securely. Someone else here mentioned using spray glue... I tried a little of this on the last few inches but the paper seems to absorb it all and wont stick to the drum. I tried duct tape too but the edge lifts up and flies off after a few minutes. I would sure like to find out how to mount the paper correctly. I kept the ends of the original paper to use as templates but I still haven'nt got it right. The angle of the cut seems to be critical.
The angle is "drum diameter x 3.14" across the paper, check your template. Make sure you use the 3M glue, there's another brand out there that's just CRAP! I use spray glue every day at work. Or try some contact cement, maybe have to dilute it, just on the paper only and let dry. Tape on the ends of the drum can work if you also expose some of the drum for it to adhere to, otherwise it will just move with the paper, wrap in the direction of travel. I need to find the right tape as well, what sticks to sandpaper? :) And of course wrapping that sucker as tight as you can pull it. If all else fails you could try spray gluing the drum as well as the paper, following the directions it should hold. Avoid heat as it seems to stretch the paper as well.
-------------------- Steve Jensen Abbotsford B.C. snipped-for-privacy@canada.mortise.com chopping out the mortise. BBS'ing since 1982 at 300 bps. Surfing along at 19200 bps since 95. WW'ing since 1985 LV Cust #4114
Nothing catchy to say, well maybe..... WAKE UP - There are no GODs you fools!
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