Preliminary Semi-Gloat

Vaughn McMillan

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One of the guys on my pool league team, Les, is a contractor/finish carpenter. About a month ago, at the end of last season, he mentioned to me that he had a Performax 16-32 drum sander that he hadn't used for years, and it was only taking up space in his shop. I half-jokingly told him I'd be glad to store it for him. ;)

Tonight was the first night of the season, and just about as soon as Les saw me, he brought up the sander again. He asked if I really was interested in it, and I told him yes, but I wasn't in a position to buy it from him. He said "I don't want any money for it...I'd just like to be able to come over and use it if I ever have a need for it." He said he'd bring it to the pool match next week. :D

I'm kinda short on space myself, but I'll find a way to shoehorn it into the shop. It's one of those tools that I probably won't use a lot, but when I do, it'll be worth making the space for. :thumb:
 
Short of space...... HA! :rolleyes:

I thought you got rid of that mustard monster, so you should have lots of space!

Congrats, I hope he remains true to his word! :thumb:
 
When I got the one I have, I thought I would use it all the time. Not so, it does take up space. But when I need it, it is a wonderful tool. I wouldn't be without it.
 
good deal vaughn!!! and like others have said the space is worth the use ten times over.. dormant for a few weeks but the day you need it its worth every inch..
 
I'm a little suspicious. Does this mean Les gets access to your garage cold beverage dispenser whenever he has a sanding job?? Never mind...seems like a fair trade :) :)
 
Your shop is a little crowded . . . I could probably squeeze it in somewhere :D

Sweet deal. As others have said I will be looking forward to some feedback. Maybe I can finally make some cutting board blanks, come over and rent it for the afternoon using some barley-pop, doggie treats and my sterling conversation as payment(?). OK, I'll leave the sterling conversation at home . . . maybe the cutting board blanks too :rofl:
 
Great deal Vaughn. Let me know if you need help bringing it home.

you know what i am starting to see a pattern evolve over there in S.Cal.. they seem to be getting some pretty good deals latly.. i think that you should go make sure there is a lathe left at vaughns, glenn.. maybe he is sharing his with mohamadd and this les fella is doing the same thing with vaughn and the vicious circle might be growing into a commune of wood shop tools:):rofl::rofl:
 
Nice! :thumb:

My wife bugged me about that a while back as to why I had the same tools her dad and other family members did. Couldn't I just use theirs or visa-versa? I couldn't really give her a good answer other than guys don't like to let other guys see their screw-ups. ;)

I have loaned/given away a few tools myself to a couple of friends that were showing interest or getting started in woodworking, but couldn't afford new tools. Their wives look at me as if I'm a drug dealer getting them hooked on their addictions. :D :rofl:
 
Great deal, Vaughan. I've had one for several years and it's just the right thing for many operations.

One suggestion, if you don't already know, is to buy the paper in rolls rather than the precuts. I bought rolls of various grits from Klingspor shortly after getting my 16-32 and use an old strip to measure and cut from the roll.
 
+1 on what Bill said about the rolls. I found using an existing strip to be a little hard to work with as the rolled paper well, wants to roll.

I made a template out of wood and wrote down instructions on how to use it right on it. It's surprisingly easy to make a mistake and cut it 'wrong'... :rolleyes:

But wight with the template, instructions and spring clamps, it makes it pretty easy to make my own.

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Brent,

Good idea about the template. I think I'll make one, although I haven't had a problem with the material wanting to roll when I un-roll it. I'm using Klingspor J-FLEX.
 
A great tool when you need it but you sure better have adequate dust collection. It makes a lot of sawdust......in a hurry!

Be sure to check the condition and grits of the belts. You want to make sure they are in good shape and are the appropriate grits.
 
Mike, I think my DC can keep up with it, and I know already it's gonna need new abrasives. I'm just hoping the feed belt (as well as the other mechanical belts) are in workable shape.

For you guys who use a drum sander, how many different grits do you keep on hand for it? I'm thinking of just setting it up with 80 grit Klingspore, then doing any additional sanding by hand with the ROS. Is that a workable plan? At this point, I think it'll be mainly used to flatten resawn hardwoods, particularly shorter pieces that aren't suitable to run through the planer. Flattening cutting boards is another likely possibility. I don't anticipate using it to sand rings for segmented turning. Any other thoughts and suggestions on abrasives are appreciated.

And great idea on the template, Brent. I'll plan on doing that. :thumb:
 
Vaughn, I use a 38" Woodmaster drum. I keep 80, 100, 150, 220 on hand (reminds me I need to order more 100...)
That system works perfect as I have very little sanding to do after the 220.
The 80 grit will leave deep scratch lines that will still be prevalant even after getting to the 220. All I do is go back to 100 on my ROS then 150 and 180 or 220 depending what I have on hand for finer grits and that takes care of it.
Trust me, you dont want to try and sand out the 80 grit scratches with an ROS. Archaeologists will find your remains still holding the sander and the workpiece, and put you on display in a museum as an early 21st century woodworker.....
The finer grits on the drum make fast work and remove almost all of the prior grits marks. Also, big point here, the workpiece remains dead flat. If you go in and start working it with an ROS you are going to lose that and will find areas that are dished a little from the sander or edges get a bit rounded over etc.

As far as buying paper. I get mine from Klingspor's woodworking shop, they have been the most reasonable so far. I just buy the bulk rolls and cut what I need myself. I'm not familiar with the model you are getting as to whether it uses psa or hook and loop. If it uses psa I would consider investing in some velcro for the drum. It makes switching out paper real easy and you can re use the rolls indefinitely as long as you arent sanding out lots of glue and or real resiny (is that a word?) woods.
Also, if you do add a velcro backer, cut the starting angle different from the angle you cut the paper at so the seams don't line up. And make sure that you don't overlap any seams, velcro or paper, as that will put a line right down the work piece.
Another big advantage to the velcro backer is it allows the paper to tighten up on the drum.
When using it, go very very light on your passes. Let the drum just contact the workpiece.
What I do is turn the feed on its slowest setting and with the drum off feed a piece into it and then raise the bed until it just starts to move the drum. If I can hold the drum stationary with my hand and the workpiece still feeds through that is where I start and then very gradually (we are talking thousandths of an inch here) advance the bed height with each pass. If it starts to bind or grab then I back off a bit or take another pass or two at that setting.
You will get a feel for it when you start using it and see what I mean.
It's a great tool and time saver! Good luck with it!!
 
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