Drum Sander Opens New Possibilities
I added a “Jet Performax 16/32 Plus” drum sander to my workshop a few weeks ago. All I can say is “WOW” I should have done this a long time ago.
In the past, I would dimension lumber with the thickness planer, creating a bunch of wood chips. Then I would scrape/sand out the planing machine marks. Now I am re-sawing and sanding to final thickness, giving me two or more usable thinner boards. My bandsaw is tuned so that I can typically sand no more than 1/32 to get a smooth flat surface.
Today I sanded inlay strips. they were uniform to +/- 2 mils at 1/16″ thichness.
The drum sander was easy to set-up and align.
One thing my shop is lacking is a dust collector. Some type of collection is MANDATORY for drum sanding. I attached a shop Vac. It was adequate, and made a huge difference in the cleanliness of the shop. However, my next major purchase will be a 1 -2HP dust collector. The vac’s 135 CFM seems to keep the shop air clean, but I found a little accumulation of dust on the shroud after sanding a dozen boards to size.
My next step is to try the finer grade drum papers to see if I can decrease the amount of finish sanding.
Greg
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Replies
Hi greg,
I've got the same machine only pre Jet - older but they haven't changed that much that I know of. Does a really great job and yes it does need DC. I don't see mine eliminating hand sanding altogether but sure does speed up gettin there.
My next step is to try the finer grade drum papers to see if I can decrease the amount of finish sanding.
Have you tried Nortox 3X, or is it 5X - somestimers methinks. Anyway, using sanding blocks (wood) it cuts really fast and works better the less weight you have on it. Doesn't clog at all but I haven't used it on resinous woods though.
Regards,
Bob @ Kidderville Acres
A Woodworkers mind should be the sharpest tool in the shop!
Didn't mean to imply that it replaced final sanding. But man those boards are flat and straight at a uniform thickness. Haven't tried the Norton. Some folks talk about the Klingspor too. I think mine has 80 grit from the factors. No clogging. I even hit the sanding drum with one of those erasers to clean it.Greg
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Greg,
Absoultely the drum sander will not leave a final surface, totally agree with you. And yes flat panels come out great, i.e dead flat. Lately I've been making end grain panels for tabletops, etc. vis a vis as in the recent issue of FWW and it does a remarkable job.
I really like the Norton sandpaper, cuts fast and doesn't clog and going up through the grits is fast and easy.
Regards,Bob @ Kidderville Acres
A Woodworkers mind should be the sharpest tool in the shop!
Greg,
Thanks for the great post. I second Bob's recommendation of Norton 3X sandpaper. It is truly awesome.
Chris @ www.flairwoodwork.spaces.live.com
and now www.flairwoodworks.com)
- Success is not the key to happiness. Happiness is the key to success. If you love what you are doing, you will be successful. - Albert Schweitzer
Hey Chris,
Yeah, I've skipped from 80 to 100 starting off sometimes - allows me to get thru the remaining grits a lot quicker. The 100 cuts nearly as fast as the 80 does and is a little smoother.
Regards,Bob @ Kidderville Acres
A Woodworkers mind should be the sharpest tool in the shop!
I only have the 10/20 and I love the thing for final dimensioning of rails and stiles, same with solid edgebanding. The parts come out within a few thousandths of each other and no tearout to deal with.
The 10/20 would do 99.9% of the time. But for a few hundred more, I got the extra capacity and the stands.Greg
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Greg,
Not sure what you have in mind for dust collection but you WILL need something and it should filter as much as possible, especially the fine stuff which the drum sander is notorious for emitting.
I have the Delta 50-760 1,100 CFM w/1 micron bag plus an overhead air filter, both running well before and after I use the drum sander and I, wear a respirator. Without any DC I would venture a guess that within 2 minutes maybe less, you'll have to leave the woodshop.
A ShopVac type DC will not work. What's that one Mike Hennesey says, DAMHIKT!?
Regards,Bob @ Kidderville Acres
A Woodworkers mind should be the sharpest tool in the shop!
The Shop Vac is removing maybe 95%. I am planning on a 1-1/2 HP DC (1200CFM) with a filter. My only comment is that the shop vac seemed like a clean environment compared to no DC. I ran the sander a few times with a dust mask and it covered everything in sight and some stuff that was hidden with a fine coating of dust.Greg
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"The vac's 135 CFM seems to keep the shop air clean..." Greg, you may be falling into a dangerous trap here. The most harmful dust is not the dust you can see, but the microscopic dust you cannot see, the stuff that gets into your lungs and doesn't come out. As I am ever so fond of saying "Think oxygen bottlle."
You are wise to put a dust collector at the top of your "next purchase" list. With a little reseearch, you can find out what CFM you need to efficiently collect from that wonderful new toy and your other tools, and keep the air breathable.
When you get a dust collector, consider the filter bag. A 2.5 micron bag or better is what it takes to get the fine particles out of the air. I use a grizzly with a 2.5 bag.
I does not hurt to invest in a ceiling mounted dust collector as well. For the ambiant dust produced by other tools like the table saw. I use the JDS air-tech 750ER. It removes particles down to 1 micron.
I'm a bit freakish about the dust since my shop is in my basement, so I round things out with a shop fox W1746 with the 0.3 micron filter.
Once per year I bring in the leaf blower, turn on all the filters, and blow the heck out of the basement. Then run outside! I come back in an hour and do it again. Then I change all the filters. It's a blast!
Hmmmmm, I'm not the OP ("original poster") in this thread. Hope he sees this response!forestgirl -- you can take the girl out of the forest, but you can't take the forest out of the girl ;-)
I like your leaf blower idea. Probably calls for a full face respirator, though.
Nope, I just use a dust mask. Only takes about 30 seconds to make a whirlwind of dust.
Some type of collection is MANDATORY for drum sanding..
You BET! Just wait until you try to blow out the dust that collects inside the drum. Amazing the amount that collects in there...
I posted awhile back that my daughters got me a Drum sander. A Performax 10/20. However it does not have the Jet name on it? Just PerformaX..
Anyway, like you, I kicked myself for not getting one before.
Edited 5/19/2009 11:28 am by WillGeorge
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