I am making furniture that requires large numbers of slats in the seat and chair backs which have a 1/2″ roundover on all edges. I am looking for the equivalent of a drum sanding attachment for a drill press that wil sand the rounded eges with out flattening them. This would look something like an hourglass in profile. Any suggestions? I am spending way too much time trying to hand sand with a piece of sandpaper in the palm of my hand to conform to the convex curve of the edges.
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Another method is to hold the ends of the sandpaper as you would a polishing cloth when shining shoes, conforming the curve to the wood and pull it back and forth. Most of the time, I just use a finish sander with light pressure and keep it moving so as not to create flat spots.
Another option is the Festool LS 130 EQ Duplex linear sander (around $340) or finding a (now discontinued) Porter Cable 9444 Profile Sander (around $120). If you Google "profile sander" you'll find listings for both, and some dealers still have the 9444 in stock.
profile sander
Like this:
http://www.festoolusa.com/products/specialty-sanders/ls-130-eq-linear-sander-gallery-567777.html
Pneumatic is the word
Have you looked at a pneumatic sanding drum? By decreasing the pressure inside, the sanding drum will better conform to the profile and not leave flat spots. You might also consider sanding sponges or making a sanding block with the negative profile, using (expanding) foam or another material.
Scrape it
Maybe cut a half moon shape out of a steel scraper using a hack saw to cut the bulk out and then a fine round (chain saw) file to refine the shape. Hone to sharpen just a square sharp edge on and then scrape the slats/work as needed. Try this article here on FWW or search Scratch Stock or Scraping.
https://www.finewoodworking.com/Materials/MaterialsPDF.aspx?id=2851
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