Sanders Reviews

This is one of the best sander I've used.

I own fabrication shop and use many sanders like makita and porter-cable. If you are planning to use the sander more than 8 hours a day, then it is it.

the only downside is (1) it is 30 percent heavier than the other (2) a lot of noise (3) some of the accessories are made in plastic. Older model were made with ALL metal.

It's a sad day for the trusty ole Porter Cable 504 Locomotive Sander. I just heard that Black & Decker/Dewalt bought Porter Cable, and as part of the restructuring, discontinued the 504 worm drive belt sander. Folks this was the best belt sander ever made. The design goes back decades, and was made in Jackson, TN. Dewalt's president John Schiech said in an interview "...Porter Cable/Delta showed that while these brands are strong and highly respected, their product lines were suffering from lack of investment and specifically innovation, which is a strong suit of our company." I guess Dewalt/B&D's idea of "investment & innovation" is to import more junk from China. It looks like the legendary 725 worm drive Porta Band Saw may be next on the chopping block, most dealers are currently out of stock. Call or write Black and Decker and voice you opinion to keep Porter Cable as we know it and these great old tools alive.

I have been a woodworker and finish carpenter for thirty years.There is simply no comparison between this sander and all of the lesser pieces on the market.The weight of this sander is an asset when sanding flat work.The belts can be changed quickly.I have never seen one break.If there is any drawback,it may be the lack of a dust collection system.So,wear a respirator.This sander makes it worth it.

My Porter Cable 7335 finally gave out. I've been a serious wood working hobbist for many years and this was one of the first tools I ever purchased. As I was taking this sander in for repair, I couldn't help but think just how hard this tool has worked for me over the last 16 years. I've probably used this tool more than any other tool in my shop over those years. It's been a real work horse! It's always been there to do the job, whether it be fast stock removal or fine finishing, without leaving unsightly swirl marks. Hurray for good old American quality built tools!

I am a professional cabinet maker, we have had a two of these sanders in use in my shop for several years now. Always reliable, with the exception of brushes wearing out about once a year or so. Fast stock removal, with a good overall finish quality. We use the Stickit style self-adhesive sanding discs, after a few thousand discs, the extra cost of hook/loop discs adds up. Stay with the hook/loop for small jobs though, once you take a self-stick paper off, it won't really stick right again. Highly recommended.

this sander may not be for everyone as you can take alot of material of very quickly...but thats why i love it. it dosnt leave you with a bunch of scratches either... turn down the speed and you can do some finish sanding as well. enjoy

Oh my, what a piece of equipment. Opening the box was just like Christmas! High quality components, hefty feel ( but not too heavy ) ultra long power cord, . . . and then I turned it on. WOW, does this do a great job. super smooth sanding with ZERO dust (I also purchased the FEIN Turbo III vacuum / dustless system) the sand paper does NOT clog, ZERO airborne particles, and no residue on my safety glasses! (highly recommend it with a FEIN vacuum with AUTO start, when you turn on the sander, the vacuum also automatically starts! This unit is spendy, but WELL worth it!!!

The German engineers say this sander, combined with a good
vacuum, takes away up to 98% of the dust of sanding. They
have to worry about Lawyers. I do not. It gets rids of
*all* the dust.

I hooked it up to a Fein vacuum (model 9-55-13) which I got a
year ago for its own sake. I was able to connect the circular
vacuum hose to the rectangular port on the sander because of
a flexible rubber sleeve which was included in the bottom
of the sander box, like an apology.

I didn't even have the right kind of sanding disks. Mine have
six holes. The Fein uses 8-holed paper. So I punched new
holes in it. I cannot imagine that this is ideal.

Yet -- there is no dust. I sanded a large oak double door
on both sides, an operation I have been fearing for months,
and not only was the result dustless, it was done in half the
time I expected. This sander is mighty fast. To me it felt
like both passes (220 grit and 320) were done just about as
fast as I could move the sander over the surface.

It has two speeds: "on" and "off". It does vibrate a noticable
amount, but not at all objectionably. It's loud enough that
I think I should wear hearing protection, but not so loud
that I will actually walk downstairs to *get* my hearing
protection.

There is no more hyperfine dust on the inside of my eyeglasses
after sanding, which means I'm not breathing it in. I like oak
everywhere except in my lungs.

Buy this and the Fein vacuum, preferably with the HEPA filter,
and throw your other sanders away before they make you sick.
Lungs are more expensive than sanders.

This has got to be the best sander/vacuum combination in the
world. (Because Festool doesn't have a HEPA vacuum yet. :-)

If you do woodworking, you know that sanding is the most dreadful part of any project. Sanding is usually a dirty, dusty, and unhealthy job. When my last random-orbit sander got worn out, I replaced it with the 6" Fein MSF636-1. I also bought the Fein Turbo II dust collector to go with it. I am so impressed, I just had to sing its praises...

I have been through several random-orbit sanders -- DeWalt, two from Bosch, Makita, Porter+Cable, and others. Always, when I'm done sanding, my hair and face, and all surfaces in the shop, are covered in dust. For days afterwards, I have to vacuum up the dust. The dust flies around, the dust is all over my work clothes, the dust makes its way from my shop into the house. It is dirty and it is unhealthy -- it is very dangerous to breathe fine dust particles.

When I bought this sander, I figured that "dust free" meant less dust. I thought it would just be an improvement over my other sanders. Not so! With this sander, dust free really means dust free. With the Fein sander, attached to the Fein Turbo II dust collector, there is absolutely no dust in the air at all! I have a bright shop light right over my sanding table, and after I am done sanding I cannot see anything floating around in there. Definitely close to 100% dust collection.

The Fein sander is an aggressive machine, and at first you might be surprised at how much material it removes in a short time. There is an adjustment period when switching to this machine from other ROS, but it is a nice thing to adjust to. Also, I should say that this is a heavy machine, definitely heavier than other ROS I've used. But it does a beautiful job. I've used it on grits from 40 up to 400, and it is easy to control and very well balanced.

One definite minus is that Fein includes no instructions. I know that a sander is a pretty simple machine, but there are a couple of items in the box that didn't make sense to me right away, and it's nice to have instructions to make you feel confident you're doing things correctly.

The bottom line is, I no longer dread sanding. I actually look forward to the sanding phase of my wood projects now.

i'll preface this by saying i'm a professional carpenter and make my living using my tools.

i have owned or used worm-drives from skil, makita, and bosch, as well as sidewinders from porter-cable, makita, hitachi, skil, and dewalt. this milwaukee is my saw of choice in nearly every situation--it is light (4+lbs less than a worm-drive), powerful, accurate, and the tilt-lok handle is a great feature. at first, i thought i'd not use the tilt-lok often, but i end up using it in a different position several times a day. another feature easily overlooked but crucial is the positioning of the secondary handle. i most often cut one-handed anyway, but when i do grab the front handle, my hand and wrist are far enough forward to stay well away from the blade sightline.

my only (small) complaint is that i'd prefer the dust collection to be a bit more organised. porter-cable saws do a great job with this, and i wonder why the other manufacturers can't seem to get it together.

if i had it to do over again, i'd spring for the blade brake model--the blade can do a lot of damage in the 8-10 seconds it takes to spin down.

I received this saw as a birthday present, allowing me to retire my old underpowered and inaccurate Black & Decker "Sawforce" saw. The Milwaukee arrived in perfect condition and purred like a kitten from the start. I have been very impressed with every aspect of this thing, most notably:

The tool-less ability to change the base plate angle as needed;

The POWER. It cuts wet framing lumber and quarter sawn white oak with equal ease;

With all that power, I have not experienced any binding, stalling, kicking, burning etc;

The tilt lock handle is fantastic. I cannot conceive of using a saw without it now that I have it;

The blade that came with the saw is quite good.

Overall I cannot say enough good things about this saw. Its relatively light, very accurate, powerful, and feels like it will outlast me. Buy one yourself and you won't be sorry!

I bought this saw about 5 months ago to replace an old Makita and have used it almost daily since. I did a lot of research before buying using online reviews and magazine comparisons. After reading the reviews and having previous experience with other Milwaukee products, I opted for this one.

The tilt-lok handle makes it very easy to change positions, allowing for maximum control and comfort while sawing. I especially like the adjustable front handle. It makes beveled cuts a snap, keeping maximum leverage right where it needs to be. Once you use it, you will miss it if you have to use anything else. With 15 amps, I haven't found any wood too tough to cut with it even with a dulling blade. I purchased the edge guide about two months ago. This is a necessary addition if you cut lots of plywood.

I am becoming quite a Milwaukee "fan-boy". Every tool of theirs I've bought has been a winner. As long as they keep making tools with this kind of quality, performance and features, I'll be a user for life. This saw will be a welcome addition to any serious woodworker's shop or contractor's truck. If you're still undecided, give this saw a try. You won't regret it.

Excellent machine for the price, very sturdy construction, high quality build. However, it is slightly let down by the belt tracking mechanism. As reported by another reviewer, I also find I am constantly adjusting the tracking, and if the tracking lever is knocked it throws it out. Still a very nice machine though.

Awesome. Jet is the way to go! High quality and great performance.

Great piece of equipment. Very solid piece of top-notch equipment that operates quietly and vibration free. The direct-drive unit delivers plenty of power (especially when wired for 230 V) and has no belts to slip, adjust or wear out. The built-in dust collection with a single 4" connection make hooking it up to a dust collector a simple operation.

The sander weighs over 200 lbs., so have a friend or some good lifting equipment available for unpacking and assembly.

The closed cabinet base is very nice and has a much smaller footprint compared to an open stand. If you plan to move this unit, I recommend removing the installed wheels and brakes and put it on a mobile base. The no-swivel wheels are not much use unless you plan to move the sander in straight lines only. The wheels also narrow the base support enough to make the unit slightly unstable.

It is heavy and well made. Comes with one sleeve. It was a wait to obtain. Seems to have limited availability. Great for
straight edges. Sleeves are also tough to find other than from Jet.

This 3" spindle assembly is substantially larger, and heavier than the standard spindles which comes with the Jet Benchtop Osciallating spindle sander. The advantage to having a larger drum is that it creates a flatter surface where the crown meets with the wood. That creates a smoother surface on larger pieces. The smaller spindles that come with the unit, range from the 2" on down to the smallest ones, which are great for getting into smaller corners etc, but on a large flat or gradual curved surface they can create dimples in the surface if you don't keep the material moving.
Is the 3" spindle neccessary? Not really, with a careful technique, you can accomplish it with the smaller spindles, but it definitely makes it easier. Highly recommended.

This kit gives you a whole different range of capability with your Jet sander. Take this kit, put your sander on a stable tool stand, and then pat yourself on the back for the money you saved by not buying a floor model sander. With this kit, your sander tackles a much broader range of tasks.

When sanding smooth, flowing curves (like the curvature in a bandsawn box, for instance), the added diameter of this piece keeps the sander from gouging troughs in your workpiece.

I highly recommend it!

small lite wieght sander that go and do more than any other sander. Has plenty of power to remove material and help in shaping wood. Just seams to send dust flying everywhere. If it had dust collection it would definetly deserve 5 stars, but then again if it had dust collection it would just get in the way.

I've been using this sander for many many years now. In fact I have 3 of them in my shop. Of course I bought them from Amazon.

Only thing you have to do to maintain this great tool is to change bearing. You can get them from Makita or many other on-line part shop.

I've had one of these little sanders for about 15 years.

It's a very specialized tool, and in my case, there haven't been many uses for it - however, when only a small belt sander will do the trick, this tool has worked well, without any problems.

It's light, safe to use, has plenty of power, changing belts is simple and fast, the handle for your left hand greatly aids in tool control, and overall, is well designed. The only feature mine lacks is variable speed, which the newer sanders have.

Even though the belt is narrow, it can throw off lots of dust, so consider using it outside (if possible), or use a respirator. It isn't a good choice for sanding flat wood much wider than an inch, since it's difficult to not leave groove marks at the belt edges.

I have used the Makita Model 9046 1/2 sheet sander for 4 years. It is almost identical to this model.

I had the opportunity to do a hands on evaluation of 1/2 sheet sanders. I liked the ruggedness Porter-Cable, the economy of the Milwaukee, and the feel of the Bosch, but the Matkita is in a class of it's own.

At first it seemed a little heavy, but after I got use to it and let it work, it did a fantastic job. This 1/2 sheet sander oscillates much more than the others and does the job in half the time. It leaves the surface dead flat and is very kind to veneer.

It has vacuum pich-up holes in the paper/sander like a random orbital sander. If you hook it up to a vac the dust is minimal ( This may require a little tape around the outlet to fit your hose). The punch plate does not come with the sander. So unless you can find the special pre-punched paper, you need to order the plate from a Makita rep or make one.

I do not recommend starting with 80 grit paper. This sander can be very aggressive, so start with the finest grit that will do job.

My application requires a minimum dust sanding system (house with air heating ducts). I could not find any vendor selling the vacuum hose and punch plate for the BO4900V sander so they were ordered directly from Makita. The sander was ordered from Amazon. When all parts arrived from the two vendors nothing fit. Called the the Makita Service Center and talked to Dalton who resolved the problem (one of the parts was was quickly replaced). The question was asked: why don't you include the punch plate with the sander? Answer: many customers don't need or use the punch plate and so it gets lost; this just adds to the price of the sander. This is a quality punch plate (1/2 lb steel), rugged, accurate, virtually indestructible and worth the price. Wait! There's more! The edge of the sanding pad has air holes to vacuum dust from the two long sides of the sander without the punch plate; but it's even better with holes in the sandpaper from the punch plate. I am now the proud owner of a great sanding system!

It IS the best sander I've used so far. Quiet, balanced, does the job faster AND it's good looking. Doesn't come with a punch plate...$17+ shipping to order from Makita. Make your own with some dowels and a block of wood. Other than Makita not including that in the package, you won't be disappointed with this sander.

The sander is extremely easy to grip without fatigue and vibration feedback like a lot of sanders. Not tireing to use for extended jobs. My only complaint is when I wanted to connect the sander to my dust vacuum, instead of using the supplied bag, I found the dust port to be 7/8" diameter. Everyone else uses 1" diameter. I called Makita and they said they didn't offer any adapters and didn't know a source. I have spent about $[money] for three different adapters trying to find something to fit, finally finding one step cone adapter that I could cut and make a sleeve that would mate with a standard hose end. Once connected, the vacuum pulled air(and dust) through the eight hole disk efficiently.

This is one lovely toy. Perfect balanced weight (and the thing is not as heavy as I had thought it might be), nice grip that allows you lots of variation to avoid "hand boredom" syndrome, and the thru-the-pad dust remover is pretty efficient, if not perfect. Sanding is a breeze, and control is excellent.

I've been happy with other Makita products for quite a while now, and this sander fully lives up to what I've come to expect from Makita.

This is my 5th sander. If I had bought it first, it might be my only sander (except it wasn't available when I started woodworking many years ago).

For aggressive sanding at high speed with 80 grit, it is almost as fast as my belt sander, but with far better control. With 150 grit it easily removes saw or planer marks. With 220 grit at lower speed it produces an unbelieveably smooth finish. After we got the sander, we resanded the walnut furniture project "in progress" because it was so easy to get so much better results than ever before.

This sander is comfortable to use - light, balanced, and the motion goes to the sandpaper, not vibrating the operator or the work. No sanding marks, even when doing joints where the grain is at right angles (face frames). The dust collection is far better than expected - not only pulling dust through the holes in the sandpaper, but also vacuuming the dust that escapes at the sides. At high speed, it cleans the dust better than a vacuum cleaner. I worried about conecting to the odd-size dust outlet port, but the collection in the built-in bag is so efficient that I have no desire to hassle a vacuum hose.

My wife wants me to buy a second unit - his and hers - or perhaps coarse and fine (and we may do it). Meantime I have already bought one as a gift.

I have used this tool for sanding down paint on houses, a job it is particularly well suited for. The features I appreciated most were:
- Light weight (much lighter than a disc grinder - but it still feels well built)
- Great balance (making it much easier to use one-handed than a grinder)
- Durability and suitable power

Overall, this is a great tool for painters, which is why it seems to be standard issue with many pros. If I were using it for anything else (sanding or grinding fiberglass, for instance), I would personally prefer a sander that has speed control (such as the 7" sander/polishers from Makita or Milwaukee) so that I could have better control of the amount of material being removed. But for painting houses, I consider it a must-have. The only thing I have come across that could use improvement (and it is a bit nit-picky) is that the trigger lock is difficult to operate with the left hand - I am right handed, but sometimes need to use the tool with the left when up on a ladder, etc. I have also seen it cheaper than Amazon's current price ($99) at a local home superstore...

If you need to remove paint from a house, barn or old garage, buy this thing before you start. It does an excellent job without marring the work surface. Considering the amount of effort it saves (esp. over using a scraper), it's dirt cheap. It's also very durable (I've had mine 7+ years). I only wish their orbital sanders held up this well. With a coarse grit sanding disk you can quickly and easily take an old painted surface down to bare wood. I learned about the tool from a house painter who told me it was invaluable. One warning though, be sure to use the side handle that comes with it. It runs at high speed and if you're using it in only one hand, it can get away from you if the disk gets wedged in a crack or caught between two boards. The bottom line is, unless you really enjoy scraping paint (in which case you're a little weird), you'll want this tool - it's a MAJOR labor saver.

Borrowed one of these (then bought one) and used to grind out an old floor that was glassed into a '65 fiberglass runabout. Was super fast and the control was amazing. Loved how light and powerful this little dynamo is.