Edge sanding cabinet doors

[lablover]

I have a small batch of door and drawer fronts I need to edge sand after putting them together.  Rail & Style doors with flat panel.....More or less shaker style.  All I have is festal ROS but am finding from other projects is not the best idea to use in edge sanding doors that need to keep a nice flat edge.

Any suggestions?  I was thinking of getting a RS 2E but not sure that would help any??

And no..I can't buy a big edge sander  LOL

Thanks guys

Joe

 

[lablover]

Forgot to mention I also have a RO 90

 

[Kevin Stricker]

The LS130 is the tool for you.

 

[lablover]

I assume I would not want to use this on the face of the doors/drawers because where the rails and styles come together would be like cross grain sanding?

Any links to this baby in action?

 

[Michael Kellough]

I'd like Festool to make an ETS 90 for this purpose.

I don't care how you hold it, a sander that can't stand upright without your support
(RO 90, 125, 150) won't be as good at making a surface flat as a well balanced sander.

 

[Theshipstore]

Although I use the LS 130 for my raised panel doors, I use the RTS 400 for the actual sanding on my rails and stiles, This combo has worked well for me at this point

Sal

 

[lablover]

Sal

I was thinking the same thing.  Do you find doing the edges with the RTS 400 works well?  How about if you have a proud edge you need to take down?

As well as sanding the face

Thanks

 

[Theshipstore]

As I said this combo has worked real well for me, I find the results just right for finishing. I will say on my larger panel door I do use the RS-2 but still the results are the same.. I did experiment for a while with other Sanders but this is the set up I use now all the time

I do like the RTS and the DTS sanders alot

Sal

 

[lablover]

Thanks Sal

I just tried my RO 90 with the Delta shaped pad and it worked OK...I can see the RTS 400 working great.  Looks like I may be going shopping Monday 

 

[ccarrolladams]

Labover, of the Festool equipment you own as an experienced cabinet and cabiner/drawer front maker, I recommend using your RO90DX with the hard pad in random orbit mode. The hard pad will preserve the crisp edges of the work to the extent that is possible.

My shop makes a large number of cabinets and consequently many, many doors and drawer fronts each week. Besides all our CNC machines and virtually all the Festools available in North America, I own a large edge belt sander. The work lies flat on a table, with the belt at a right angle. It provides 30" of support for the work in front of the belt. The belt is long enough sanding a 48" door is no problem. For taller pantry doors I have flip-up table extensions.

Although this sander is hardly high tech, it really earns its keep in time saved.

 

[Notorious T.O.D.]

I'll go a bit old school and say LN block plane and Festool hard sanding block.  Not a bad choice uless you have a large amount of doors and drawer fronts to do.  Plus it will build your skills more with the block plane.  Probably a bit less expnsive too!

Best,
Todd

 

[ccarrolladams]

I'll go a bit old school and say LN block plane and Festool hard sanding block.  Not a bad choice uless you have a large amount of doors and drawer fronts to do.  Plus it will build your skills more with the block plane.  Probably a bit less expnsive too!

Best,
Todd

Whatever floats your boat. Probably people who are way into woodworking as a hobby should learn to use various hand planes effectively.

My answer was based on the question about sanding the edges, not running them on a jointer or using hand planes.

My experience is that even the most up-scale clients for custom cabinets do not pay extra because hand planes were used where sanders are more efficient. My own satisfied clients are concerned about the fit of joints and the matching of grain. They do not ask how I accomplish the end results. Personally I learned to use hand planes in the late 1930s, then discovered after WWII when affordable hand power tools reached the market that clients would not pay extra for the longer time it took to do the tasks with hand tools.

Perhaps your experiences and mileage vary from mine.

 

[semenza]

I do the edges  of  frame and panel doors (and other things) with the ETS150 which I actually prefer to the LS130. lablover which ROS do you  have?  I had originally purchased the LS130 for this task , but found I liked the other better for flat edges.  

Use the hard pad.

Clamp the door flat on a bench top with the edge protruding.  The door is horizontal not vertical.

Hold the sander against the edge so that the pad is perpendicular to the floor, and position yourself so that you are looking down at the edge of the pad.

Stand towards one end of the door , hold the sander with one hand, and be positioned to draw the sander towards you. Use your other hand to steady yourself against the bench.

By positioning yourself and using one hand on the sander you can see that you are keeping the pad flat against the edge. Which is also why I like the 150 size, the broader pad makes it easy to tell that you are keeping it flat and not tilting it.

Hope that makes sense maybe I can get some picks to help visualize the technique.

Seth

 

[lablover]

I have the ETS 150 as well.  I'm sure I could pull it off with the 150, I've done it before but not with the hard pad.  I may buy a hard pad as well

I do see where I could use the RTS would come in handy as well.  Maybe part of me is looking for an excuse for a new sander  

When I used the Delta pad on my 90 I liked the way it felt but didn't like the shape of the pad.  I figured the RTS would give the same feel and even a bit more manageable to keep flat.

 

[fshanno]

I do the edges  of  frame and panel doors (and other things) with the ETS150 which I actually prefer to the LS130. lablover which ROS do you  have?  I had originally purchased the LS130 for this task , but found I liked the other better for flat edges.  

Use the hard pad.

Clamp the door flat on a bench top with the edge protruding.  The door is horizontal not vertical.

Hold the sander against the edge so that the pad is perpendicular to the floor, and position yourself so that you are looking down at the edge of the pad.

Stand towards one end of the door , hold the sander with one hand, and be positioned to draw the sander towards you. Use your other hand to steady yourself against the bench.

By positioning yourself and using one hand on the sander you can see that you are keeping the pad flat against the edge. Which is also why I like the 150 size, the broader pad makes it easy to tell that you are keeping it flat and not tilting it.

Hope that makes sense maybe I can get some picks to help visualize the technique.

Seth

I've done exactly the same thing.  And I get my face right down next to the work.

But what about the tops and bottoms?  The side grain of the rails is softer than the end grain of the stiles.  You don't have any problem with that? 

 

[semenza]

I do the edges  of  frame and panel doors (and other things) with the ETS150 which I actually prefer to the LS130. lablover which ROS do you  have?  I had originally purchased the LS130 for this task , but found I liked the other better for flat edges.  

Use the hard pad.

Clamp the door flat on a bench top with the edge protruding.  The door is horizontal not vertical.

Hold the sander against the edge so that the pad is perpendicular to the floor, and position yourself so that you are looking down at the edge of the pad.

Stand towards one end of the door , hold the sander with one hand, and be positioned to draw the sander towards you. Use your other hand to steady yourself against the bench.

By positioning yourself and using one hand on the sander you can see that you are keeping the pad flat against the edge. Which is also why I like the 150 size, the broader pad makes it easy to tell that you are keeping it flat and not tilting it.

Hope that makes sense maybe I can get some picks to help visualize the technique.

Seth

I've done exactly the same thing.  And I get my face right down next to the work.

But what about the tops and bottoms?  The side grain of the rails is softer than the end grain of the stiles.  You don't have any problem with that? 

Hmmm, I never really thought about that  [scratch chin]  Could be I am just sanding a lighter  / heavier as I move across the tops  and bottoms to touch and visual effect, as I would on anything else.  Sanding it the way I do, I can really see, check, and control what is happening  easily. In anycase I havn't noticed any problem.

Seth

 

[MrToolJunkie]

I think that any of the orbital sanders would excel at this task -- the DTS 400, RTS 400 or RS2E.  I find orbital sanders are easier to control on an edge and less likely to round it over or veer off.  An RO sander can work well with a hard-pad too (I think that WoodWhisperer shot a video of sanding an edge with the regular pad and a hard pad to show the effect of rounding over the edge using an RO sander).  Either can work with practice, but I find the orbital sanders better suited to the task.  The RS2E is great for bigger surfaces and one of the others is ideal for smaller pieces.  I have not used the LS130, but you could probably achieve great results with it too since its sanding motion is linear back-and-forth.

Scot

 

[sancho57]

scott,

I havent face jointed timber since the college woodshop class I took 17 years ago. at OCC.

I buy my wood S2S straight lined ripped from Austins or Reel and really have had no problems.

That was the reason I originally bought the jointer about 10 years or so ago. 

Hey I found a 850 planer on craigslist looks like new condition for $400 in a systainer in HB.

I sent the guy a email and gave him my phone number if it was still available.

I bet its not, the good stuff goes faster then the festool end user classes

 

[Notorious T.O.D.]

Carroll,
Not meaning to personally attack your response, if you took it that way I am sorry.
I would agree with all you are saying and the commercial shop will likely use an expensive dedicated edge sander.  I read the post as looking for suggestions, not just sanding suggestions.  Therefore my answer and suggestion. I do think it is valid if one is doing a few pieces. If it is the right choice for a non hobbiest is another question for sure.  Hopefully if one is doing 50 doors a week or a day they will be making different choices.

In the past I have had the similar debate regarding raising panels with Mike Dunbar.  He felt his panel raising plane was very time effective because it left a surface ready to finish.  I argued that I was doing 120 panels in each batch and the only efficient way was to use a shaper and high production sanders. Mike would certainly spend nearly as much time sharpening his plane to do 120 panels as I would with machines to finish them all. We can both be right or wrong but for different reasons.

The beauty of woodworking is that there are so many ways to get the job done and get to the desired result.  Certainly most of the finest furnature of the past was made primarily with hand tools only. But if power tools were available the old craftsmen may have used them.  I think the Shakers likely would have.

Best,
Todd

[ quote author=ccarrolladams link=topic=20790.msg212143#msg212143 date=1340588395]

I'll go a bit old school and say LN block plane and Festool hard sanding block.  Not a bad choice uless you have a large amount of doors and drawer fronts to do.  Plus it will build your skills more with the block plane.  Probably a bit less expnsive too!

Best,
Todd

Whatever floats your boat. Probably people who are way into woodworking as a hobby should learn to use various hand planes effectively.

My answer was based on the question about sanding the edges, not running them on a jointer or using hand planes.

My experience is that even the most up-scale clients for custom cabinets do not pay extra because hand planes were used where sanders are more efficient. My own satisfied clients are concerned about the fit of joints and the matching of grain. They do not ask how I accomplish the end results. Personally I learned to use hand planes in the late 1930s, then discovered after WWII when affordable hand power tools reached the market that clients would not pay extra for the longer time it took to do the tasks with hand tools.

Perhaps your experiences and mileage vary from mine.
[/quote]

 

[Ken Nagrod]

lablover,

If you don't choose to use the hand tool method and you prefer not to use the straightline, orbital or random orbital sanders (Festool or others), then you might want to look at a table mounted oscillating drum sander with a fence (even if you make the fence).  It could be something as moderately priced as the Ridgid model from Home Depot or several hundred dollars for a heavy duty model like the Jet.