New RO150/CT22

[bassman00]

My RO150 and CT22 arrived yesterday.  Thanks for the quick service Bob!  I grabbed a little time with them and was very impressed.  I have a lot of glued up panels to smooth for my current project and used the RO150 in both modes.  In the past I've used a belt sander and was never happy with my ability to produce a flat, smooth surface.  I was able to do that with the RO150 on it's maiden voyage.  I was able to control the RO150 right away whereas I never felt I had complete control over the belt sander.  The dust collection was excellent with only a tiny bit of dust left on the panel and none in the air or around on my bench.    There will be a PC belt sander for sale in the near future...

PaulD

 

[Michael Kellough]

This isn't exactly the thread I had in mind but I'm not familiar with how the search engine works here.

There has been some discussion of whether the RO sanders can eliminate the need for a belt sander but the belt sanders that have been on the loosing end of the comparisons all sound like pretty primitive implementations.

I just want to remind people that a belt sander without a sanding frame (outrigger stabilizer) is not capable of making something flat, except in the most skilled of hands, and an instant of lapsed attention can spoil the project. A belt sander needs to be used with a sanding frame to make something flat. Compared to a good belt sander with a well integrated sanding frame the RO sanders also require skill to get something truly flat (that wasn't already flat). Th saving grace of the ROs is that they won't wreck your project if your attention lapses. A belt sander in a sanding frame not only won't wreck your project it automatically stops cutting when all the high spots are sanded down. It simply can't make any more low spots from within the frame.

A sanding frame is an even greater improvement to a belt sander than a guide rail is to a circular saw. To me, using a belt sander without a frame is way beyond using a circular without a guide rail, it's more like using a circular saw without a shoe.

So where can you get a belt sander with a sanding frame? Right now the only place in NA that regularly stocks sanding frames is Klingspor and only for the Bosch sanders. This is a good combination but not the best. I use an old AEG system which is great but no longer available since AEG got out of the power tool business and the factory was purchased by another German company. But, alas, the best belt sander in the world is NAINA .

 

[mysterium]

Micheal,

Even with the RO 150 sanders there will always be a place for a Belt Sander......

How else are you going to sharpen your chisels on the job site... :

jim

 

[Toolpig]

I'd hang onto the belt sander for scribing cabinets against walls, etc.

TP

My RO150 and CT22 arrived yesterday.  Thanks for the quick service Bob!  I grabbed a little time with them and was very impressed.  I have a lot of glued up panels to smooth for my current project and used the RO150 in both modes.  In the past I've used a belt sander and was never happy with my ability to produce a flat, smooth surface.  I was able to do that with the RO150 on it's maiden voyage.  I was able to control the RO150 right away whereas I never felt I had complete control over the belt sander.  The dust collection was excellent with only a tiny bit of dust left on the panel and none in the air or around on my bench.    There will be a PC belt sander for sale in the near future...

PaulD

 

[Lou Miller]

I dunno, I've got lots and lots of hours logged on belt sanders over the years. Flattening things without a frame was never a problem for me. The day I got my RO, I sold my belt sanders. Don't miss them even a little bit.

 

[bassman00]

Well, I probably won't sell my belt sander soon.  Mostly because it's easier to buy than to sell.  However, I doubt it'll get much, if any, work.  I was able to flatten a bunch of panels quicker and with almost no problems.  Never been able to do that with a belt sander before.  Never once felt like I was in trouble of damaging a panel.  And again, the dust collection was 99.999% better.

PaulD