What belt sander to buy

[Richrd]

I need a 2x42 sander for bits but can't seem to find a Craftsman like Mike recommends.

Any suggestions on what the next choice should be?
Thanks
Rich

 

[Bob Korves]

What belt sander to buy MAKE!

 

[darkzero]

If you can, make/build a 2x72 grinder. You can find plans online & have the pieces water jet or laser cut. If that's not an option you can also find kits to build your own, add your own motor, vfd, contact wheels, etc.

The style 2x42 sander that you speak of is no longer offered by Craftsman but is still sold by Palmgren & Dayton (Grainger/Zoro), as well as some other brands that you can find on Amazon.

I wish I could have a 2x72 but I don't have the space for one nor did I want to spend that much money. Maybe one day. I ended up buying a Jet 2x42. It's not the same style as you are looking for & costs more but I'm very happy with mine after I made a new platen for it. I don't use it for grinding bits though, just general purpose. I got it from Zoro during a 25% sale so I was happy with the price I paid.

 

[mikey]

The current crop of 1/3HP belt sanders sold by Palmgren and others is pretty anemic BUT they will grind tool bits if you use ceramic belts. I've confirmed this ability myself since I own one of them. These are the same design as the older 1/2HP, 2X42 I have so I know they can be modified to work well for tool grinding.

I think that if I was looking for a belt sander today, I would opt to build or buy a 2X72. They are vastly more capable and if you are good at fabrication and/or scrounging, the cost can be pretty reasonable. The two key things to include would be a glass platen liner and a decent tool rest.

 

[Cooter Brown]

 

[mickri]

X2 on what Mikey said. I think the the most important thing is a good solid platen. I have an older 1x42 delta that I found in a thrift store which I have been happy with. It has an arm that you can place against the back of the platen for more support. I use a combo square to set the angle of the table and also for the angles to grind the tool bits. I am using 80 grit belts because that was all I could find close to me. When these wear out I will get better quality belts.

 

[Dabbler]

You can do a lot with little: even an enemic belt sander can help with finishing and deburrring. I've had a cheap 6X48 3/4 HP belt sander for 35 years now... I've found that my dad's old 1X30 1/4 HP belt sander can do almost as much, but a little more slowly... Finally looking to upgrade them , but not out of actual necessity, but for convenience: belt changes are tedious on this 6X48 old machine.

 

[ttabbal]

If you can weld, the 2x72s are easy to build...

 

[randyjaco]

Plus 1 on the home built 2 x 72. It's one of the most used tools in my shop. I now seldom use my 1 inchers and got rid of other sanders. Even my bench grinder gets less use.
Randy

 

[Aaron_W]

If you can weld, the 2x72s are easy to build...

View attachment 303980

There is a guy in my welding class making a 2x72 belt grinder as his project. I'm going to be watching that project so I know if I want to follow the plans he has.

I'm leaning more towards 2x42 due to space, but will wait and see just how big his 2x72 is. Possibly smaller than I'm imagining. I wouldn't imagine it would be that hard to adjust a 2x72 design to 2x42.