Sanders Reviews

I own quite a few sanders, and in my opinion this is one of the best, although not _the best_.

Other reviewers have done an excellent job on focusing on all the positives, so I won't waste time restating what they wrote.

For the price there are a few things that could be improved on:

1.) The old 330 has a metal housing, where as this one is plastic. Granted, on a cold day the plastic is probably more friendly, but I like the feel of the metal housing better.

2.) The new 330 isn't made in the U.S.A., where as the old one is. For the price, it should be made here.

3.) The new 330 is rated at 14,000 RPM, where as the old one is 15,000. This probably makes the brushes and bearings last longer, although the brushes don't seem to be the same quality as on the older unit. Either way, the extra 1,000 RPM helped a lot when trying to avoid swirl marks with a course grit. The 340 is also 14,000 RPM, but 1/2 the price.

4.) The new 330 isn't counter-balanced as well as the old, perhaps because of the lighter plastic case.

5.) The 330 doesn't have a dust collection system, unlike the 340. Granted, if you buy a 330 you probably have a downdraft table and don't want the drag of the vacuum hose to interfere with the feedback of the sander, but it would still be nice.

6.) You pretty much need the tool to install the sandpaper. Everyone I know (including me) who has a 330 uses PSA paper because of this. Bosch has an ideal setup on their 1297DK, which is also a nice sander, but 12,000 RPM.

With that said, this is still the best unit available for purchase that I've found. The hand grip is very comfortable, it's fairly quiet, and the vibration is low enough to not cause numbness after extended periods of sanding. Because of the price I'm giving the new 330 4 stars, although I'd have given it 5 if they kept everything the same from the old 330.

I purchased one of these 14 years ago and have used it commercially in a sign shop for the same length of time. I believe the motor might be finally giving out but I will replace it with the same one. I wet sand my signs with it. That means I spray water all over the sign and use wet/dry sandpaper to sand it. This little sander has withstood years of abuse, water, and paint. I highly recommend one of these. I have a bunch of DeWalt tools most of which have failed on me.

I bought my first one of these sanders about 9 years ago. I use it all the time. It does an excellent job, is solidly built, and above all it doesn't make my hand and arm tired. I have a small wood working business on the side and I'm in the garage working usually every other weekend. I eventually wore my first sander out; I think it was the bearings that started to go. I contemplated changing them out but for $89.00 it's almost disposable at that point. I did however hang on to it just in case I wanted to have it rebuilt as a back up. My second one is still going strong. The reason I went with the Porter cable in the first place is because I'm still using the 1/2 pad sander my father purchased in 1952. For the most part you can't beat a Porter Cable.

I teach high school Wood Fabrication and Manufacturing and I have two of the Bosch 3727 Random Orbital Sanders in my shop. I have used other random orbital sanders in the past, like Dewalt and Ryobi, and I found them difficult to hold on too. These sanders are wonderful. They are very smooth, create an excellent finish and are very well balanced and stable. You can easily hold on to them with one hand and keep the sanding pad on the work piece. Definitely the best random orbital sander I've ever used.

I have this sander at home and it does an amazing job. I have a Fein vacuum that, when connected to the sander, makes it pretty much dust free. The sanders own dust bag does a good job too but hooked up to the vacuum you really get spoiled.

If you work in a wood working shop everyday the sanders to get would be the Fein 8", 6" and a pneumatic 5" or 6". The Fein has a lager throw so it sands off more with each pass than the Bosch with the same grit paper.

The Bosch however is easier to control, lighter, very quiet (compared to the Fein), less expensive, and a lot more comfortable to use. I work in a shop making furniture so I do a lot of sanding and I have been very happy with this sander!

I bought this sander to replace my Dewalt palm sander and I love it. Its a little heavy if your sanding walls or a ceiling but if you're on a flat surface its fine. The paper is a snap to change. This is a truly awesome sander.

The sander was delivered on time and was brand new, as expected. I would order from these folks again.

I bought this Makita sander on recomendation from my Dad.
It is a very nice orbital sander, uses the hook and loop sandpaper, and has the handle on the front of the sander so you can hold on to it with both hands. Double thumbs up!

Everyone knows when the switch is flipped most sanders are going to wake you up fast and cause all other sounds to evaporate and retire to the distant background , you know this and it may very well be the most used reason for not sanding at all . The perfect reason for putting these tasks off for some other day , when you may be ready for such an assult to the central nervous system , this is of course if you are like me and don't like noise of this nature , some may actually enjoy this and be lulled into a woodworking trance .
Sanding is the final step in most woodworking projects , one takes great pride in a wood crafted cabinet and one should , they have conquered all the tools used in it's construction and have got through this with not one mistake ( for a change ) .
In comes the sander , most with one speed , full on 12,000 to 15,000 OPM , you have finally attached the paper not quite certain which grade to begin with and make contact , suddely the realization hits and you have now rounded a corner in seconds beyond and past all hope or caring .
Your project now has a flaw and much of the pride and excitement have gone , all of which you possessed regretably just seconds ago . Do I now redesign this with all rounded corners or continue on and sand this side thinner than the rest in hopes of salvaging it ?
In comes the makita , here you have a sander that even the case it is housed in is well made , you can remove the sander and put it back in without first downloading a digital photo of reference .
I has all you will ever need . speed control ( something I often wonder what took so long to include ) and a nice one at that , it is located where you can reach it while working and it rolls easy plus has the benefit of a wide range of almost this is exactly the speed I need feel to it .
Changing paper is so easy , pull one off and place one on , hook and loop , wonderful thing it is .
Handles , now here is something manufacturers seem to think we can get along without . I HAD a makita random orbital with dust collection and even a way to attach a vac hose , it was styled much as a dumb bell .
I was not certain where to hold it , on top was not a good idea , this is where the motor finds the air to cool and the tool is tall and not balanced this way . How about the waste area it had one of these , must be the place .
But we have one speed and an on/off switch that is on or off , you must move it of it stays there forever , not good when the tool locates a grip in the grain and begins to bunce and jump breaks free heading for the house trailed by 50 feet of life giving A/C support to chew through anything in lands on .
The new makita has two handles and a switch you can choose to hold on of emergency release of lock it on once you realize you can control this sander with very little effort .
It has a low center of gravity with the added benefit of a dust collection system that does perform well and is out of the way under a handle .
To remove this bag a push button latch is provided so you no longer need to tug and pull for it's removable , always resulting in half the contained dust shot all over the workplace as well as you , always the half moon shaped spill you really wanted to avoid .
This unit has all the power you need and it does not seem to need extreme noise to provide this , in fact you can dial the speed down where the sander is at a cats purr and this makes it a pleasure to use .
It never begins to oscillate nore does it vibrate , it simply sands and leave you with a swirl free surface ready for stain or clear coats with no extra help from you .
Great machine , wonderful tool , sanding is something I always hated and now I don't mind it at all .
You can finish your work and even engage in a conversation with soneone without uttering the word WHAT !!! once and lift a cool drink without a ripple form a vibrated hand .

If you've read my other reviews, you know I own a lot of sanders (more than I've been able to review, actually), and this is one of them.

This sander has been around for years and does a great job. The old version was made in the U.S.A., but the new version is made in Mexico, NOT the U.S. as the information on Amazon states. There are more plastic parts on the newer model, but nothing to worry about.

The new model also has variable speed and dust collection, although it does NOT have an included template for punching PSA sheets, or an included PSA pad, for that matter. I think it's because P-C markets the unit as a polisher, and hook-and-loop polishing pads work great, while PSA polishing pads wouldn't work so well if they were available. Talking about "not available," there is no punch for this machine; you have to make your own out of a block of wood and some bolts.

This unit is now incorrectly labeled a "random orbit" sander, when it's really a "dual action" sander, meaning the orbits aren't really random, and regular swirl marks exist. However, dual action sanders leave much less noticeable marks, and produce a much better finish than orbital sanders.

Variable speed is a great feature for not melting varnish when sanding it, and for not taking off a load of stock instantly. Being a bigger guy I can use the sander with one hand, but be aware it is a monster at full speed and will consume wood quickly.

The sander is relatively light for this type of sander, pretty quiet, and relatively vibration free. Realize this is a lot of sander, so it's not exactly light, quiet, or completely vibration free, but it's the best sander you can buy in its class. It's also much more controllable than a 6" sander, and when combined with the variable speed it can handle most any sanding or polishing job well.

I immediately bought the PSA pad (for keeping edges square) and contoured PSA pad (for rounded edges). PSA paper is about 1/2 the price of hook-and-loop, and a torn piece of PSA won't immediately ruin the PSA pad, unlike hook-and-loop.

The case is huge, as another reviewer put it, but not large enough to store boxed pads. You can fit two unboxed pads in two corners, the handle in the third corner, and the fourth corner is molded for the vacuum adapter.

The results from this sander are the best I've found for a dual-action, and the sander is built well. Buy it; you'll probably love it.

If it came with a both hook-and-loop and pressure sensitive adhesive pads, and a hole punch plate, I'd give it 5 stars, even if the box couldn't hold boxed pads.

Great price. Arrived in perfect condition and on time. BTW - paid for Amazon's two day shipping for the year and it has been a good deal, have bought many tools, etc., and if the right size, they always come on the second day.

Very fine machine. Buy it with the dust removal kit - worth the price and then some.

I make furniture in a basement shop, so dust removal is a matter of concern, so, this machine delighted me. I hooked it up through my Festool vacuum system (with has an automatic swtich)(the hose in the sander box connects perfectly with the adaptor provided) and have sanded many square feet of white oak and hard maple with grits ranging from 80 to 220. I think it is a better at nearly finish work than stock removal. I am very satisfied with this machine - the variable speeds are key depending upon the grit used and whether the wood is rough or not.

It is a manageable tool and a sturdy one. The cord is a good length and so is the dust hose. The Festool RO Sander may be better at stock removal, but it is twice the price.

Norm Abrams recommends sanding across the grain first, than diagonally, and then with the grain. This method works great with this Porter Cable sander.

Great sander, quite aggressive, so select your #grit carefully. Gets heavy after a while, but it does the business.

The dust collection system on this is pretty good. hooked up to a shopvac, the only escaping dust is when you first put the sander to the surface.

I would recommend a few careful adjustments so as not to over heat the shop vac though - the 2" hose supplied is less than half the size of my shopvac hose. This cuts down airflow to the shopvac, making the thing work overtime and will burn the motor out fast.

I drilled a couple of holes in the adapter, to increase airflow, the shopvac stopped whining so badly and there was no perceived change in cleanup...

I recently recieved this sander although I ordered the version with the enclosed base(a nice option- good storage underneath for belts and discs- you have to go through all the Jet listings on Amazon to find it). Its very nice- lots of power, the spring loaded belt tension arm is a nice touch, although the tracking adjustment requires attention more often than other sanders I've used - it does the job though. The dust collection works pretty well, the miter gauge isn't very accurate, but for normal wood-working it should suffice. Nice machine, my second Jet tool.

Tried to bog it down just to test it.....it is TOUGH....it is a little hard to get used to the belt tracking mechanism, but once you master it...you have a really durable tool.

This combination disk/belt sander replaced a Sears disk/belt sander. I didn't know how bad it was until I got the Jet sander set-up and running. The factory where they built the sander has a very good workforce to build a VERY GOOD product. With this in mind, I will buy another Jet product in the future.

If you can deal with a cord, you can't do better than this drill. It's very impressive. Amazon is selling them a little high, so check around. I got mine on ebay for $80 brand new.

POWER is the word! I was on a ladder drilling with a 4" hole saw overhead. You can see where this is leading. Use to wimpy 18 volt guns I was 1 handing it when hole saw hooked up and stopped! My new magnum however kept on turning. I hung on for 1 turn and got clobbered on the following 2! I love my drill! It broke my wrist and I still say it's the best! It's the Top-Fueler's of screw guns.

The 302's long fault is that it needs a cord.
I have had this drill for 3 years and I don't use it much.
I use my cordless drills including my powerful Dewalt 988.
Today I used a 3 in holesaw to drill thru a 2 by 4,once I used the Dewalt,It struggled but drilled the hole. Then I used the
Milwalkee 302,it drilled It with ease and didn't even slow down.
I was very impressed.I will use the Milwaukee for the really heavy drilling from now on.I will use the cordless drills for
light to fairly heavy use (about 95% of the time). Why put unneeded strain on a good cordless drill?
If you are looking to buy a strong corded drill,look at Milwaukee first.

I'M AN ELECTRICAL CONTRACTOR AND USE THE HOLE HAWG ALMOST EVERY DAY...THE ONLY OTHER ONE I'VE USED ALOT IS THE MAKITA AND THO IT'S A GOOD TOOL, THE MILWAKEE JUST SEEMS TO BE TOUGHER. I DEFINATELY RECOMEND IT TO ANYONE THAT HAS TO DO SOME SERIOUS HOLE DRILLING, ESPECIALLY BIG HOLES...BUT PAY ATTENTION TO WHAT YOUR DOING, IT'LL HURT YOU IF YOUR CARELESS.....

This drill puts others to shame. Drilling through the toughest material, this one has enough torque to get the job done, and still more to spare. The limit to what you can get done with this tool is determined not by the torque that the drill puts out, but by your own strength--when the bit binds on you, the drill will literally wrench itself out of your hands. The warning that the Amazon review gives is apt; new users should be careful with this behemoth because it has more power than you might think. Screw on the secondary, perpendicular handle to keep a hold on this monster as it bores through wood, concrete, asphalt, metal--the tool can handle it all. But can you handle the tool?

In addition to being an outstanding tool for electrical and plumbing, mine survied 3" of water. I let it dry out, cleaned up the outside and it runs like new still. The self-feed bits pull it through the heaviest 2" solid, dry, and well aged oak -- without burning the wood. And its not just for pros. Anyone who has to do electrical, plumbing, or has to drill through studs or heavy wood, will benefit from this tool.

Needed to do some sanding to get rid of a sloppy wallpaper job from the previous owner of my home. In desperation I got my Bosch detail sander on it and found it worked great but I needed something larger. Off to our local home improvement store where I did in fact "save big money".
Looking on the shelf this and the smaller Bosch unit were the ONLY 2 I could find not made in China. Even the well known "American" names were made in China or wouldn't even claim where they were made. VERY disappointing.
Having been very satisfied with my other Bosch sander I bought this. The first thing I noticed is how smooth and quiet it is. Next the POWER. If I wasn't careful I could have gone right through the wall ;)
My only complaint is it's somewhat heavy and bulky (but then I bought it for the quality).
Bottom line this is an outstanding product and won't disappoint. Perhaps I'll never use it beyond this one project or I'll never use it for what most do but I am impressed!

This sander greatly exceeded my expectations on smoothness, aggressiveness, and durability. I am a seasoned woodworker who invested in this product a a PC R/O palm sander for two different applications (the PC is also very smooth, I'm very impressed with it also). I bought the PC for furniture making and finishing, the BOSCH for more general purpose work. For three monthes I used this sander 24-7 to remove many, many layers of old (70yr) house paint. Using 60-grit H&L paper, it made quick work of the stripping task. It was extremely durable (Others and I inadvertantly dropped it at a max height of about five feet). The only problem I had with this tool was that the H&L pad wore-out fairly quickly.

I own almost every type of sander, due to the fact that we live on our 50' motor yacht, with lots of varnished surfaces inside and out. I started working on the interior ladders (stairs to you land types) and was very concerned with the sanding dust generated by machine sanding. In addition to the other features I am most pleased with the dust removal system of my Bosch 3107dvs. AL Nalven Longboat Key, FL

I worked in a cabinet shop that did an ongoing production run of solid-surface bank teller counters, and for surfacing and polishing the tops, they used these Fein vacuum sanders. They were very effective, and kept that miserable Corian dust down to a very respectable minimum. However, it seemed as though they spent nearly as much time tinkering with the sanders trying to make them work decently as they did actually using them.

This is an outstanding combination for dustless sanding. I got mine from Coastal tools for $559.95 ($170.00 less than Amazon)

At the risk of being the odd man out. I just came from the WoodWorks2002 show at the Ft Washington PA Center. Top names were there demonstrating, as well as vendors with their wares. Fortunately the Fein sander vac combination, with all of the Fein sanders were there to use. The rep attached each of the sanders to the latest Turbo III vac. As an owner of a Bosch 3727DVS 6" sander, which is twice the money of their regular line, but less than half the cost of the Fein, I noticed that the Fein models, had vibration delivered to your hands. I had so so feelings about the Bosch sander, but after using the Fein, I must admit, I am now a lot fonder of my Bosch. The Fein did remove the material rapidly from the stock. I thought the Bosch removed material quickly also. Without a side by side comparison, it would be tough to tell any differences. The only problem with the Fein is the vibration would give me discomfort after using it for awhile. I know this sounds unbelievable after reading the other reviews that state they did not have a problem with vibration, even after hours of use. The vibration next to the Bosch model was substantial in comparison. It was that way with both of the Fein sanding models. He did not hook up the air driven model, stating it was the same as the electric, and did not have a compressor to feed it.
The odd thing is that I was talking to someone else at the store that had a Fein sanding system, and he mentioned the vibration to me. I did not prompt him for that information. A conversation broke out near a router station, and it drifted into sanders. He said, "I have the Fein sander, and the vibration is a problem." I immediately responded that I noticed the same thing.
I own a Fein RT-1800 router, see my review, "Simply put, this is the very best", and I also have the Fein Multimaster, with their pro cut, and extra individual blades, and loads of sandpaper boxes. I love the Fein quality.
The dust capturing feature is something that the Bosch has also. Holes in the bottom of the sanding pad and paper, allow the vacuum to suck up the dust. Fein advertises that it picks up 99 percent of the dust. A small amount of dust that is generated at the edges of the disc, escape the draw of the vacuum. The Bosch does the same thing.
The Fein Turbo vac is a very nice unit. It doesn't complain when the air flow is limited. It has an independent cooling air flow. I use a Sears 6 1/4 HP model that is designed for a ton of airflow. Hooking it up to the small flow of the sander, is like trying to breathe through a straw. What I did was to hook up the 2 1/2" airline to the outlet, which is smaller. I let it leak. The extra air that is released around the outside of the inlet nozzle, successfully draws that 1% of dust that escapes the edges of the pad. Wahlah, complete dust capture. Noisy in comparison, but complete.
The Fein turbo vac has the advantage of being super quiet, auto run when you start the sander (the sander plugs into an outlet on the vac, so it knows when it turns on) and is designed specifically for the flow levels of sanding.
I know I will receive a lot of flak stating that it vibrates, especially since the other reviewers are obviously professionals, and did not notice a problem with that. I did not use it for a long period of time, but the vibration was very noticeable. The Bosch 6" is substantially smoother.
The other thing worth mentioning is that the 8" Fein had a tendency to dance across the wood, when riding flat, whereas the smaller model gave you a more stable ride. It is capable of hovering without pulling you erratically. Either sander you could ever so lightly tilt to one edge, minutely off of plane, and get a stable ride, but then you are doing more digging. The perfectly flat ride, will not dig, and gives you the maximum work surface at one time. So the smaller model gives you more of the advantage of a flat sheet sander, than the 8" model does. The Bosch 6" gives you that kind of stability at all speeds. Maybe their is something inherent in the 6" disc that makes for a more stable ride.
I must admit the Fein cut a lot of material very quickly. The package is very quiet. I know from my other Fein equipment that it is built to last. For those reasons, I gave it 5 stars.
I'm overly sensitive to vibration, because I was using an inexpensive vibrating sander, that gave me throbbing fingers after 20 minutes of use. The Bosch was a dream in comparison, so when I did a hands on with the Fein, I was surprised. It was a lot better than the vibrating sander, but not as smooth as the Bosch.
If you do a decent amount of sanding, and have a hard time scuffing up the cash for the Fein unit, check out the Bosch 3727DVS. It's twice the money of the standard Bosch line, but is an impressive unit. Hope this helps.

Read all the reviews here and decided to give it a try. The saw I previously used was a 20 years old SKIL saw. Let me tell you,this saw doesn't hold a handle to the old SKIL. It sounds like any other cheap saw from Harbor Freight (kind of rocks instead of bearings feeling). Besides, a pretty strong vibration would come and go while you are cutting. I don't know what I'm going to choose next, one thing I know for sure, I'm not going to keep this saw. The hight adjustment leaver got jammed and it took all my strength to loosen it. Bottom line, it would be a good $30 saw, not a $130 one.

well. The saw is powerful, and fairly lightweight. Not jumpy either, very smooth. The case is clown-shoes big and the adjustable handle is a bit stiff, but overall a worthwhile investment and a good deal at that. (this review is for "left blade" consumers only. I cannot speak for the other side.)
And I am over the age of 13. Really.

Good strong saw, 2 things bother me though, 1 made in mexico, 2 the saw slides around in the case and seems to be a circular saw / router case, not a standard saw case with slots to hold extra blades or small parts.