I need more power! - Sander Question

[Trebeck]

Hey all

I have a palm sander with the highest grit paper I could find, but for some jobs it just isn't powerful enough.  What's the next step up?  I want to be able to dig into the side of MDF like it was butter.

- Beck

[TroyO]

Highest grit or lowest grit? A lower grit number is more aggressive and a higher number is smoother.

If you can find 30 or 50 grit it should remove MDF fairly fast, even with a palm sander. A belt sander would probably be the next step up.... I think a simple 3X18 Ryobi one is like $50, the one I have is OK. Again, a lower grit belt will eat more.

[Trebeck]

Sorry , I have the lowest grit.  The roughest stuff.
I had to take off about 2mm off of an mdf board and it took me a long time to do it so I'm looking for something that will do the job quicker.

- Beck

[Kaytrim]

Belt sander will be more power.  It can take off MDF and paint in a hurry.  It is what I used to shape the control panel in Dad's Bartop.  You can see how much I had to take off in the pics.  Time wise it was only about 3-5 min for each corner.  Then I finish sanded with palm sander.

TTFN
Kaytrim

[ScottS]

Buy a 3"x21" belt sander. I have a Bosch 1274DVS that I'm pretty happy with. It's not the most agressive belt sander in the world, but that also means it's easier to control. Be warned that a belt sander can be fairly difficult to control! It's very easy to make the surface you're sanding uneven. Even a momentary hesitation can remove enough material to cause a problem! If you need to sand large, flat surfaces look for a belt sander that has a "sanding frame" as an option. A sanding frame is basically a big outrigger that keeps the sander from digging into the surface... too much. The Bosch 1274 does have a sanding frame available, though it costs around $100! Sadly, every other sanding frame I've seen has a similar price.

Klingspor sells heavy-duty belts called "planer belts" that go from 24- to 80-grit. The 24-grit belt will remove a lot of material in a hurry! It will also create monstrous sanding scratches in the surface. You must follow it up with higher-grit belts in order to achieve a smooth surface.

[bigh4th]

I would also practice on a scrap piece of wood before you take a belt sander to what you want to keep.  As has already been stated, half a seccond in one spot can make the difference between a good piece of wood and a ruined piece of wood.

-Harry

[Trebeck]

Great,  thanks for the advice guys

 

-Beck