LS130 linear sander pads disintegrate

[Michael Kellough]

Buy the profiled pads only as you need them because the foam decays over time.

I bought the sander and several of the pads at east 5 years ago and the foam on all the pads is breaking down.
It is sticky and crumbly to the touch.

I thought I was lucky to find I had an unused pad of the exact radius I needed today.
It was still in the unopened bag so I hoped it wouldn't be as far gone as the open pads.
It still looked good. It hadn't turned yellow from oxidation. But I used up only three pieces of abrasive
before half the profile broke off the backing.

So, don't stockpile the pads. Buy them only as needed.

 

[harry_mc]

Good advice.  Had the same thing happen to me just recently when I was checking the sander.  Hopefully the newer ones have improved, but this one looked yellowed from age and fell apart while trying to mount it to the sander.  I had purchased it a couple of years ago (no telling how long it had been sitting on the shelf), but never used it.   

-Harry

 

[fdengel]

Hmm, well that doesn't sound good...

 

[Kev]

5 years for a sanding interface pad? I really don't see an issue here.

 

[leakyroof]

5 years for a sanding interface pad? I really don't see an issue here.

  Well for me Kev, the LS130 is my least used sander. So, yanking all the pads out of their systainer, only to find them crumbling, would be a bad surprise...... [eek]  As I don't venture inside that systainer very often.

 

[Michael Kellough]

5 years for a sanding interface pad? I really don't see an issue here.

If it had been used for 5 years I'd have to crow about it.

But, since it had never been used, never even opened, I had to warn people
that the pads have a limited shelf life separate from usability.

I have Porter Cable sander pads that have decayed too.
But they took around 12 years to become unusable.

 

[semenza]

5 years for a sanding interface pad? I really don't see an issue here.

    True, not a problem for most sander pads. I generally ware them out way before five years any way. But for the LS130 a full range of ten or so profile pads going bad  is a big surprise to get in the middle of a job. Mine are around that five year age. Time to check them and replace. I would like to wait until a particular pad is needed but that is a sander that I definitely want ready to go when the need arises.

    The real bummer will be making new custom ones. Although the block on some of those seems like a different material. 

Seth

 

[Michael Kellough]

5 years for a sanding interface pad? I really don't see an issue here.

    True, not a problem for most sander pads. I generally ware them out way before five years any way. But for the LS130 a full range of ten or so profile pads going bad  is a big surprise to get in the middle of a job. Mine are around that five year age. Time to check them and replace. I would like to wait until a particular pad is needed but that is a sander that I definitely want ready to go when the need arises.

     The real bummer will be making new custom ones. Although the block on some of those seems like a different material. 

Seth

Seth, I have two custom profile pads bought at the same time and they are still in perfect condition.
They are a different formula (also versions of urethane foam) but designed to be rigid.

The ready-made profiles are a resilient urethane foam but the resilience is gone on mine.
If I push the shape a depression remains. With care they would still be usable with a huge exception.
The surface of the foam is sticky and crumbly and the Velcro interface pulls off the foam when removing the abrasive.

 

[wetndry]

[Well for me Kev, the LS130 is my least used sander. So, yanking all the pads out of their systainer, only to find them crumbling, would be a bad surprise...... [eek]  As I don't venture inside that systainer very often.

I would have to agree with leakyroof.  The LS130 was to be my next sander but will now have to rethink.  It would be used for paint prep for casing and crowns when they need more than just deglossing, which is easy to do with a sanding sponge by hand.  I would probably not wear out a profile in 5 years. If I have to replace my profiles because they are breaking down that would add a lot to the cost of consumables. (over $300 for set of profiles not including custom kits) I thought it would be cost effective for me since the sander and profiles would give me a lifetime of service with my limited use.  Now this may not be the case.

 

[fdengel]

Yeah, I currently have the RO 150, and the LS 130 is kind of the next sander on my "list" - I've been wanting that one for a while to cover gaps in what the RO 150 can do (corners, plus the unique things it can handle), but as others have pointed out, it looks like a perfect solution to have around, but wouldn't be so heavily used that I'd wear out the pads within that timeframe.

I too would hope they would last a bit longer in storage than that.  If the custom ones can, could the standard ones be made with the type of foam being used on those?  Is that a place Festool could try to improve those particular accessories?

 

[Michael Kellough]

Yeah, I currently have the RO 150, and the LS 130 is kind of the next sander on my "list" - I've been wanting that one for a while to cover gaps in what the RO 150 can do (corners, plus the unique things it can handle), but as others have pointed out, it looks like a perfect solution to have around, but wouldn't be so heavily used that I'd wear out the pads within that timeframe.

I too would hope they would last a bit longer in storage than that.  If the custom ones can, could the standard ones be made with the type of foam being used on those?  Is that a place Festool could try to improve those particular accessories?

Going through my pads again I have a large radius convex profile that is very good shape. Unfortunately I don't know how old it is. Hopefully the foam formula has been improved since I bought my bad ones.

Ready-made generic profiles need to be resilient since the chance that it will exactly conform to the surface being sanded is slim. If a generic profile is hard it will generate excessive heat and wear in one part of the profile.

That less than optimum fit could be mitigated somewhat with an interface pad but that will also reduce the efficiency of the sander since it has a short linear stroke compared to a rotating sander. The thicker the interface pad the more of the stroke is wasted in merely bending the fibers of the pad and little of the stroke is left to move the abrasive.

In that case you'd be better off removing the profile pad from the machine and sanding by hand so you could make long strokes. As someone suggested in another thread, it would be nice if Festool or someone made a hollow plastic block that the profiles would snap onto and could fit a vac hose.

 

[semenza]

Checked on my LS130 pads.  

There is a range of age but my oldest ones are beginning to show signs of breaking down they are nearly six years old. They are still usable though with only little actual disintegration at the corners. Not enough to be a problem yet.  The color of the pads gradually changes from white to yellow through a pinkish to red/brown as they age.

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Seth

 

[Scott B.]

I have attachments that are over 3 years old, no disintegration yet. They do discolor, but no effect on performance. Seems like most of the profile attachments are in about the $30 range. If they hold up for as much 6 years, thats not bad. I've had $100 boot soles fall apart from lack of use in storage, that is a disappointment!

The LS hook and loop stays intact better than the orbital and rotex bases pads which we go through alot of.

 

[dicktill]

Buy the profiled pads only as you need them because the foam decays over time.

I bought the sander and several of the pads at east 5 years ago and the foam on all the pads is breaking down.
It is sticky and crumbly to the touch.

I thought I was lucky to find I had an unused pad of the exact radius I needed today.
It was still in the unopened bag so I hoped it wouldn't be as far gone as the open pads.
It still looked good. It hadn't turned yellow from oxidation. But I used up only three pieces of abrasive
before half the profile broke off the backing.

So, don't stockpile the pads. Buy them only as needed.

Does anyone have any ideas on how to extend the life of these pads? Keep them in sealed "sandwich" bags? Keep them in the fridge?

Thanks, Dick

 

[jacko9]

I see an opportunity here, a re-designed LS130 Systainer with "climate control inserts".  I love the LS130 but, it is only useful when I have difficult profiles to sand and that's only a rare occasion.  We need some input from Festool as to why these pads are disintegrating and what kind of environmental control is necessary.

Jack 

 

[RJNeal]

On rubber you need to a store in airtight containers to keep it from oxidizing.
I wonder and plan on storing the pads in zip lock bags and see what happens.
My LS 130 is about four years old.
Rick