ETS EC 150/3 EQ - What speeds for bare wood?

[HarveyWildes]

I was sanding some Baltic Birch plywood yesterday with my ETS EC 150/3 EQ.  It's not the first time I've used it, but it's the first time I paid any attention to the variable speed feature.  I was sanding the following progression: 80 -> 120 -> 180 -> 280.  All sandpaper was Granat - though I also have a few pieces of Rubin 2.

At any rate, I thought that, hey, if sanding with a spiffy more-or-less new 6" sander with excellent dust control is fast on speed #5, then increasing the speed to #6 would be even faster.  (Where is 11 when you want it?)  Then, for about an inch of one edge, I sanded very slightly more of the top layer of veneer than I might have liked if it had not been a piece of shop furniture.  There was a little 1/16" expanse of glue showing.  At that point I thought I might do well to read the manual.

The manual recommends the following:
5-6: Sanding of wood and veneered surface prior to painting.
4-5: Sanding wood with non-woven pad.
4-5: Edge breaking on wooden parts.
3-4: Sanding solid wood and veneered edges.
3-4: Light sanding of natural wood windows using non-woven pad.
3-4: Smoothing wooden surfaces using non-woven pad before staining.
1-2: Sanding stained edges.

Questions.
1.  What is the difference between a woven and non-woven pad?  I can't find the terms elsewhere in the manual.
2.  Why does the manual have special instructions for natural wood windows?  Is it talking about painted or bare wood natural wood windows?
3.  I'm assuming for general purpose woodworking that the manual is recommending 3-4?  Is the woven/non-woven pad thing important for bare wood?
4.  It seems to me that the real issue is just how aggressive the sander is.  So I might want to use speeds in the 3-4 range at low grits to keep from damaging the surface, but it seems like I ought to be able to increase the speeds at higher grits.  Thoughts?
5.  How about dry sanding polyurethane finishes (say at 400-800 grit) between coats?  Is that where the sanding at 1-2 comes in?

Your thoughts on how to effectively use the VS feature for woodworking would be much appreciated

BTW, I tested the Festool sander head-to-head against my DeWalt 5" yesterday.  Festool hands down on noise, vibration, speed, dust extraction, weight, etc.  I couldn't find any measure where the DeWalt had a leg up.  Despite that fact that it has been a faithful, sturdy workhorse, the poor DeWalt is going to be spending a lot of time on the shelf.

 

[Holmz]

I would assume that woven means a fabric or screen, and a paper is non woven.

I would use a high speed and finer grit.
80 seems a bit rugged unless the wood is pretty rough...
Personally I would start with 120 or 180 and #4.

 

[AlexThePalex]

It is difficult to understand what Festool exactly means in each and every case, they use big words, and then don't explain them.

With non-woven I assume they mean normal paper backed sandpaper like Granat or Brilliant, and with woven they mean their Saphir sandpaper, which has a clotch backing and is much stronger as a result.

I don't see why it would make a difference for the speed you need to use.

The biggest factor that determins speed for me is the material. Mostly I just use full speed for anything, unless it is very clear the material you sand is not that strong. Veneer is indeed one of those clear cut cases where you have to take more care. Even then I prefer to use a higher grit instead of dialing down the speed. The problem with many sanders on a lower speed is they can become eratic and sometimes make unexpected jumps.

But with some finishes on some woods you can't use a higher grit though, because you can close the pores if you sand too fine and the wood won't accept the stain very well. So in this case you stay with the grit you need and dial the speed a bit down. Again, how much you dial it down is not clear cut, because it also depends on the hardness of the wood. Just experiment until you get it right.

I'm always in favour of having the right sander for the job, that's why I have a bunch of them. If my 150 sander was a bit too rough for the veneer I'm working on, I'd whip out my ETS125 instead.

 

[Phil Beckley]

Hi
.....non woven will refer to Vlies
rg
Phil

 

[Michael Kellough]

"3-4: Light sanding of natural wood windows using non-woven pad."

".....non woven will refer to Vlies    Phil"

I wouldn't sand a wood window with Vlies so is Festool referring to removing paint from glass here?

Actually I've never used Vlies but have used similar (I think) Bosch and 3M non-woven products so maybe there is a use for these on bare wood that I've never considered?

 

[rst]

As a glazing contractor I would never use a non woven on glass unless it is extremely fine and then with minimal pressure...it will scratch the glass.