andyvh1959
Well-known member
I have a 80's vintage Rackwell Delta Powershop radial arm saw that I still use regularly. Can still do a lot with it. I'd like to find a decent 10" sanding disc attachment for it. Any recommendations?
Sanding disc, radial arm saw
- Thread starter andyvh1959
- Start date
seber
Well-known member
Yes. I recommend you forget about it. 3600 rpm is way to fast for a 10" disc. You might get away with 8".
dnschmidt
Well-known member
What purpose does this serve? The key part of a disc or belt sander or for that matter any grinder is the tool rest that prevents the piece being ground or sanded from turning into a projectile. What does a spinning disc do without the tool rest? Look at the following disc sander if you don't understand what I'm getting at: https://www.grizzly.com/products/shop-fox-12-disc-sander/w1828
turbowoodworker
Well-known member
I agree, sort of, as it is not the best idea for a sander. But it is not unreasonable. The direction of spin would push the workpiece down on the table and back towards the fence. That is unless you turn the disc 90degrees.
JRC3
Well-known member
What's the youtube channel...I wanna watch.
alwaysFlOoReD
Well-known member
Somewhere in my magic bus I have such a disc. And an old 54 Dewalt RAS. The disc was sold by Sears. Maybe ebay?
Those sanding disks are good for alignment as well. Can track to a few thousands with a little work. The tool rest is typically a little raised pedestal you add to the table. Not that complex. All kinds of complex angles can be achieved. Good results can be achieved. I have a couple. I think eBay is the only place to get them now. One side has a 4 degree angle usually.
Actually CMT makes one still. $35
CMT 299.112.00 10" Table Saw Balance Blade & Sanding Disc Set 5/8" Bore https://www.amazon.com/dp/B000P4LRMG/?tag=atomicindus08-20
CMT 299.112.00 10" Table Saw Balance Blade & Sanding Disc Set 5/8" Bore https://www.amazon.com/dp/B000P4LRMG/?tag=atomicindus08-20
dnschmidt
Well-known member
A table saw is fine, well, because it has "a table". Using these on a radial arm saw seems crazy to me as there is no support for the workpiece.
Possibly this will help you. It’s quite common. The various sanding attachments were always marketed to RAS and table saws in the past. Nothing is marketed to RAS anymore. There are numerous ways these were implemented, including for surface sanding and leveling the table top. These were actually implemented by lots and lots of people as the RAS was a very popular tool. Craftsman made many accessories. I find the disks with a 4 degree cone shape nice. Fraud seems to still make the sanding disks in 8 and 10 inches. I can’t find anyone making the 4 degree version anymore.
Zeus36
Well-known member
I got my aluminum DeWalt sanding disk off eBay for 25 bucks. Keep checking there as they turn up. Or you can come over to the Radial Arm Saw Forum at Delphi. One of the guys there will likely have one. That video above of the disc sanding station is from Brian Weekly, one of RAS forum members.
OP
andyvh1959
Well-known member
This Ebay seller obviously thinks he has struck gold:
Hey, but at least the shipping is free.
Hey, but at least the shipping is free.
Zeus36
Well-known member
Make your own with a piece of 3/4 plywood:
tfworkshop.blogspot.com
DIY Disc Sander
Last year I bought an old DeWalt radial arm saw, and I broke the motor mount while trying to disassemble it. It looked like the aluminum cas...
tfworkshop.blogspot.com
Zeus36
Well-known member
Or go with an 8" unit with discs:
8" Sanding Wheel For 5/8" Arbor Dewalt Delta/Rockwell Craftsman Table Radial Saw | eBay
Find many great new & used options and get the best deals for 8" Sanding Wheel For 5/8" Arbor Dewalt Delta/Rockwell Craftsman Table Radial Saw at the best online prices at eBay! Free shipping for many products!
www.ebay.com
ez-duzit
Well-known member
Horrible idea. A radial arm saw is built to take radial loads. A disc sander presents axial loads. If you cannot find a good use for your radial arm saw (a great tool for cross cutting), sell it and buy a disc sander.
Zeus36
Well-known member
Pretty sure both disc sanders and RAS use ball bearings. Maybe industrial disc sanders use angular contact bearings... For higher axial loads, you would need tapered roller bearings. Ball bearings can take light axial loads. You are feeding the stock into the sander with no mechanical advantage, just hand and finger strength.
I tend to agree with the comments recommending that you find another sort of disc sander, but if you really want one, Freud makes a combination calibration disc/sanding disk that should do the job. I have one, but have never used it for sanding because I bought it for calibrating, not sanding, and I don't want to chance getting it hot enough to warp, which would ruin it for that.
I answered your question below, but now I have a question of my own. I just bought a Delta 10" turret radial arm saw and am in the process of refurbishing it. It's one of the big ones with the really massive carriage and a motor that draws 17 amps using 120 volts. I was a bit taken aback when I cleaned the crud off to find that the motor says Black & Decker. I know B&D, or the company that owned the B&D trademark, bought Delta in about 2004, but this saw appears much older than that. Does your saw have an B&D markings?
I was also surprised to find that a former owner has removed the thermal cutout breaker in the motor housing. The power switch is in pretty sad shape anyway, so I'll probably replace that with a magnetic switch with its own thermal protection, so no big deal, but it's surprising, nonetheless.
Downwindtracker 2
Well-known member
I needed a disc sander to fit a recoil pads on a couple rifles. I grabbed an old motor and bought a disc attachment at the local tool store. Motor shafts tend to float, but sanding didn't put much load it. I used it until I bought a used 6'belt/9"disc sander.
OP
andyvh1959
Well-known member
My radial arm saw dates back to the early 80's, actually probably the late 70's. Its actually a Dewalt 770 Deluxe Powershop 10". So its not a Delta or the B&D version either. Has the elevation handle on top of the arm near the front. On/off switch is right on the very front of the arm. Kind of a simple design but it has served me well for 40+ years now.