Benchtop belt sander

[Skeeter Lewis]

I have a Dremel for the tight curves on holsters - but some folks say a benchtop belt sander gives a better result for all the rest. Some belt sanders are pretty big. What do pards think is a practical sander just for leatherwork?

[ChuckBurrows]

I've used a combo 4" x 36" with a six inch disc for over 30 years.  I've owned a couple of Sears and currently a Ryobi that I got on sale at Homedepot for $79.00 - had it a year and it's held up well even doing knifework as well as leather work.
Belts and discs are readily available at most hardware stores so you don't have to order, though you can often get them cheaper by ordering in bulk.
IMO strictly for leatherwork nothing more powerful or expensive is better and I've owned some high end grinders so....and yes they are handy for smoothing the longer edges without getting those Dremel "divots"......You can slso turn a belt inside out and coat the paper side with beeswax to burnish edges.....

[Daniel Nighteyes]

Harbor Freight Tools has a pretty nice one for less than $80. http://www.harborfreight.com/cpi/ctaf/displayitem.taf?Itemnumber=34951

Alternately, if you have a vise and a handheld belt sander, just clamp the belt sander in the vise and VOILA!

[Dalton Masterson]

I have a small Dremel belt sander, that has a 2" or so wide belt, and also has a 4 or 5" disc sander on the end. I used to use it when I dabble in knives, but have since parked it, and use it infrequently.

I use a large drum sander in my air compressor die grinder for perfecting my edges. Works great, and is big enough I dont get the dremel bumps.
DM

[TN Mongo]

Chuck,

What grit belt do you use on your belt sander?

I've been using a small drum sander that's attached to a small table top drill press laid on its side, but I may have to try my belt sander.  Do you use your belt sander for holsters also?  If so, what technique do you use for the curved areas of the holster?

[Cutter Carl]

If your looking to get a sander I would suggest waiting a couple of weeks.  The big box stores will most likely have them on sale for Father's Day.  You should be able to pick up a nice one and save a few bucks at the same time.

[ChuckBurrows]

Chuck,

What grit belt do you use on your belt sander?

I've been using a small drum sander that's attached to a small table top drill press laid on its side, but I may have to try my belt sander.  Do you use your belt sander for holsters also?  If so, what technique do you use for the curved areas of the holster?

80 and 120 grit - 80 to even up and 120 to smooth - dampen the edge with water when smoothing.....then comes the burnishing............

I use my belt sander on everything including the long sewn edges of money belts - for the larger curves on holsters I use the area over the wheel of my belt sander, for tighter inside curves I use my Dremel

[Skeeter Lewis]

Thanks guys for this terrific info. Skeet.

[saddler]

Hi

I hope anyone using such power sanders on leather wears a face mask at all times

When I worked in a leathergoods factory years ago, I was told that I could only operate the small orbital sander to do edges if i had a mask on, as the leather dust is highly carcinogenic

...just a heads up to avoid possible health problems down the road

Jon

[TN Mongo]

Thanks Chuck.  I had never tried wetting the welt before sanding.  That would real help stop an accidental leather burn. 

I have learned a lot from this thread.

[Rayban]

I've had the 1 x 30 Harbor Freight (about $40) for about 3 years now....do a lot of knife handles on it. It's kinda load and fast but does a good job...recently I got the Craftsman 2 x 42 (about $130) and there are more belts/grits available for it.

[Ten Wolves Fiveshooter]

Howdy Gents

      This what I use, it's a Craftsman belt/disk sander, and next to it is a Rigid oscillating sander with belt and drum attachments, I use both these sanders to clean and shape my leather pieces, there great for shaping  knife handles and gun grips, it gets the job done in short order, but they're also great for just about anything you need to smooth or take a sharp edge off, I use different sand paper inserts for my leather, you don't want to get any resins that might come out of wood on your leather, Here they are.

     
                                                              Regards

                                                          tEN wOLVES   

[Marshal Tac]

I have two sanding tools. One is a drum sander that I chuck into my table top drill press. I use it mostly for the curved areas of my holsters. I also picked up a cheap imported belt/disc sander from Harbor Frieght & tool for about $60. It uses the 5 in. discs and the 4 in. wide belts. It works great. I have also used it for grip making and knife building (I build them from kits, rather than 'make' them from scratch).

I don't think you can beat the price on the one that Harbor Frieght and Tool sells. I would give them a look if you are interested in getting a small table top version that will do what you are asking for under $80.00.

-Tac

[Skeeter Lewis]

Thanks to all for the input. Skeet

[Marshal Will Wingam]

I've been thinking of replacing my old relic with a new one. Thanks for the info, pard.

[WaddWatsonEllis]

As a wood butcher, I have found two ways of taming the tabletop sander.

1.) My tabletop sander used to 'ance' (vibrate) alll over the table. Finallly, I bolted it down to a rectangle of plywood. On either side of the plywood I have vertical dados that mate up with the 'dogs' in the bench vise.
That way I set it on the table, 'dog' it down on the bench vise, and voila! It doesn't move!

2.) Stick on (glue backed) sand paper can get really expensive, and can tear up on the sanding disc. Meaning time spent scraping the disc to get all the old paper off before adding another stick on disc. And if one is doing repetitive sandings in progressively finer grits, the stickon papers are toast after one use.

So... I went down to Woodcraft and bought a replacement (stick-on) velcro pad. The type that Porter Cable and others sell to replace worn out velcro pads for their orbital sanders.

Now I can buy the same sandpaper for my portable and table discs, and change/reuse the paper as I see fit.

[Ten Wolves Fiveshooter]

                     Good information Wad, thanks for sharing

                                     Regards

                               tEN wOLVES 

[Johnny McCrae]

I just picked up an Oscillating Sander. The spindle size goes from approx. 1/2" to 2" dia. I bought it mainly for making pistol grips and also for leather edges. After I get it set up, I'll post some pictures and comments.

[Ten Wolves Fiveshooter]

                 Good choice Johnny, you'll love it

                           tEN wOLVES 

[Marshal Will Wingam]

Thanks for the info, Wadd. I'll have to look into one of those stick-on velcro pad conversions. I sure dislike changing those stick-on discs.