Porter Cable 505 Sander, Really Legendary?

[dacan23]

I obtained a PC 505 heavy duty sander, I was lead to believe its a highly coveted vintage tool. Is it really desirable and truly worth $250+? It seems to be in very good condition. Not sure what I am going to do with it, seems like to much of a bad a$$ sander for me to keep. Thanks

 

[ssdave]

They're a good sander. Sealed motor so no dust pulled through it. 100% duty cycle, can be run 10 hours a day for years. Rebuildable parts. Work well. A great professional tool. Bring about $100 to $125 on ebay regularly in excellent condition. Well worth that.

 

[dnschmidt]

These were built when Porter-Cable was a top of the line brand in sanders, routers and saws. They're **** now but when this was made it was as good as it got.

 

[Jon_E]

I have a 505. Bought it from a used tool dealer for $150 with a brand new cord and brushes. In the near-mint condition it's in, I thought I got a good deal. I used to run these thirty-plus years ago in school wood shop, and they were bulletproof. I bought mine party for nostalgia, but also because they are heavy, solid and good for sanding large surfaces. They will put a really nice final sanding on something with 220 or 320 grit paper.

The one you show pictures of is pretty nice. I'd check eBay but they're up in the $150-$250 range easily. More if you have a case, a manual or anything else that came with them.

 

[shoot summ]

I have one, used it a lot back in my days of working for others. It sit's in a drawer now, not really in my list of goto sanders, RO works much better for everything I do now.

 

[woody 73]

I had no idea the pc 505 was legendary this is something new to me. If we were talking about other models then yes I could see that.

OP why not post this in the vintage tool section?

 

[rlitman]

Solid aluminum, built like a brick house. It gives a good final finish, but for every other step, RO is faster. No dust collection really sets it back for me though.

 

[dacan23]

Thanks for all the responses, was just trying to get a quick gauge, probably will post in the vintage to see what other info I can get.

 

[shelteredV]

was always the standard for 1/2 sheet sanders. We don't regularly use it any more because of dust collection, or lack thereof