Suggestions for a Dual Action 110v Sander

[LSU]

I've never used a Dual Action sander and have a few questions.

I've used belt sanders and old fashioned "viberating" sanders but have never used a DA sander.

1. Can I use a DA to sand wood that will be painted?

2. Does a 110v DA sander have enough torque to sand wood that I need to paint?

3. How does the DA deal with the wood grain? I know I can use an orbital sander on wood because I don't want the swirl marks. Does the DA get around this problem?

4. For sanding wood that has been painted before, what grit would you recommend for a DA? I was thinking 100. Do I need to use a different grit than I would use in a regular sander?

5. Suggestions for a 110v Dual action sander?

Thanks.

 

[LSU]

Re: Suggestions for a Random Orbit 110v Sander

After posting this a few days ago with no response, I pulled the trigger and bought a 5" Rigid brand VS Random Orbital.

I used it today for about 2 hours and so far am very satisfied. I'm sanding some an old exterior door that has enamel paint on it.

Very happy with the tool. I like the variable speed option very much.

Changing the sand paper is very easy.

 

[DanMasshardt]

Thanks for the positive review. Ive been watching for answers here too.

 

[LSU]

I've used belt sanders, vibrating sanders and orbital sanders for 30+ years. I've never used a sander I like this much. I sanded about 2 hours non stop and I No pain or numbness in my hand.

I'm amazed how well this sander works. I'm sanding most of the old paint off, not by design- it is just coming off. I'm sanding with 100 grit. Older pine, oil based exterior paint.

I've never had as good sanding results.

I'm going to oil base prime and then sand again with 150 grit. I'll then decide if I prime or just paint.

I think I paid about $64.00 at HD. Packet of sanding discs was about $15.00. Very easy to change the sanding discs.

I looked at DeWalt and Mikita but like the VS and how this one fit my hand.

 

[signcrafter]

I have a few of the ridgid random orbit sanders and like them. If you use a series of grits 80, 120, 220, 320 then you won't see any swirl marks. Most of the time swirl marks are from either skipping grits, like from going from 80 grit to 220. Or from not going to fine enough grit paper, like only going to 120 or 150. Grit will depend on what you are sanding but I usually start with a 40,60,80 depending and then work up in steps to get the previous grits swirls out until I get to 220 or 320. The variable speed and soft start features are really nice. I use mostly hook and loop discs so I can switch back and forth easier. They are a little more expensive but if I only have a small area to sand I can us a few different grit discs and if they aren't wore out I can save them and reuse them later.

 

[KenS]

We have a couple Makita BO5030K random orbitals and they do a great job.

The only drawback is the hook and loop nylon pad on the sander does wear out with use (and be sure never to put the sander down on anything hot which can destroy the pad) and they are about $30 to replace which strikes us a pretty high for a piece of Velcro on a plastic backing plate.

Also, the dust bag fills up pretty quickly-- especially with coarse sanding disks.

Be sure you get sanding disks with the correct hole pattern for your sander, since they allow the dust to be vacuumed out to the dust bag port.

Once you use a random obital, you will never want to go back to inline or belts.