Preference on Sanders?

[Rita B.]

I have two sanders.   One quarter sheet Dewalt palm sander and the other is a Craftsman orbital.   Using both today and notice so much vibration with the Craftsman orbital that my hand gave out.   The Dewalt has much less vibration.

   Any one know if the vibration is common in a orbital sander or do I need to upgrade to a more efficient model.   If I upgrade, do any of you have experience with a favorite?

[Ken Darga]

Rita,

The 1/4 sheet finishing sanders, have been around many years, and are fine.

Most are a lighter weight, than the orbital models, and are preferred by some wood working finishers.

The orbital sanders are a newer breed of sanders, on today's market.

They supposedly remove surface material at a more rapid rate.

I use both types; however, for most applications my preference is the variable speed orbital type.

Power sanders give off vibration.

It's just the nature of the tool.

Some sanders give off less vibration than others.

My top choice are the Festool and Porter-Cable (390K) Low Profile variable speed orbital palm sander.

A great feature that these model offers, is that the unit stops in 2-3 seconds after power is turned off; whereas, most continue to vibrate for several seconds.  (The unit will stop vibrating, after you shut it off and by the time to set it down).

Option:

"padded-palm" gloves, feature additional padding to reduce vibration to ones hand.

These gloves are commonly used by workers operating vibrating tools, such as impact driving, hammering and nailing tools.

I use them often and notice a reduction in the vibration, transmitted to the palm of my hands, when operating such tools.

These gloves are available at home centers, such as Home Depot.

TIP:  apply a "leather glove oil treatment" to the palm area---

it will soften the leather and reduce the slippage factor, that one experiences when wearing dry gloves and working with tools.

Obenaufs Heavy Duty Leather Protector, is a mixture of beeswax and other chemicals, that resists bacteria and mildew.

[David Dean]

Well here's my 2 cents I would say with the palm sander it has a good clean sanding with the grain of the wood but the orbital leves round cicles in the wood and that is the first thing poeple point out.

[Ken Darga]

Swirls marks can be minimized by going to a progressively finer grit.

For some applications, I use #320 and 440 grit.

Synthetic finishing pads can be used to prepare the surface for finishing.

Available in coarse, med, fine, extra-fine and super-fine.

Fine and extra fine pads are great for knocking down raised grain before the first coat of finish, and for removing "nubbies" between coats.

Synthetic pads are great for cleaning---can be used with water or solvents.

The pads can be rinsed and reused. 

Use as a final step to generate a matte finishes on some solid surfaces.

The pads can be easily cut-to-size to fit the sander base.

They grip onto the hook-n-loop base pads of a sander.

[Rita B.]

Ken, the glove might be a option but I wonder if you would be trading off a hot sweaty hand vs vibration fatigue?   I've used the synthetic pads.  They are great for both inside work and in the shop.  I have a solid surface white sink and one of those pads cleans it like new and it is at least 20 yrs old.   Love the tip about cutting to size to fit a sander.   I had never considered that so thanks a bunch!

Mr David, that is exactly what I need "a sander helper"!  Adorable pic of your daughter and I bet both of you enjoy making the memories in the shop.   You will be surprised what skills she learns now that will carry with her forever!

Off for a full day of making dust.  Love these long weekends!

[Ken Darga]

Rita,

The gloves I mentioned, are constructed with the body of a mesh material, which allows for moisture to be vented.

I use them frequently and haven't had a problem with them.

When removing them from my hand, I turn the palm inside-out, when pealing them from my hand, down to the finger tips, to allow for rapid drying.   (Akin to removing latex gloves).

I do this with all my gloves.

Talc can be added (sprinkled) to the inside of the gloves.

Talc is handy to have in my shop, for other purposes, also.

[Ken Darga]

For some heavy duty use, such as when working with carving chisels,

I use a heavy leather glove with a mesh Kevlar liner insert.

Apply the kevlar glove to your hand, then apply the leather glove over the mesh glove.

Kevlar gloves are cut resistant, NOT puncture resistant.

Kevlar gloves can be found with fish cleaning materials, at well stocked tackle stores.

Other uses:

A kevlar glove is very handy for use in the kitchen, to protect the hand during slicing operations, and the like.

The kevlar gloves can be easily washed, using dish cleaning soap/lotion, and rinsed.

To sanitize them, place the glove on a microwave safe plate, place in the microwave oven and zap it on high for "1 minute".

[David Dean]

Thank you Mrs. Rita but that was my grand daughter my kid days are over. But I get lucky some time's at the dumpser and get sand paper from the drum sander's which helps a lot but I cant use it on a orbital sander. And the vibration you are getting from your palm sander is from where your little rubber legs are starting to ware out.

[Rita B.]

Sorry Mr David, still great memories are forming.   I am sure your she enjoys the quality time spent with Grandpa!    Good repurposing find!

[Rita B.]

Ken,   had to make a run for more lumber (don't ask :) ) and I checked on gloves but the ones this store seemed to have did not offer much in the way of ventilation.   I will browse on line and see if there is something available.   Lot less expense than a new sander at this point and I will soon be spending a good deal of time with the sander.

   Experience in glove removal I have down!   My job requires me to be gloved and I bet I change out nearly 100 times a day.   I keep the latex free variety in the shop and use them often when doing jobs such as finish or painting.  The textured variety even help giving a better grip on those stubborn jar lids that seem cemented on.  In my every day dealings, I prefer the powder free.

[Jay Boutwell]

Hi Rita, I have a tip for you to help with the vibration on the sander.  Take a thin (about 3/4 inch think) kitchen sponge and tape it to the top of the sander just enough to keep it in place.  This will knock out most of the vibrations.  I also have a craftsman palm sander and it does kick up some vibrations and I guess it is the nature of the beast.  I have a nice Bosch random orbit that is a nice sander and with the slow speed and fine sandpaper It pretty much takes care of any sanding that I need to do.  I do a lot of my fine work using cabinet scrapers.  I do have a Ryobi palm sander that has been around a long time in my shop and has not seen too much work yet.  I also have a porter cable and a dewalt. of which I do not use too often.  If my cabinet scraper does not do the job I like to do the rest by hand.

[James P. Cottingham]

I agree with Ken. It's the nature on the beast when it comes to ROS (random orbital sanders). I've had to shop around when it comes to gloves. Sometimes I can find them at Home Depot and at other times I can find then at Walmart. I sometimes have to go on a "treasure hunt" to find them.
This past Christmas my wife gave me a power hand planer. I love it. Much faster than sanding. There are places where sanding is better like on a curved surface or in an enclosed area but there is no vibration.

[Rita B.]

I found some that seem suitable on Amazon but I think I will head over to Home Depot after work tomorrow.  Gloves are one of those items that are hard to buy online not insuring the fit will be right.    If I was smart, I would figure out a way to come out with a line of items developed for the woman handy mam!  In the mean time, Jay I will try your suggestion.   Every little bit could help.