portable thickness sanders

[obdoor]

i'm in the market for a job site thickness sander. please advise a jet 16-32 plus or a grizzly G0458. they're both about $1000.any suggestions will be appreciated.thanks

 

[honeydoman]

I have the jet. Ands It's heavy. But on rollers so you can roll it into a trailer or 2 people

Next. It skims the top of wood and I mean skims  if you try to remove just a bit more it jambs and you have to push the little fuse popper on it and start over.

I use to use it in cab doors or oak pieces  and 1/3 of the time it would jamb. Due to to much pressure it is nowhere near a thickness planner

So that sad. I would not recommend one. But maybe they have a return policy and you can give it a try. For your needs

You usually would have to run it twice through then turn the handle 1/4 turn only which is not much. Otherwise it Jambs

 

[obdoor]

I have planer onsite, I want to cut down on hand sanding(ros) after planing and remove mill marks when I get milled lumber. We all know s4s is not ready for finishing, up here in SW Colorado it is sometimes more cost efficient to order s4s from the wholesale lumber suppliers.Any feedback would be greatly appreciated.

 

[RDMuller]

I am much happier when I run these things on 220.  Consider that if you are going to take them to a jobsite.  I would give consideration to the new jet model that has an oscillation built into it.  The model I have could be called a straight line linear sander that puts scratches on the board from one end to the other.

These things are not abrasive planers for doing heavy duty work.  They are great for some dimensioning use when you have to take a little bit off.  I always use my Festool random orbit sanders on the wood after I have thicknessed.

They are also great for woods that chipout when planing (burls, etc)

I too would not use one for what you are wanting.  These things have their place, but I don't think it is what you are trying.

 

[Michael Kellough]

I have the jet. Ands It's heavy. But on rollers so you can roll it into a trailer or 2 people

Next. It skims the top of wood and I mean skims  if you try to remove just a bit more it jambs and you have to push the little fuse popper on it and start over.

I use to use it in cab doors or oak pieces  and 1/3 of the time it would jamb. Due to to much pressure it is nowhere near a thickness planner

So that sad. I would not recommend one. But maybe they have a return policy and you can give it a try. For your needs

You usually would have to run it twice through then turn the handle 1/4 turn only which is not much. Otherwise it Jambs

A 1/4 turn on a drum sander is a lot unless you're using 36 grit abrasive. The term "thickness sander" is part of the problem since it implies that you can substantially change the thickness of the stock using the machine. It's really just a sander (not a thicknesser) and poorly designed to start with.

 

[denovich]

I have both a Jet 16-32 and a Dewalt 735 (lunchbox planer.)

I rarely use the sander... it is helpful on really thin stock, or end grain (like a cutting board) and the occasional piece that is too big for my planers.

Problem with the sander is a) speed b) finish c) they need a high volume dust collection system to help cool the sandpaper and keep from burning the wood.

My Dewalt leaves an amazingly good finish.  If I were dealing with more challenging wood/higher volume I'd drop a Byrd Shellix head (replaceable indexed carbide cutter head) in one.  The Dewalt can be used without a dust collector if you want.