My 4×24 belt sander has gone to sander heaven. Would you replace it with the same thing or is a heavy duty random orbital a better choice? I have a 5 inch ROS. Just use it for general woodworking, not production cabinet work.
John
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I think that for things like scribing in countertops or cabinets or maybe leveling a floor transistion that you want a material remover and the belt sander would be better.
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A-holes. Hey every group has to have one. And I have been elected to be the one. I should make that my tagline.
John
Would you replace it with the same thing
Don't know, did it last very long? If so then maybe the same thing would do, if it krapped out on ya in 1 year then I'd switch brands!
You mention the RO as a replacement, will you be able to do everything with the RO that you could with the belt sander? If not then you'll need to replace.
Doug
If you get a beltsander then get the same size so you can use all the same belts and/or jigs
Ductape can fix EVERYTHING!!!
John Cujie,
I use the heck out of my 4x24 belt sander.. it's a mikita and that has outlasted two other replacements I've bought thinking as much as I used it it was time to replace it.. The last one a Bosch was a major disappointment in spite of all the Hype I've gotten from various sources..
The reason I use mine so much is I have a timberframe and a lot of the rough sawn wood I work with needs that sweetening to make stuff fit and align..
Get the Porter Cable freight train. Well, this isn't the one. What happened to the model that had the full housing over the front? Looked like a locomotive. Anyway, this one weighs about 17 pounds, definately not for overhead work, but the weight and a good belt will eat up the wood.
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I agree. I wish I had the 4x24 I have a 3x21, but my oscillating sander takes the 4x24 belts so stocking one size would be nice.Spheramid Enterprises Architectural Woodworks
"Success is not spontaneous combustion, you have to set yourself on Fire"
Thanks. I had the old Porter Cable (25 years or so) and it only died because it fell off the bench and part of the casting broke deep inside. Need a Tig welder to repair and it still might not be right so I thought it was best to get a new one. Sounds like I should get another one.John
You're talking about the Porter Cable 503. I think it's been discontinued, which is a drag because I wanted to get one eventually. There are a few on ebay.
http://cgi.ebay.com/PORTER-CABLE-503-EDH-3-X-24-DUSTLESS-BELT-SANDER-VG_W0QQitemZ300197547928QQihZ020QQcategoryZ32717QQssPageNameZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem
I have a couple Makita 4x24's and couldn't live without them; they do a different job than my ROSs. They've been amazing workhorses for 20 years, and i often used them 6-8 hours a day; all i ever replaced was brushes. If you get one, i'll tell you how to tweak the platen so the corners don't dig in.
I have the Makita 4x24 and it's about 20 years old and the thing is a friggin workhorse. I can't imagine not having it. It's nice and heavy so it's stable. I also have a Makita 3x18 which I can use easily with one hand to scribe or knock things down a bit with.
I have 3 ROS, all PC and the PC speed block. A belt sander is definitely different that a ROS.
Don't be without a belt sander. That would scare me.