Sander recommendation for refinishing stairs

[Brian Livingstone]

Hello,

I have a set of hardwood stairs that need to be refinished.  What do you recommend for a sander(s) for this task ?  I am considering buying a Rotex 150 anyway, however, what would be good for getting into corners.  I have a CT22, and minimizing dust will of course be important. 

Thank you.

Brian

 

[Matthew Schenker]

Brian,
Good question, and one that I am currently dealing with!  I have an old house, and I am in the process of refinishing several flights of stairs.

I don't know whether you'll be refinishing stairs that were painted.  One part of my house has painted stairs, and for those I am using an RAS 115 to grind away the paint and get to raw wood.  Then I'll be using a Rotex RO 125 to go through the grits and get them ready for new finish.

On the stairs that are finished with urethane, I'll be using just the RO 125.

You could use the Rotex RO 150 instead of the RO 125.  I have both sanders, but for stairs I like the smaller machine.

In both sets of stairs, I'll be using the Deltex DX 93 E to get into the corners.  I don't use the Deltex very much, but it's a great little machine to have around when you need to get into tight spots.

I will use a CT22 throughout all sanding operations.  However, with the RAS 115, you won't get such great dust collection since it has more of a grinding action.  But when you switch to the Rotex and Deltex sanders you'll get excellent dust collection.

By the way, I've put together reviews of some of the sanders I just mentioned.  They are located in the "Tool Reviews" section of the forum.

Here are links to the reviews:
Rotex RO 125
Rotex RO 150
RAS 115

Does that help?

Matthew

 

[VictorL]

Hi. I recently refinished two flights of hardwood stair. I used RO-125 FEQ with edge guard for massive finish removal and Deltex DX93 for corners.  When I worked with step edges and corners I seriously considered buying LS-130 with additional sanding pads.

Victor

 

[Toolpig]

I just stripped and refinished all my red-oak stair treads using the ROTEX 150 (the newer version) using 36-grit Saphir paper and 50 & 80-grit Rubin paper.  I used the "aggressive" mode first with the 36-grit, then switched to "fine" mode using the same paper to get out the major scratches.  Then I stayed in "fine" sanding mode with the 50 & 80 grits.  They came out beautifully!!  Also NO dust with the CT22 vacuum.  Your paper with clog very quickly without a vacuum.  Also, buy more paper than you think you'll need.  Don't be stingy with the paper -- change the paper as soon as you see it's not cutting well (which doesn't take long with the 36-grit, about 5-10 minutes max).  The sander will get very HOT while you're doing this, but don't worry -- it's up to the task.  I applied 4 coats of oil-based high-gloss poly (Varathane) and sanded with 220-grit in between each coat.  They look like glass!  A lot of work, though.

TP

Hello,

I have a set of hardwood stairs that need to be refinished.  What do you recommend for a sander(s) for this task ?  I am considering buying a Rotex 150 anyway, however, what would be good for getting into corners.  I have a CT22, and minimizing dust will of course be important. 

Thank you.

Brian

 

[Dave Ronyak]

I, too, vote for a Rotex and the Deltex 93.  I have both and use the Deltex second only to the Rotex in refinishing natural wood trim of my house.  Don't forget that with the Deltex you can "cheat" by affixing the extension shoe and  a piece of abrasive on the top side of that extension.  That enables sanding the edges of trim pieces that are too close to another trim piece or a corner due to interference of the motor housing with the pad and abrasive mounted their normal intended way [on the bottom] facing away from the motor and gearbox.  Of course, dust pickup in this reversed mode is not effective.  I hold the vacuum hose with my other hand.  You can also fasten abrasive sheets on the upper side of the extended pads that are available for the LS 130, but again the dust collection is no longer functional with the extra wide pad even when the abrasive is mounted on the bottom.

Dave R.

 

[Brian Livingstone]

Thank you for the replies.  I am going to go with the Deltex 93, and the Rotex. 

Thanks again. 

Brian

 

[Toolpig]

You won't be sorry.  But be sure to hook up to a vacuum (even if it's a cheap one).

TP

Thank you for the replies.  I am going to go with the Deltex 93, and the Rotex. 

Thanks again. 

Brian

 

[3mbjts]

I currently own the Rotex RO 150 and am looking into getting the Deltex 93.  I plan on using it to redo some stairs as well. Could anyone please let me know what would be a good assortment of abrasive sheets I should have for the Deltex? Also, which pads would you reccomend for the Deltex?
Thanks.
Mike

 

[The Dude]

Pad wise go hard #488716 they provide a bit more rigidity for removal purposes.  Paper wise, run the same grits as your Rotex work, get your edges at the same time as your bulk work... 50 - 80 - 120....depending on the finish and shape of the stairs themselves prior to you starting the work.  Once you commit to the 50, you are stuck...if the stairs aren't in that bad of shape, you might possibly get away with starting at the 80 grit...

Timmy C