Official Luthiers Forum!

I'm considering buying an edge sander - my first choice is probably going to be the Grizzly g0515


But surfing EBAY this morning I came across this unit and wanted to pass it by you all for comments..



Edge Sander on EBAY

Anyother suggestions would be great.
Thanks

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Lance@LuthiersForum.com

That's a bug sander Lance, You got room for that in your basement shop? What are you thinking of using it for? I mean anything in particular.

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Tickle your guitar daily, and it'll tickle you back.

Lance, I've got the Grizzly, and don't think you can go wrong with it. DON'T USE THEIR BELTS! They suck mud! The seam is huge on them and makes the workpiece bounce every time one comes around. Go with the Klingspor belts and I think they are type 4 seams. Very smooth.
I think shipping on a used unit like that would kill the price advantage.

I have the grizzly sander. Other than the crappy belts like mentioned the
switch went out on me, but that is an easy fix.

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John Mayes
http://www.mayesluthier.com

WOODTEK 6X89"
Lance--Just to make you decision more complicated--I've been using this sander for several years and like the feature where the sanding held will tilt to a flat position. (table does not tilt)
This is handy for surfacing a fairly large (read heavy) piece of lumber. Even a piece that is wider than the belt can be surfaced fairly flat by moving back and forth across the belt.
I don't own a jointer anymore, do all jointing on the belt sander.
Nelson

WOODTEK 6X89"
Lance--Just to make your decision more complicated--I've been using this sander for several years and like the feature where the sanding held will tilt to a flat position. (table does not tilt)
This is handy for surfacing a fairly large (read heavy) piece of lumber. Even a piece that is wider than the belt can be surfaced fairly flat by moving back and forth across the belt.
I don't own a jointer anymore, do all jointing on the belt sander.
Nelson

yep the gizzly head/belt body moves too. Come in handy on a number of
occasions..... in fact I leave it flat 99% of the time...

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John Mayes
http://www.mayesluthier.com

My only concern would be the composite table on the Grizzly. No T bar slot and not a lot of mass to absorb vibrations. I'd look for something with a cast iron table and the moveable sanding head.

I think that ebay machine looks a lot more substantial. I have that Grizzly machine and I had to mess with it a lot to keep the belt perfectly square to the table. It tended to wander some when the machine was running.

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Brock Poling
Columbus, Ohio
http://www.polingguitars.com

I have a Jet and the sanding belt adjusts from vertical to horizontal. Problems is that it does not stay in adjustment and will change angle if you don’t check it often.

With a jig, you can do many things, radius fretboard and arch braces, etc.

I bought a Powermatic, thinking it would be a pretty decent machine. The belt doesn't track right, the small table on the end of the belt is probably at least 1/2 inch out of square and the mechanism that locks the belt in the upright position slips.

So much for "you get what you pay for".

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Dave Rector
Rector Guitars

I've not had any problems with the belt on my grizzly. IT needs adjusting
maybe once every couple weeks (which takes a whopping 20 seconds or
so).

The graphite composite kinda platen that hank mentioned is a concern
though. Seems eventually it will wear, but so far (3 years later) it is still
groovy....

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John Mayes
http://www.mayesluthier.com

I should admit that I had to do a lot of tweaking on the Woodworker's Supply Woodtek 6x89 when purchased several years back. Actually had to add some iron to stiffen the motor mount etc. I've also added a dial indicator so that the belt could be aligned at a "perfect" right angle with the table for jointing operations.
I would add an oscillating belt feature as well as an SCR controlled VSR motor if I had my druthers. There are times, for example when sanding a radius on all four corners, that it would be nice to reverse the belt direction. I've had the belt grab parts, as well as my finger-tips, when trying to sand the two radii where the belt is going the wrong direction. A 36 grit will trim fingernails rather quickly!!!!
Nelson

[QUOTE=npalen] A 36 grit will trim fingernails rather quickly!!!!
[/QUOTE]


Been there done that many of times!!!!

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John Mayes
http://www.mayesluthier.com

That unit has a cast iron table and it tilts +60 to -60 detrees. That's kind of attractive. But it seems to be a lot shorter than the Grizzley model. Is the Homier a bench top tool? I am also in the market for one of these and $199 so far seems great! But, HAS anybody ever heard of Homier?

John

Isn't Homier French for "home boys"?
Like "Wazzup, homey?"

Homier Distributors comes to our area 3 or 4 times per year and sets up a huge tent at the mall and sells tools all weekend. Very similar stock and pricing as Harbor Freight. They have been around quite a while and I wouldn't be afraid of purchasing from them. Quality, again, is on par with HF.

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tim...
http://www.mcknightguitars.com

I asked Homier whether the carriage assembly rotated and they replied that it doesn't. This would seem to limit its utility.

Also as someone mentioned above, it is a very low machine. I would have to set up on blocks to use it.

On the plus side that appears to be a rather massive motor!

That being said, the price is still attractive if one can live with the fixed belt position and the potential for quality deficiencies in such an inexpensive machine.

Another thought; what is the shipping cost to your area.

Regarding the grizzly, I do recall reading a review that mentioned that the mdf table tended to flex under pressure.

Michael McClain

Hi - I am new here and new to guitarmaking (but I have 20 years of
cabinetmaking experience).

I recently bought the Powermatic edge sander disparaged above, and I
have to agree with the complaints. By the way, the Powermatic, the
General, the WoodTek, and the Jet all appear to be exactly the same tool.
Like most of these tools, including Grizzly, expect that some serious
tweeking will be required.

I considered the Grizzly model that you are asking about, but it did not
appear to offer the option of rotating to a flat position. The smaller end
roller is a definite plus, assuming that it sits at a true 90 degrees to the
table. Do not assume that it does, as most edge sanders use the end
roller to adjust tracking.

The miter slot is almost essential for mounting jigs, but you can certainly
route your own slot in the Grizzly table.sander.

If you want to set up the swinging arm style of fingerboard radius jig,
then you will want a sander that rotates to a flat position. It is also
possible to create a different type of radiius jig that works with the sander
in the vertical position.

Regards,
Brook Moore

Welcome Brook, cabinetmakers are not only welcomed but admired..... Your work has had to look good for years, now of course it can: SOUND GOOD too.Dickey38421.5091435185