Good sander wanted?

Seagreen

Seagreen

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I'm sure I asked this years ago, but couldn't find the posts.

So I'm looking for a good make of random orbital sander for some serious hull and deck sanding. If I was made of money, I'd buy a Fein Marine top kit, but I just need a sander only (I already have the Multimaster).

What brands/models are good? What should I avoid?

Thanks, in advance.
 
Just hire a proper one, doesn't cost much.Other than that i have two Bosch ones and a Makhita which have been good.
 
Metabo (http://www.metabo.co.uk/Product-catalogue-handheld-powertools.23958+M5f930b2f3d2.0.html) are probably the best, right up there with Fein, Hitachi are very good and well priced for what you get (i.e. a good quality tool). As ever Bosch produce decent well priced tools.

I went for the small Hitachi (http://www.hitachi-powertools.co.uk/spec/sv13ya.html) from my local hire shop (also sells new tools at builders prices). Used it to sand the whole of a 45 foot Schooner hull, little effort required and good dust collection.

I do not rate Black & Decker, in recent years they have aimed at the B&Q market and seemed to have missed it. Bosch seem to be taking over their (B&D's) market.

In conclusion get the best you can afford, me? I would go for Hitachi or Metabo.

Simes
 
I have a Metabo and it does a good job. It would be improved by having a brake so that when you switch it off you could put it down straightaway.
 
Metabo

Another vote for the Metabo
I bought one after the lads at the boat yard recommended one
I needed to rub down the deck of my boat, removing old epoxy and fibreglass.
Did the job effortlessly
A well built piece of kit
 
I have a Bosch, which I'm happy with. Note: there are two kinds of rubber backs on to which the velcro disc goes. The default was the "hard" one - good for flat surfaces. You can buy a slightly softer one more suited to curves. I find the latter more useful in boat related tasks.

I can't imagine what you'd get for spending more money.

There is one weakness - it has a rather pathetic dust filter/dust collector. I'd be happier to have something on which I could stick a flexible hose to the workshop dust extractor. However you'd still want a self-contained dust system for when you can't work with the encumbrance of an extractor.
 
The best random orbit sander I own and use is made by Festo (Festool), I got mine cheap from an auction but they are megabucks otherwise. I have others like Makita, Metabo AEG etc but the Festo is the best. What you have to consider is travel costs and time and effort involved, and the fact that the right tool will get the job done properly.
 
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Simes said:
I do not rate Black & Decker, in recent years they have aimed at the B&Q market and seemed to have missed it.
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+1

IME B&D seem to have noticed they have a quality problem and instead of spending money fixing that they made the classic error of spending money ensuring their repair edpartment can cope with numbers of defective items :rolleyes:

Boo2
 
The only B&D product I still use is the Workmate, which is pretty indispensable. Otherwise I love my Bosch cordless drill and the Fein Multimaster gets my vote as "God's own power tool" (if I was a believer in Holy Power tools, that is.)

I shall investigate the Metabo brand as well as the others as it isn't one I've heard of before.

Another point: having used really cheap (Tesco and B&Q value) sanders on the water in an "don't mind if I drop it overboard" fashion, I'm particularly keen to get a sander that is easy and comfortable to use for long periods and won't make my hands numb with the vibration.
 
Seagreen said:
The only B&D product I still use is the Workmate, which is pretty indispensable. Otherwise I love my Bosch cordless drill and the Fein Multimaster gets my vote as "God's own power tool" (if I was a believer in Holy Power tools, that is.)

I shall investigate the Metabo brand as well as the others as it isn't one I've heard of before.

Another point: having used really cheap (Tesco and B&Q value) sanders on the water in an "don't mind if I drop it overboard" fashion, I'm particularly keen to get a sander that is easy and comfortable to use for long periods and won't make my hands numb with the vibration.
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dropped a cheap angle grinder in the water earlier on this year:eek: impressed with rcbo cutpower sofast didnt blow fuse then dried grinder out and worked perfect next day !
 
Amulet said:
I have a Bosch, which I'm happy with. Note: there are two kinds of rubber backs on to which the velcro disc goes. The default was the "hard" one - good for flat surfaces. You can buy a slightly softer one more suited to curves. I find the latter more useful in boat related tasks.

I can't imagine what you'd get for spending more money.

There is one weakness - it has a rather pathetic dust filter/dust collector. I'd be happier to have something on which I could stick a flexible hose to the workshop dust extractor. However you'd still want a self-contained dust system for when you can't work with the encumbrance of an extractor.
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I have a bosch 1/4? sheet sander. It's quite a few years old. The sanding sheets can be attached either by the velcro method or the clip at either end. I also purchased a plastic base with spikes to punch holes in any blank sanding sheet used and the attachments for connecting to a vaccum cleaner. Makes sanding nearly dust free.
 
Not only do you need to select the hardware carefully, but also the consumables.
I had to sand a princess 33, for osmosis treatment, and then sand the hull again and again between epoxy coats.
Avoid DIY sheds - their consumables are expensive and of poor quality. Both Screwfix and Toolstation produce good quality sandpapers at reasonable prices.

Good luck!
 
Seagreen said:
If I was made of money, I'd buy a Fein Marine top kit, but I just need a sander only (I already have the Multimaster).

What brands/models are good? What should I avoid?

Thanks, in advance.
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Festool, without a shadow of a doubt. I built my boat from a wooden kit, second best tool Fein Multimaster (as a plunge cutter / "electric chisel"). Best tool in the shed was a Festool ROS. 6" pads.

Fast stock removal, fine finish, lovely tool to handle, purring powerful sound. Uses expensive pads, but each sheet lasts well. Get the simpler type if budget is limited. Mine is fixed 1.5mm orbit, but with the right sheets and speed, almost polishes hi build primer, for instance.
 
I have just sanded 40 years worth of paint off my Tyler, back to bare gelcoat. I bought a 400W Performance (cheapest model) random orbital sander from B&Q for £29.98. It had a 2 year warranty but after 2 weeks hard graft the orbital bit gave up and it became a circular sander.:eek:

I didn't have the receipt with me at the time so went out and bought 320W JCB sander £49.98, 5 year guarantee. This is much smaller and easier to hold in the hand and has much lower vibration so you can work for longer, enough power and it has good suction too. I thoroughly recommend it for power, compactness; JCB I think is a good brand and with a 5 year guarantee it's a no brainer to me.

As for the Performance one, I took the receipt back to B&Q and got a refund so nothing lost after all that work.

My brother had a Bosch which we used, only 200W I think, not powerful enough to make good progress with years of 2 pack paint.

I agree, Toolstation discs are good value, I think Screwfix items are slightly better quality, but you pay for it.

Certain tools I would splash out good money for, drills, saws, battery tools, but I am not sure a sander is worth top wack unless you work in a yard. JCB gets my vote.
 
Be careful if you're sanding a curved surface (like a hull) with an orbital sander - or any kind of rotating sander. You can do a lot of damage in a very short space of time! They tend to put "flats" on curved surfaces.

By far the best tool is a long board, but unfortunately, they are hand-powered! Oldsaltoz will be along in a minute, I'm sure, to expound on the benefits of his "torture board" - a thin, flexible bit of plywood a few feet long that you wrap sandpaper over and push along the hull in a figure-of-eight pattern. It's by far the best way to get a fair curve, and cheap too, but it hurts like hell after a pretty short time!

I've found air powered "long bed" sanders (sometimes called "flat bed sanders") an almost acceptable alternative, but they're very expensive. I use an air-powered one.
 
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