Which Drum Sander?

ozziebluesman · Post by **ozziebluesman** » Tue Sep 22, 2009 9:55 pm

I'm ready to purchase a drum sander for the workshop.

What do you think will do the job for me without having to spend a fortune?

Thanks for you help in advance.

Cheers

Alan

Hesh1956 · Post by **Hesh1956** » Tue Sep 22, 2009 10:16 pm

Hi Alan - I like my Performax 10-20 just fine. It's small, not as expensive as some, and once one understands that this is more of a finishing or skim sander and does not try to hoark off too much material in one pass it works great.

Another consideration when selecting a drum sander is that dust collection, good dust collection is a must. With my 10-20 I can get away with using my Festool vac since the 10-20 does not have a big ass drum and less material is getting airborne than with bigger sanders.

1/8th of a turn of the crank with each pass with this sander will remove approx. .005 - .008 depending on the wood being sanded and with 80 grit paper. The double pass sanding meaning turning the board around if it's wider than 10" is no problem for me.

My machine is about 4 years old, came set-up perfectly right out of the box, and it has never given me any problems with one exception which may be more of a perception problem on my part.

The tracking belt wants to track to the right and no amount of adjustment or "resettling" the mechanism on my part has eliminated this occurrence. I call it an occurrence and not a problem because this does not seem to cause any problems and I still have the original tracking belt on my machine and a new one in reserve for the day that it craps out.

The machine is light enough (although pushing the limit) for table top use and picking it up and moving it around by yourself.

Anyway you get the idea - I like my Performax and recently considered getting a bigger one but decided that the machine that I have now works perfectly and does everything that I need to do.

Allen · Post by **Allen** » Wed Sep 23, 2009 5:32 am

Yes, that is one thing that I forgot to mention to you Alan, is that you must have dust collection for these things. I've got one of Carbatecs 1 hp dust extractors hooked up to it, as well as my table saw and band saw. It's one of those hidden costs that tends to add up with the purchase of tools.

Wish we could get them for the price you pay for them over there Hesh. Here they are about $1,000 but like you I'm happy with mine. I would like a larger one for joined top and back plates, as running them through twice hasn't been all that successful, but I have access to the 16/32 so I've not needed to toss down more cash for something that is only used occasionally.

Localele · Post by **Localele** » Wed Sep 23, 2009 6:36 am

These little buggers from Carba Tec do a pretty good job too Allen. 400mm wide is handy for sanding joined tops and backs. Just remember it is a sander and not a thicknesser and you shouldn't have any problems.List price $799.The best tune up for this is to get rid of the small dust extraction port and replace it with a 100mm fitting.Not too hard to do .Don't buy the stand either as they are too big in their footprint, better to build a cupboard under it yourself.

http://www.carbatec.com.au/carba-tec-40 ... 1/sort/20a

Craig · Post by **Craig** » Wed Sep 23, 2009 8:11 am

Another vote for the Carbatec 16/32 . I did set it up when I first got it , ( the conveyor platten angle) which was quite simple , as they provide a few shims to adjust the height . It has a rubber conveyor belt which has been trouble free ( I've had it a few years now ) , although I do end up adjusting the tracking from time to time , but that's not a biggie.
I run a 100 mm. dust hose right to the machine and put an adapter to the 2 1/2 " outlet ( 2 horsepower Carbatec Dust extracter ) . I think the newer models come with a 100 mm. outlet on the machine itself . I know the ones from Timbercon do ( same machine ,different colour ).
As Micheal suggests , build a cabinet base for it .
It certainly has been a handy machine for me and I'm sure you'll find it's many uses

Localele · Post by **Localele** » Wed Sep 23, 2009 9:53 am

Hi Craig , It is amazing the difference of getting rid of that 2 1/2 " fitting so the extractor can breath properly.

ozziebluesman · Post by **ozziebluesman** » Wed Sep 23, 2009 11:32 am

Thanks Hesh. The Jet would be a well made machine but as Allen pointed out, they are very expensive here in Oz.

Thanks Allen , Micheal and Craig for your thoughts. I was looking at the Carbatec 400 mm sander and couldn't see why it would not do the job for me. I had planned to buy a dust extractor for the bandsaw, bench sander and it will do nicely for the drum sander also.

Cheers again for the heads up.

Alan

Craig · Post by **Craig** » Wed Sep 23, 2009 12:06 pm

Localele wrote:Hi Craig , It is amazing the difference of getting rid of that 2 1/2 " fitting so the extractor can breath properly.

Yeah , I have no doubts about that .I've just been too slack

, mainly because it seems to be working just fine the way it is with no paper load-up etc . Onya for nudging me to make the changeover though Micheal .

Alan , you're gonna love the thing to bits

vandenboom · Post by **vandenboom** » Wed Sep 23, 2009 8:58 pm

Don't forget, if budget is the main consideration, they are not difficult to make yourself. You can make it as wide as you like for little extra cost. This one cost me about $200 and is 26" wide - in hindsight, I wish I had made it a bit narrower!! Frank

Lillian · Post by **Lillian** » Thu Sep 24, 2009 12:33 pm

Alan,
Check this site out and check your inbox.

http://www.woodworkstuff.net/EDTSander.html

TimS · Post by **TimS** » Sat Sep 26, 2009 12:32 am

Hi all,

I am on my two week break from the classroom so I thought I would chip in!
A lot of the drum sanders are pretty similar at the entry level. There is some variation in components and it would be prudent to ask the shop where you are buying it from if they have parts on hand or able to source them quickly if you have a breakdown.
Issues
Pinion drive
The pinion drive for the table mat/conveyor can be either brass, steel or nylon. So before you start giving it the "herbs" you will need to know what it can endure over time. If the machine you get is at the cheaper end of the range and you plan to only use it a couple of times a week, be more conservative with the amount of material you want to remove in one pass. Think sander not thicknesser
Parallel operation
Parallel drum and table? Make sure there is an easy way to adjust one or the other because a taper across the face can be significant on a wide drum sander.
Variable speed controller
I have had a Jet 16/32 with no problems but have replaced two controllers on my Jet22/44 which has a load controller. I am planning to move up to a Oscillating drum sander which at $3500 may still have issues.
Switch position
Make sure you don't lean wood against the switch area. I have done this on the 16/32 and spent a hour or so trying to repair the toggle mechanism.
Rubber coupling damper
My 16/32 rubber coupling between the motor and the drum failed overtime. The motor speed began to vary as the backlash between the drum and the motor increased.

regards

Tim

luke_lee · Post by **luke_lee** » Sun Jul 17, 2011 12:22 pm

Hi,
Just a quick question about the Carbatec drum sander. In the specs its min. sanding thickness is 6mm. How does it go with material less than 6mm, do you use a packing board under it??

Thanks Luke

Kim · Post by **Kim** » Sun Jul 17, 2011 12:56 pm

Yes, a flat melamine or MDF carry board will work fine, just glue some abrasive paper to it or you can can fix a low fence or a combo of both.

Cheers

Kim

kiwigeo · Post by **kiwigeo** » Sun Jul 17, 2011 2:24 pm

LUKE_LEE wrote:Hi,
Just a quick question about the Carbatec drum sander. In the specs its min. sanding thickness is 6mm. How does it go with material less than 6mm, do you use a packing board under it??

Thanks Luke

I often work down to 2mm thickness. I double tape the work to melamine MDF.

I've got the Jet 16/32 machine. It does the job but intial set up of the cantilver was a P in the A.....there are easier ways to get it done than the method outlined in the handbook. I use a set of wires and alligator clips and set up an electrical circuit between the drum, a steel ruler lying on the platten, a battery and a light bulb. When the bulb comes on I know that part of the drum is just touching the steel ruler.

woodrat · Post by **woodrat** » Sun Jul 17, 2011 3:43 pm

kiwigeo wrote:
I've got the Jet 16/32 machine. It does the job but intial set up of the cantilver was a P in the A.....there are easier ways to get it done than the method outlined in the handbook. I use a set of wires and alligator clips and set up an electrical circuit between the drum, a steel ruler lying on the platten, a battery and a light bulb. When the bulb comes on I know that part of the drum is just touching the steel ruler.

Thats pretty cool Martin...I have not done any adjustments to mine but I need to so I will use your method here! Thanks. I have the 16/32 as well and I like it...If I had my time again I would have got the twin drum monster but the Jet was a great price on EBay and nearly new so I am not complaining I will live with it and I saved a heap over the twin drum monster. I have used Mike Connors though and they are really good.

Martin...or anybody else could you tell me who your abrasive supplier is for the belts on these things.

Thanks

John

Kim · Post by **Kim** » Sun Jul 17, 2011 3:50 pm

Probably should give credit where due with this setup method.

Joe Woodworker has had this link up for a long time with a step by step to set up a jet.

http://www.joewoodworker.com/performax.htm

Cheers

Kim

woodrat · Post by **woodrat** » Sun Jul 17, 2011 4:02 pm

Fair enough too, Kim, Thanks

John

kiwigeo · Post by **kiwigeo** » Sun Jul 17, 2011 4:17 pm

Kim wrote:Probably should give credit where due with this setup method.

Joe Woodworker has had this link up for a long time with a step by step to set up a jet.

http://www.joewoodworker.com/performax.htm

Cheers

Kim

Thanks Kim,

I lost the printout from the website and forgot where I got it. All credit to Joe Woodworker.....

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