My new foam pad sander !

[PeterSibley]

I've had a Makita 7" slow speed sander for years and only ever used it with the makers hard compound backing disc .I didn't like it ...I found it very hard to do a good job.

Last week ,on a mate's recommendation I bought a $25 soft sander pad , the kind of thing a motor panel beater /spray painter uses .

It's brilliant !:) .I get an excellent finish , great control ,no swirl marks and the velcro backed discs last a remarkable time compared to the last machine .I guess my bottom of the line random orbital sander will be gathering dust ...not making it .

[hansp77]

So this is a pad for your makita?
is this an orbital or random orbital?

In some of my work doing house painting and restoration we have gone through a lot of sanders, cheap and expensive. Plain orbitals IMHO I found to be a royal PITA- but maybe I have simply never had the right set up-
Rip through the paper too quick, gunk up the paper, and just do the job too slowly and poorly.
I like the random orbitals a lot more, though the swirl marks can be a bit of a problem- gotta be really careful of really fresh paper, and gunked up paper (and stay clear of cheap paper altogether).
I have enjoyed a lovely little makita 115mm (I think) which is light and a pleasure to use, but I have to admit, my favourite beat up RO is a 125mm Ozito beast I got nearly new at the trash and treasure market for $20 with a few packets of sandpaper. When working overhead, it is a workout to say the least and the makita is a lot easier to use, but when working on a wall or floor or anything else where weight is not a problem (and often an advantage) I will reach for the Ozito first- it's powerfull and I actually prefer a bit of weight to the tool.
The annoying thing I found with the Makita is that the velcro pad wore out incredibly quickly, whereas my cheapo Ozito just keeps going.

I am slowly buying up a few better quality power tools, cordless and saws etc, but just can't seem to resist continuing with some of the cheapo power tools. I don't mind a lot of GMC products, but don't buy these anymore because of the hassle of replacement warranty if they die (dealing direct with GMC rather than in store replacement- have learnt the long hard painfull way).
For this reason I tend to buy my cheapo high mortality rate power tools (sanders for example who expensive or cheap are likely to die from dust either way) in the Ozito brand from bunnies- cheap and instore replacable.

anyway, glad its working for you, what exactly is it though:o:D

[Thorne]

Yes, more info please!

I used to do a lot of antique furniture refinishing in the 80's and we used Makitas exclusively -- they were the bee's knees back then.

Now I'm loving my DeWalt, but from the specs it is just orbital, not RO. Paper is easy to change and held very tightly, plus the pad and supports seem to wear well.

http://www.mytoolstore.com/dewalt/d26441.jpg
http://www.mytoolstore.com/dewalt/dew06-08.html

[Dan McCosh]

I used a thick, soft pad on a 4,500 rpm 7 ins. disc sander for years, (about 1 ins. foam). It worked fine but it was heavy. Now I use a medium-density pad on a PC random orbit for the topsides. It's a bit slower overall, but lots easier to handle.

[PeterSibley]

This pad is an after market thing .Probably Chinese , I didn't look ...but the foams is very firm and about 14 -16mm thick .Good velcro .

The sander itself is slow and kind of heavy .1500 rpm if I remember .Straight rotation .No random .The joy is the way the abrasive disc lasts compared to the RO sander .It may not be a good comparison because the RO I have is pretty bad .

[Paul Fitzgerald]

Have you tried the Triton RO attachment for right angled grinders.

http://www.triton.com.au/product.php?id=59

I just picked up a chiwanese grinder and leave it on. Good for coarse and fine work, pad has a similar 12mm foam backing.