Detail Sanders

[kmmcrafts]

Thinking about a new detail sander.. what one do you use / like? I have 1/4 sheet sanders and Random orbital sanders but I think a small detail sander would be handy to use for some projects.

[don in brooklin on]

I have had a Porter Cable and a Mouse and hardly ever used.  Gave Porter Cable away,

What I use on nearly every project is my KIingspor MacMop. expensive but they last a long time.  Removes fuzzies but I also does a great job rounding over.

 

[Sycamore67]

Depends on what you are trying to do.  It is hard to beat a Mac Mop.  I sometimes use my Dremel with various sanding attachments.

[kmmcrafts]

Yeah I have a Mac Mop.. I was thinking more of a small detail sander that'd get some minor shaping in tighter areas.. or maybe I just need a smaller mop sander.. I think I have the 6" one.. as it doesn't get in some of the tighter spots and they really don't do great for shaping etc.. 

However now that you mention the mouse sander, I actually forgot I have one, LOL.. I guess that shows how much I use it.. maybe I don't really need a sander like that. 

The large clock order I was sanding the outer profile of the clock and my belt sander is too aggressive and a pain to swap to a finer paper.. the R/O sander works good but not in the tighter spots as you get down close to the clock feet area.. I usually just sand these areas by hand and maybe will continue with that.. But being I have so many to make I was thinking that maybe some sort of small detail sander would have sped up the process.. they're done now and the likelihood of getting another order like that again is probably rare.. LOL  

[JTTHECLOCKMAN]

For just about all my sanding needs over the years, including sanding projects as your praying hands clock I always sand them with my Porta Cable 330 Bloc sander. It is a industrial grade sander and has been my workhorse for so many years. they do not make this sander any more and you can still find on ebay or garage sale but before they went out of business I bought a couple. I had burnt one up from use so now have 2 around that I always reach for. All you need is a good palm sander. I have the PC random orbital palm sander too and use that at times but as I said the 330 is my go to sander and always will be. Sanding those round corners is a matter of just using the edges of sander. Those clocks you made I always put a round over edge on the with my router and then I sand. Gives them a more finished look. Same thing with the base. A square base to me looks unfinished. Has to have some sort of edge weather it just be round over or a chamfer edge  or a more routed detailed edge. It is something I always strive to make a finished product that has some details. Now I am not saying yours are not, just the way I do it and have since I started 40 years ago. I Have all kinds of sander and have used in certain situations. Have a Fein triangle detailed sander for tight corners. The latest sander I picked up and never thought I would ever find a use for is a hand held mini belt sander. but in my pen turning hobby I use this to sand down watch dial faces in the back so that I can make them a little thinner to be able to bend them easier to wrap around a pen tube for casting. love that thing. I am a tool nut. 

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B072Q2FTLY?th=1&linkCode=li2&tag=cleverhandymen-20&linkId=c1ec59fbce60aad7c3e9caeff3576d8f&language=en_US&ref_=as_li_ss_il

 

 

 

https://www.amazon.com/PORTER-CABLE-330-Speed-Bloc-Sheet-Sander/dp/B0000222Y9/ref=cm_cr_arp_d_product_top?ie=UTF8 

Edited November 21, 2023 by JTTHECLOCKMAN

[Sycamore67]

Depends on what you are trying to do.  It is hard to beat a Mac Mop.  I sometimes use my Dremel with various sanding attachments.  I have a small star sander for details.

[rafairchild2]

2 hours ago, kmmcrafts said:

Thinking about a new detail sander.. what one do you use / like? I have 1/4 sheet sanders and Random orbital sanders but I think a small detail sander would be handy to use for some projects.

Like everyone else I have orbital, mop and drum sanders.  I too found my standard Disc belt sander was way too aggressive, so I got this little guy.  5 inch disc and the 1x20 belt.  Works great.  Since this photo I have since moved to to the end of the other bench to allow for my dust collection system.

Edited November 21, 2023 by rafairchild2

[Wichman]

If I need to sand in a tight area I use my oscillating multi tool. One of the attachments is a triangular head sander with hook and loop attachment. The hook and loop also allows for a green scrubby to be attached, got the ex-wife PO'd when I cleaned up a couple of glass casserole dishes she wanted to replace ( I still have and use them ).

The advantage is it's not just one tool that get used once in a while, there's a whole slew of attachments, so the tool gets used more.  

[kmmcrafts]

31 minutes ago, JTTHECLOCKMAN said:

For just about all my sanding needs over the years, including sanding projects as your praying hands clock I always sand them with my Porta Cable 330 Bloc sander. It is a industrial grade sander and has been my workhorse for so many years. they do not make this sander any more and you can still find on ebay or garage sale but before they went out of business I bought a couple. I had burnt one up from use so now have 2 around that I always reach for. All you need is a good palm sander. I have the PC random orbital palm sander too and use that at times but as I said the 330 is my go to sander and always will be. Sanding those round corners is a matter of just using the edges of sander. Those clocks you made I always put a round over edge on the with my router and then I sand. Gives them a more finished look. Same thing with the base. A square base to me looks unfinished. Has to have some sort of edge weather it just be round over or a chamfer edge  or a more routed detailed edge. It is something I always strive to make a finished product that has some details. Now I am not saying yours are not, just the way I do it and have since I started 40 years ago. I Have all kinds of sander and have used in certain situations. Have a Fein triangle detailed sander for tight corners. The latest sander I picked up and never thought I would ever find a use for is a hand held mini belt sander. but in my pen turning hobby I use this to sand down watch dial faces in the back so that I can make them a little thinner to be able to bend them easier to wrap around a pen tube for casting. love that thing. I am a tool nut. 

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B072Q2FTLY?th=1&linkCode=li2&tag=cleverhandymen-20&linkId=c1ec59fbce60aad7c3e9caeff3576d8f&language=en_US&ref_=as_li_ss_il

 

 

 

https://www.amazon.com/PORTER-CABLE-330-Speed-Bloc-Sheet-Sander/dp/B0000222Y9/ref=cm_cr_arp_d_product_top?ie=UTF8 

I also like the round over edges.. was always going to buy a router to do them but still haven't done it.. I do sand the edges and sort of take off the sharp edges but I never did get a router for doing this.. Guess instead of a sander maybe I should think about getting a router.. I'm halfway there because I have the round over bit.. just nothing to put it in, 

[Wichman]

8 minutes ago, kmmcrafts said:

I also like the round over edges.. was always going to buy a router to do them but still haven't done it.. I do sand the edges and sort of take off the sharp edges but I never did get a router for doing this.. Guess instead of a sander maybe I should think about getting a router.. I'm halfway there because I have the round over bit.. just nothing to put it in, 

That's one of my goals for this winter, set up and test cut some plaques on my new router table.

 

[ChelCass]

Of all the sanders I have and there are several the pictured one is my go to.  Its powerful, take up little space and does a great job sanding.  I found it on Amazon and it was very inexpensive.

[Bill WIlson]

37 minutes ago, kmmcrafts said:

I also like the round over edges.. was always going to buy a router to do them but still haven't done it.. I do sand the edges and sort of take off the sharp edges but I never did get a router for doing this.. Guess instead of a sander maybe I should think about getting a router.. I'm halfway there because I have the round over bit.. just nothing to put it in, 

I have several routers and I dedicate some of them to specific, repetitive tasks.  I have a Bosch Colt palm router with an 1/8" round over bit that stays in it, just for the purpose of breaking sharp edges.  I will never sand these edges round again.

[JTTHECLOCKMAN]

5 minutes ago, Bill WIlson said:

I have several routers and I dedicate some of them to specific, repetitive tasks.  I have a Bosch Colt palm router with an 1/8" round over bit that stays in it, just for the purpose of breaking sharp edges.  I will never sand these edges round again.

I have 15 routers and have them dedicated for various things. I have 3 of those Bosch Colt routers and they are great. I use one dedicated for my lathe all the time. I have a large router table set up in the shop but many times when I was doing those type clocks and scrollwork that needed profiles on edges I would take my small Craftsman table with router mounted in it outside and have at it. Did not worry about dust or chips. That router is a Porta Cable 690. Another workhorse. 

My lathe with router.

 

[OCtoolguy]

I use my Dremel multi tool on many of my projects. I found a place on Amazon to buy large quantities of the paper in grits that I use. It works great and has speed control.

Edited November 22, 2023 by OCtoolguy

[BadBob]

I use two kinds of sanding mops a lot, but I would not consider either a detail sander. I have two rotary tools, a Craftsman (very old) and a Dremel. I can do detailed work with these, but I find them clunky and lacking in power. My go to is my old Grizzly G9928 - Flex Shaft Grinder. It can use anything that will work in a Dremel and has plenty of power and a foot pedal speed control. If it ever dies, I'll probably spring for a Foredom tool.

 

[Greatgrandpawrichard]

I bought a MicroLux Micro Sander on Amazon.com. It was an expensive little tool, but I absolutely Love it! It fits in super small areas with ease and it works GREAT!

Dick

Edited November 23, 2023 by Greatgrandpawrichard

[kmmcrafts]

Think I might have to look into one of those multi tool things.. I've heard of a lot of different uses for those.. Got a HF gift card so maybe I'll see what they have for one of those.. 

[Gene Howe]

On 11/23/2023 at 9:11 AM, Greatgrandpawrichard said:

I bought a MicroLux Micro Sander on Amazon.com. It was an expensive little tool, but I absolutely Love it! It fits in super small areas with ease and it works GREAT!

Dick

I got one like that. Mine's a Proxxon. IDK, that Microlux may have been somewhat less expensive.

[Wichman]

2 hours ago, kmmcrafts said:

Think I might have to look into one of those multi tool things.. I've heard of a lot of different uses for those.. Got a HF gift card so maybe I'll see what they have for one of those.. 

HF is a great way to test out whether a new style of tool will work for what you are trying to do. For $34 (tool plus two heads) you can tell if this is going to work, if it does then when the cheapo dies, upgrade. HF sells two different detail sanding head, so be sure to check both (or buy both).

 

[BadBob]

OK, I give up. What are you calling a detail sander?

[OCtoolguy]

6 hours ago, kmmcrafts said:

Think I might have to look into one of those multi tool things.. I've heard of a lot of different uses for those.. Got a HF gift card so maybe I'll see what they have for one of those.. 

Just make sure the Dremel accessories are compatible. H/F has a habit of discontinuing pieces and parts.

[OCtoolguy]

54 minutes ago, BadBob said:

OK, I give up. What are you calling a detail sander?

Look back on this thread. I added a picture of what I have. Dremel Multi Max.

[BadBob]

4 minutes ago, OCtoolguy said:

Just make sure the Dremel accessories are compatible.

+1 That is precisely why I bought a second rotary tool. My existing Craftsman was not compatible with many Dremel accessories I wanted to use.

[BadBob]

5 minutes ago, OCtoolguy said:

Look back on this thread. I added a picture of what I have. Dremel Multi Max.

I looked at harbor freight and did not see a tool that looked like a MultiMax knockoff.

I think some of us have completely different ideas about what detail sanding is.

[JTTHECLOCKMAN]

A detailed sander is a sander that can reach in tight areas and sand the fine details of a project that are hard to get at with a larger palm sander. They almost always have a triangle shaped head to get right into a 90 degree corner. Not sure why you really needs this for what a scroller does but that is what they are. I have a Fein oscillating detail sander  now I use it mainly for flush cutting blades. 

Edited November 25, 2023 by JTTHECLOCKMAN