bushwacked Posted November 28, 2017 Report Share Posted November 28, 2017 I have 2-3 coffee table tops and night stand tops I will be starting in the next week or 2 ... I was curious if I need a bigger sander to make the first pass at smoothing everything after the glue up? I am talking about the 60 grit (if needed) Most likely 80 grit ... then I would switch over to my festool Ets 150/3 Eq to hit the 120-180-220 grits if needed ... Or should I be able to get what I need out of my 150/3, but just takes 2-3-4 times as long? I am not trying to spend all day sanding ... time is money I searched for the Bosch1250 and saw @bleedinblue sold his ... so I am curious Bleed ... would it be good for this operation or no? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chestnut Posted November 28, 2017 Report Share Posted November 28, 2017 50 minutes ago, bushwacked said: I have 2-3 coffee table tops and night stand tops I will be starting in the next week or 2 ... I was curious if I need a bigger sander to make the first pass at smoothing everything after the glue up? I am talking about the 60 grit (if needed) Most likely 80 grit ... then I would switch over to my festool Ets 150/3 Eq to hit the 120-180-220 grits if needed ... Or should I be able to get what I need out of my 150/3, but just takes 2-3-4 times as long? I am not trying to spend all day sanding ... time is money I searched for the Bosch1250 and saw @bleedinblue sold his ... so I am curious Bleed ... would it be good for this operation or no? Why not card scraper or smoothing plane? I may be told i'm doing it wrong but i don't touch paper lower than 120-150 grit any more since i started using hand tools. I mostly sand to even out planer and scraper tracks. I think the rotex is a great tool but i feel there are other methods that could be better for a furniture shop. Personally when i sanded to flatten i never got flat tops i always ended up getting some sort of wavy or very very slightly dished surface. 1 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Just Bob Posted November 28, 2017 Report Share Posted November 28, 2017 59 minutes ago, bushwacked said: I have 2-3 coffee table tops and night stand tops I will be starting in the next week or 2 ... I was curious if I need a bigger sander to make the first pass at smoothing everything after the glue up? I am talking about the 60 grit (if needed) Most likely 80 grit ... then I would switch over to my festool Ets 150/3 Eq to hit the 120-180-220 grits if needed ... Or should I be able to get what I need out of my 150/3, but just takes 2-3-4 times as long? I am not trying to spend all day sanding ... time is money I searched for the Bosch1250 and saw @bleedinblue sold his ... so I am curious Bleed ... would it be good for this operation or no? I have both the 125/3 and 150/3 they are great sanders. But with what you are wanting to do, buy a drum sander and with that new supermax 19-32 price point the Rotex puts you half way there. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bleedinblue Posted November 28, 2017 Report Share Posted November 28, 2017 I bought that 1250 to sand a table top of that farmhouse table I built last year. It ruined the finish and I had to re-do the whole dang thing with my 5" Dewalt. In my opinion, the 1250 would be good for refinishing jobs...not so much for fresh lumber, at least not in the capacity most of us need a handheld sander for. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pwk5017 Posted November 28, 2017 Report Share Posted November 28, 2017 I have the first rotex 150 that is currently discontinued. Similar design and function, but not the same as the current rotex. Anyways, i find it to be incredibly unruly to use. It does its job well, but it is tiring to use for prolonged periods of time. My favorite panel sander is a festool domino. The domino changed the way i process panels--from cabinet door panels to 6' wide island tops. If the project is wide, i will break the panel into sub assemblies less than 20". I will plane those and then domino them together to create my final panel. At that point, i typically only need to concern myself with one glue joint. If it is less than 37" wide, then i send it through the drum sander. If it is greater, then i use the rotex followed by the 150/5. A few 5-6mm dominoes along a joint make the world of difference. I find they will keep my joint differential to 1/32" or better, which is easily tackled via a variety of methods. Maybe not the answer you were looking for, but that was what really changed my sanding regimen. I used to have to drum sand 1/16-1/8" off BOTH faces of my panels. Imagine the time and impact on my cyclone filter stack to sand off 1/4" of wood from a table top 3' wide by 6-8' long. I never had much luck with cauls aligning boards well enough, but the domino kills it in that regard. I appreciate it for the joints it produces in furniture applications, but i cherish it for its panel alignment. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jeffm510 Posted December 3, 2017 Report Share Posted December 3, 2017 So...what would be recommended for finishing? I was just about to purchase a FT-150 but now I'm reconsidering it for a drum sander and card scrapers. Suggestions for a good finish sander? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chestnut Posted December 3, 2017 Report Share Posted December 3, 2017 ETS EC 150/3 Good power small stroke, great dust collection when conected to a vac. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JosephThomas Posted December 4, 2017 Report Share Posted December 4, 2017 I have this bosch, which is less aggressive than the bosch 1250, but still a 6" pad for max surface area, and I love it. Great DC, leaves a great finish, runs smoothly. I bought the reconditioned one too. https://www.cpooutlets.com/factory-reconditioned-bosch-ros65vc-6-rt-6-in--variable-speed-random-orbit-sander-with-vibration-control/bshrros65vc-6-rt,default,pd.html The festool sanders are good, but their quality demands a premium price. There's a 5" bosch that also works well if you're working with smaller parts. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bleedinblue Posted December 4, 2017 Report Share Posted December 4, 2017 That's what I replaced the 1250 with Joe. It's now my primary sander. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jussi Posted December 14, 2017 Report Share Posted December 14, 2017 IMO Flattening with a ROS doesn't sound like a good idea. Especially with 80 grit. Too likely to do the opposite of flattening. A drum sander would be ideal but I agree card scraper and hand planes work great. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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