RS 2 E Sandpaper Recommendations??

[Jeff Hein]

Here is a question for anyone that owns a RS 2 sander...
What sandpaper do you use most? Do you use the 50/80 grit papers very often?

I have a RS 2 on the way, so I want to get some sandpaper ordered as well. I am thinking for really rough stuff, I will use the Rotex... the RS 2 will be for large panels/plywood.

I would think I could just get 120/150/180 and be all set, but I am curious to see how many people use it with the lower grit papers.

Thanks!

 

[Phred]

Jeff:

I mostly use the higher grits but did sand a hardwood floor with the RS2E.  I used the lower grits for that job and it worked but was slow.  I expect that the Rotex would have been the better tool.  The area was small and narrow so a conventional floor disc sander wouldn't have worked very well and I couldn't justify the Rotex at that time.  If you're mostly sanding panels, then the combination of the Rotex for rough and the RS2E for medium sanding should work well.

Phred

 

[billybokay]

I recently purchased some 50 grit, and this sander worked great to make flat a table top that needed to be. The table had 2 leafs that folded over on to the top so everything needed to lay down nice. It was made from 1 x 5 boards edge glued anfter jointing and thicknessing. After hand planing I used the rs2e with 50, then 80 and up to 120 before switching to the ets 150 with 150 paper. It has taken some time, but I have come to really like this sander. 

 

[wubears71]

I have Rubin up to 180 grit and a box of 400 grit brilliant (I think I've used 2 sheets of that), but 90% of the time I use 80 and 100 grit.  After that, I switch to my 150/3.  The other boxes of paper for the most part just take up room, but I don't believe anything above 120 is available in 10 packs.  These are my go to abrasives for the RS 2E:

484405 Rubin Abrasives - 115mm x 228mm P80 Grit (50)
484406 Rubin Abrasives - 115mm x 228mm P100 Grit (50)

By the way, outside of my 150/3, this is my most used sander.  I love this 1/2 sheet sander.

 

[Brice Burrell]

Jeff, I had a RS2 that was loaned to me a few years ago, nice tools and it will do more than fine sanding.  I'd recommend getting at least a 10 pack of 80 grit and a 50 pack of 100.  You can try a 10 pack of 50 grit but I don't think it's a must have.  If your surface is fairly flat you won't have much problem with the courser grits, if it isn't flat, they can make the RS2 unruly at times.  If you're going to use the Rotex to flatten your panels you'll need to be careful because it's not hard to do more harm than good.  It can be a fair amount of work to get the RS2 to flatted a panel if you've badly dished it out with the Rotex.  Also, the RS2 will run better after break in.

The RS2 will redefine what a flat finished surface is once you get the hang of it.  Good luck.        

 

[Jeff Hein]

Thanks for that Info so far!

After thinking about it, I guess I would tend to finish things off with my ETS. I guess I would be better off with some low/medium grit papers. Maybe 80/100/120... (and a small pack of 50 grit)

Thanks!

 

[Brice Burrell]

Thanks for that Info so far!

After thinking about it, I guess I would tend to finish things off with my ETS. I guess I would be better off with some low/medium grit papers. Maybe 80/100/120... (and a small pack of 50 grit)

Thanks!

That's sounds good.

 

[greg mann]

I would add the 50 just to give yourself another option. There are times when the RS2e works a bit better for flattening than the Rotex and it is pretty effective with 50 for that job. It covers a larger span than the Rotex so it really does do a great job leveling surfaces, and if that is what you need to do, you don't want to be slowed down by too fine a grit.

 

[GaryLaroff]

It isn't clear what your application is, but my use for the RS2E is in furniture making, primarily with hardwood, with the occasional plywood work.  In 2008 I also refinished an old lectern made of painted walnut veneer plywood where I chose to sand off the old finish before doing stain and varnish work on it.

For hardwood I think it might be faster to flatten an area with the RS2E than the Rotex unless you are really good with the Rotex.  Fixing Rotex gouges would take a long time with the RS2E but the RS2E is much slower than the Rotex.  The RS2E will leave a flatter surface with coarse abrasives than will the Rotex unless you are very good with the Rotex.  I have 50 grit Rubin abrasive, but may never have used it on a project.  The RS2E was quite effective in a practice piece with Rubin 50 grit  leaving a dead flat but rough finish.

For the plywood lectern refinishing there was the constant issue of not wanting to sand through the hardwood veneer.  Most of the heavy work was done with the ETS150/3 and the final work with the RS2E.  The results were excellent.

My work is apparently more towards a finer finish than that some of the other respondents.  These are the RS2E abrasives that I have:

Rubin: 50, 80, 100, 120
Brilliant-2: 120, 150, 180, 240, 320, 400

For work on walnut, cherry and mahogany, I usually start at 150 or 180 and then go up through 320.  Sheets of these abrasives are put in a row and used sequentially with dust extraction through the CT22 with boom.  Switching abrasives is fast and frequently I clean them with a gum rubber bar with the sander running just before removing them.  Running through 180, 240, 340 is quick and provides a dead-flat and smooth finish.  These three are my most used abrasives with 180 doing the bulk of the work but 320 being replaced the most because it wears out a bit faster than the coarser papers.

Gary

 

[promark747]

Just bought an RS 2 (wow is this thing smooth), and was wondering about sandpapers as well.  I purchased the RS 2 in part due to the glowing review by Alan Little (askwoodman.com) and he recommends the VSM Vitex papers, which are made in Germany.  I would need to buy the MPE foam pad as well as the Festool hole punch.  Clearly the RS 2 was designed to accomodate non-Festool papers; I was wondering if anyone here has any experience using them.

I do wish the RS 2 had the plug-it cord...

Thanks!

 

[tbellemare]

If it helps, I make up some sandpaper assortments for the RS 2 E.

Tom

 

[hhh]

Mostly use the 2E for fine finishing -- it's not really designed for stock removal.  I don't know anyone who uses an orbital for course/construction sanding (say 60-100)...  Not to say you can't, just there are better tools for the job...

I push stock through a WBS to about 120.  If it's a slab, I go to the 150/5 at 120 to remove any WB marks, then the 2E for 150 to whatever the finishes needs. 

 

[MrToolJunkie]

Hi Jeff,

I typically start my sanding regimen at 100 grit and go up from there.  I do have some 80 grit too for when I need more aggressive removal.  While there are better tools for this task when needed, there have been times where I wanted the RS2E to level glue joints without the risk of dishing out the boards.  With coarse grit this sander can be quite aggressive.  I currently use Rubin and Brilliant in grits up to 400 and when I run out, I am switching over to Granat...love that paper for all of my sanders and think it is worth the premium.  I have not tried Rubin 2 yet, but this might be a good choice too for bare wood sanding.  I love this sander and use it on just about every woodworking project.

Scot