Pool noodle flex drum

[Whisper]

I just got my flex drum sanders from JGR today. I was looking at them and kept thinking I had seen that foam somewhere before. It sure looks like pool noodle foam to me! I measured them and the diameters of the piece and the hole are identical. 2 1/2 to 2 3/4 inches on the outside and 3/4 inches on the inside.

https://www.amazon.com/Fix-Find-Flexible-Colorful-Noodles/dp/B01MDUJKRO/ref=pd_cp_200_2/136-2942046-4338605?_encoding=UTF8&pd_rd_i=B01MDUJKRO&pd_rd_r=66a705d0-c637-486c-a793-a514b8981e1f&pd_rd_w=0DWa7&pd_rd_wg=XBqoA&pf_rd_p=592dc715-8438-4207-b7fa-4c7afdeb6112&pf_rd_r=A48F3R9NH6CD8A9B7M0H&psc=1&refRID=A48F3R9NH6CD8A9B7M0H

 

Edited January 24, 2020 by Whisper

[Puzzleguy]

Not sure about the diameter - but i see pool noodles at the dollar tree -

might be out of season right now - but you never know

 

Edited January 25, 2020 by Puzzleguy

[meflick]

You may be right, but the key area of measurement is the “density” of the foam core. Having had my share of pool noodles at my house, and having used the flex drum sanders, I am not sure that pool noodles are as dense. I have asked my husband before what he thought it was. I’ve wondered if it was some sort of thicker pipe insulation.

[jerrye]

7 hours ago, meflick said:

I have asked my husband before what he thought it was. I’ve wondered if it was some sort of thicker pipe insulation.

I had a customer back in NC who made pool noodles for the original pool noodle company, and pipe insulation. Came off of the same lines, made from the same resin. The colorant was the only difference. Can't speak to all manufacturers, but theirs was identical.

[tgiro]

Now all you have to do is find a sanding sleeve that fits  the pool noodle like the sleeve on the flex drum. They aren't glued to the drum. If you look closely, you'll see it's a pressure fit.

Maybe you can give flex-drum some competition.

[kmmcrafts]

14 hours ago, meflick said:

You may be right, but the key area of measurement is the “density” of the foam core. Having had my share of pool noodles at my house, and having used the flex drum sanders, I am not sure that pool noodles are as dense. I have asked my husband before what he thought it was. I’ve wondered if it was some sort of thicker pipe insulation.

I don't know how foam density varies compared to plastic.. but I used to work at a plastic injection molding factory ( made plastic shopping cart baskets and handheld baskets for stores ) and the density of the plastic would vary quite a lot.. only based on the color resin we used.. That was 25 years ago and I can't remember what colors was more dense over other colors.. I do know that the plastic with age would crack and break sooner than the softer plastic would... So anyway.. maybe you need to look for the same colors as the flex drum offers, LOL

 

[Sycamore67]

I have one of the foam sanders and not anywhere as good as a pneumatic.  You can buy a similar diameter pneumatic drum sander for about $30 on ebay.

[OCtoolguy]

I've never seen or used one of these. How do you inflate them? Air compressor or tire pump or is there some special type of pump needed?

 

[Rockytime]

2 minutes ago, octoolguy said:

I've never seen or used one of these. How do you inflate them? Air compressor or tire pump or is there some special type of pump needed?

 

I googled them and now I have the same question.

[meflick]

5 minutes ago, octoolguy said:

I've never seen or used one of these. How do you inflate them? Air compressor or tire pump or is there some special type of pump needed?

 

 

2 minutes ago, Rockytime said:

I googled them and now I have the same question.

Ray and Les, are you talking about the “flex drum sanders” the OP was referring to or the pneumatic drum sander? I am going to assume you are talking about the pneumatic one since the flex ones are not inflated - they are simply a dense foam core with sandpaper wrapped on them.
 

Regarding the pneumatic ones, the ones that I am aware of have a “rubber type” bladder that you can add air to. The ones I have are small ones, like these for the Foredom from Judy Gale Roberts site: https://intarsia.com/collections/hardware/products/kirges-inflatable-sanders?variant=27764085830 and the Guinevere Sanding ones. 

if you go to the link at Judy’s  site, you will see they come with a small hand pump. She also provides a link to this video from King Arthur’s Tools and their Guinevere setup and how to fill them. 

I don’t (yet )have a bigger pneumatic sander, but believe they are filled similarly.

[OCtoolguy]

1 minute ago, meflick said:

 

Ray and Les, are you talking about the “flex drum sanders” the OP was referring to or the pneumatic drum sander? I am going to assume you are talking about the pneumatic one since the flex ones are not inflated - they are simply a dense foam core with sandpaper wrapped on them.
 

Regarding the pneumatic ones, the ones that I am aware of have a “rubber type” bladder that you can add air to. The ones I have are small ones, like these for the Foredom from Judy Gale Roberts site: https://intarsia.com/collections/hardware/products/kirges-inflatable-sanders?variant=27764085830 and the Guinevere Sanding ones. 

if you go to the link at Judy’s  site, you will see they come with a small hand pump. She also provides a link to this video from King Arthur’s Tools and their Guinevere setup and how to fill them. 

I don’t (yet )have a bigger pneumatic sander, but believe they are filled similarly.

Thanks Melanie, yes, I was referring to the inflatable type. I know the small ones that fit in a drill or drill press require a small hand pump but I wasn't sure if the larger ones accepted a typical air compressor tire filler. 

[meflick]

15 minutes ago, octoolguy said:

Thanks Melanie, yes, I was referring to the inflatable type. I know the small ones that fit in a drill or drill press require a small hand pump but I wasn't sure if the larger ones accepted a typical air compressor tire filler. 

Judy has some larger ones in her studio, but I never saw her have to add air to them. They are on my “maybe one day list.”

[Rockytime]

I have some rubber drums that are not inflatable. There is a threaded 1/4" shaft with a washer on each end and when tightened the rubber expands and expands inside the sanding sleeve. The sleeves are only 2" long and are used with a drill press or lathe. They are cheap.

[OCtoolguy]

I don't do or plan to do any intarsia/segmentation at this time but I was just wondering about them. I don't know if they would be beneficial to what I make or not. At this time, I just use the old tried and true method of manual labor.

 

[OCtoolguy]

So far, the best purchase that I have made, other than my saws, is the Ridgid drum/belt sander. That thing is just plain awesome. I wish I had room to leave it set up all the time but, alas, it's not to be. 

[dgman]

44 minutes ago, octoolguy said:

Thanks Melanie, yes, I was referring to the inflatable type. I know the small ones that fit in a drill or drill press require a small hand pump but I wasn't sure if the larger ones accepted a typical air compressor tire filler. 

The inflatable drums have a stem just like a tire tube. I have an inflatable sander I used to use on my lathe. It was a hassle to use as my midi lathe stores under my bench. So whenever I needed the sander, I would have to pull the lathe out and set it up. The belt broke on it and I decided I wasn’t going to take the time to repair it, so I bought the flex sander and mounted it on my slow grinder. It works fine, but not as good as the inflatable. 

[Whisper]

The sleeves seem to be as scarce as hen's teeth. I however did find some on Amazon that are 70 cm in diameter (2.8 inches) and 9 inches long. If they fit, I'll just cut them down. If they work, I just want to use them myself so I don't have to order them all the time. They had all grits for 12 dollars and some change, 5 sleeves. We'll see when I get them how they work. They are made for pneumatic drum sanders. I guess I'm going to get an education in sand paper and sleeves now. lol

[NC Scroller]

Check on the Klingspor website.  They sell quality sanding supplies.

https://www.woodworkingshop.com/

[tgiro]

On 1/26/2020 at 5:33 PM, octoolguy said:

Thanks Melanie, yes, I was referring to the inflatable type. I know the small ones that fit in a drill or drill press require a small hand pump but I wasn't sure if the larger ones accepted a typical air compressor tire filler. 

Yep they have regular air valves, the same as a bicycle or car tire. I use the pneumatic drums on my Sand-Rite sander, but I, also, have a grinder with a flex drum and sanding mops on it.

The picture shows the flex drum sander on the left and the pneumatic sander on the Sandrite, on the right .

[Hudson River Rick]

Tony, are you using a typical grinder motor or is that one of the slow speed grinders? That's a very nice set up that you have.

 I have an old grinder motor that I would like to use, but it spins at  3400 RPM and that is way to fast for any sanding operation. 

 

[tgiro]

5 hours ago, Hudson River Rick said:

Tony, are you using a typical grinder motor or is that one of the slow speed grinders? That's a very nice set up that you have.

 I have an old grinder motor that I would like to use, but it spins at  3400 RPM and that is way to fast for any sanding operation. 

 

The grinder is an 8-inch Rikon slow speed. They come up at Woodcraft, on sale, about once a year. I have used PC variable speed grinders, from Lowes, also. Although I think they are selling Delta now.

[JimErn]

amazon, 8" variable speed, $116 prime

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B01M9FVT0W/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o00_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

[didgeridoocrafter_42]

I use these often for sanding my didgeridoos. I vary the grits from initial sanding after shaping to final sanding.

Here is link for flex-able sleeves. https://www.supergrit.com/3-x-9-sleeve.html
 

These sleeves will fit with minimal effort on these pool noodles. https://www.dickssportinggoods.com/p/big-joe-super-swim-noodle-23lnbusprswmndlxxwsr/23lnbusprswmndlxxwsr?sku=24215001&camp=CSE:DSG_92700072979560352_lia_pla-1746450544256_58700008023022506_71700000100235801&segment=&gbraid=0AAAAADv4bTa_KKmLZe2KExdjLU5eHV7co&gclid=Cj0KCQjwj_ajBhCqARIsAA37s0yKFHYBIvW6qskagWcAeGR55kT84GEVUvjepr1Cjxt-QGNPE9JIGmsaAv-oEALw_wcB&gclsrc=aw.ds
 

You MUST walk your work back and forth and DO NOT bear down or you’ll melt a soft spot in pool noodle.  For a hobbyist on a budget this really works well for me. 
As I put an epoxy coat on my didgeridoo I can even use the pool noodle with a lambswool covering turning it into a polisher. 
See results for yourself on this link. This is a Century Agave Inflorescence turned into an awesome sounding didgeridoo.

https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=607385831434040&set=a.470144525158172&type=3&mibextid=DcJ9fc

[rjweb]

Wow, I almost krap my pants, didn’t look at the date of this post but saw Rocky response, scary I really miss his post, RJ 

[OCtoolguy]

38 minutes ago, rjweb said:

Wow, I almost krap my pants, didn’t look at the date of this post but saw Rocky response, scary I really miss his post, RJ 

Me too. I do stay in touch with his wife Faye. We both miss him terribly.