Non VW woodworking advice please

[voodoopenguin]

My daughter has asked about power sanders, she has put a few shelves up in their new house but says she cannot seem to get a reasonable finish by just hand sanding. I have a couple of orbital sanders I have used over the years and they have served me well but I've never had a belt sander. It looks like they should be better but probably more expensive on replacement belts. I usually cut my own rectangles for the orbital ones but I won't be able to do the belts myself.

Any thoughts from people who use both?

Paul

[clift_d]

An orbital sander would be her best bet. A decent quarter sheet one would be ideal for something like finishing a few shelves. Go for a sturdier half sheet sander for larger areas or more extensive sanding work.

A belt sander is better suited for more industrial use or where large quantities of material need to be removed.

Dewalt or Makita sanders tend to be fairly decent. Get one that's based upon a standard sheet size with a punch plate so that you can use standard sheet or roll sandpaper and avoid paying a premium for the manufacturers branded sheets.

[Oldiebut goodie]

Belt sanders are more aggressive - they are more for rapid removal rather than final finishing. Virtually an alternative to a plane!
It depends upon what finish you are after, orbital sanders are fine for a lot of people but I find that the finish is nowhere as good as ending up with flour grade sandpaper by hand especially if you are finishing with a clear coating/french polish and the like. Orbital sanders leave tiny scratches, especially across the grain, no matter what grade of paper is used, it only takes one little piece of hard material caught in the paper to put a multitude of tiny scratches in the wood. Possibly this is due to the extra pressure on the paper with an orbital compared to hand sanding.
I would always recommend hand sanding for final sanding over mechanical.
(3 choices not 2! )

[nicq]

We teach the kids at school If you are varnishing to varnish lots of thin coats and sand between all coats.
Good varnish (we use Ronseal) and very lightly with http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/100-180-320-G ... Az28tbCOEw" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;
You can get a near perfect Finnish.
But ther are people on here a lot more expert than me.

[silverbullet]

http://www.perfectfinnish.fi/" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

[Oldiebut goodie]

[what2do]

Need a bit more info to fully understand the problem. One thing that's hasn't been mentioned is painting. Better to apply a few thinned coats rather than one thick one as this will leave brush marks. DO NOT use a belt sander for finishing, they're better suited to material removal as obg has said - similar to a plane.

[voodoopenguin]

Thanks for the advice, I see this has been moved to "Technical, Alternative & Modified".

There are various shelves she has put up, they are mostly made from reclaimed wood being a lot cheaper than new. Some are slats used in an airing cupboard, some are 13' long chunks for bookshelves. They may or may not be painted but the main thing is to reduce the likelihood of splinters. I'm visiting tomorrow so will see first hand.

Cheers

Paul

[New Kentish Campers]

Try a random-orbit sander, otherwise known as a d.a sander. Loads of various grits available, from 40 to 2000grit and because it's a random orbet, no swirl market shall get left on the surface. I've done loads of woodwork jobs with mine and get excellent results

[Jim San]

An orbital sander would be her best bet. A decent quarter sheet one would be ideal for something like finishing a few shelves. Go for a sturdier half sheet sander for larger areas or more extensive sanding work.

A belt sander is better suited for more industrial use or where large quantities of material need to be removed.

Dewalt or Makita sanders tend to be fairly decent. Get one that's based upon a standard sheet size with a punch plate so that you can use standard sheet or roll sandpaper and avoid paying a premium for the manufacturers branded sheets.

great advice.

If opting for one that has hook and loop paper attachment, make sure it also has spring clamps so you can use regular (much cheaper) paper.

I got 2 makita for school and they are brilliant, although £50 maybe out of most peoples budget for a sander when you can buy much cheaper - I have a rubbish Mac one which cost half as much

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/like/23170474 ... rmvSB=true" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

[what2do]

Another vote for a DA. Can be used for serious material removal or even finishing. I've had numerous over the years and my favourite is the Hilti but for occasional use any from a DIY store will suffice. Money should be spent on quality discs rather than the machine itself, a bit like sand paper - cheap stuff lasts a fraction of the time quality paper does.

If painting bare wood, a couple of coats of acrylic u/coat (sand between coats) before top coating with an alkyd gloss or satin will produce top class results. A bit like rollering vans with combicolour, it's all in the prep.