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Router As Sander?


verhoevenc

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1) Ok, so my question, is how bad an idea is it to attach like... a robo-sander to a one speed router?? I know it says they're for press drills but I don't have such luxery. Actually, doesn't have to be a robo-sander, could be an circular sander type thing... like what matt's using here on his violin sides:

v49.jpg

So... router attachable??

2) Also, I use fordom burrs every now and then for shaping, adn the other day I saw a BIG fordom burr with a 1/4" shank... that's a router sized shank! not a dremel one! Is it just me, or is attaching a huge burr to your router and holding the router freehand to carve with a big burr like that an accident waiting to happen??

Chris

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You've just proposed two very bad ideas. Most routers are much too fast to put a sanding drum in. A few years ago, my dad got the bright idea to try just that. The router spun so fast it bent the drum shaft about 30 degrees the instant he turned it on. Also, it's a bad, bad idea to try to carve something freehand with a router...if I'm imagining the way you intend to do it. I assume you mean for, say, carving a top etc. You need something that's more agile. It's not the rpm's on the router you need to worry about when carving with it, it's the bulk that's going to make it difficult to handle and accordingly, dangerous. I use a heavy duty 1/4" / 1/8" shank flexshaft on a router for carving. Foredom flexshafts can accept a 1/4" shank.

The large foredom burr could be good for rough carving a top, if you've got a steady hand, but I would recomend using their smaller burrs for finessing the fine details of the carve.

peace,

russ

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Or a drill press. No better way to hurt yourself than using a tool for anything other than its intended purpose. Good for you for asking though, many a man missing a finger would wish he had your sense.

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I picked up a drill stand used, didn't cost much. Not as nice as drill press, but there you go.

I made my own sanding thingamajig using a piece of dowel and doublesided tape to hold the sanding paper on.

It worked perfectly fine --it's important that you drill shank shaft for the dowel nice n' straight.

Much easier just to buy the real attachment though.

And my little experience with a router tells me to treat this tool with a lot of respect...

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I think we need perry's bad advice pic or something like that.

A router is used to route wood thats about it. It can't drill, sand, or polish or whatever.... A router motor is wired sooo much differently 22000 rpm, vs. most other motors 1750 or 3450 RMPs.

Grizzly sells a cheap osilating unit.

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Nice pull!  see kids, there's a moral to every story.  The moral here is 'Matt's a smartarse' :D

lol.. Come on Setch, you know you wanted to say it. Seriously though, I was just taking Perry's slack since he wasn't around. :D

Actually it wasn't a bad question at all, because it seems like a good idea if you don't have a drill press or sander. Unfortunately, it won't work good using a router and is quite dangerous. I really wasn't trying to be smartasey, just trying to point out the reason for various tools.

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You guys ever see that american woodworking magazine? or somethign like it.

one of the editors is missing a finger from a table saw accident, and wears a patch from something else. he also has a chipped tooth. I am not sure if it a fake but thats the type of pic we need here. Some bodily harm injury

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the worst accident i've ever had after 20 years of re-modeling, deck building, cabinet building and personal use of power tools was with a router. i was routing a couple of bench supports that i had forgotten to route before installation on a deck project. problem was i had taken the base off like a dummy and was freehanding it while kneeling. when i stood up the router was still running and i was standing on the cord pulling the router with a 3/4" roundover bit in it through my left hand. it took big ole chunks out of my thumb and index finger. couldn't even get stitches 'cause there wasn't anything left to pull together.

so yeah, not only use tools for their intended use but also in an intelligent way. by the way, all the fingers are still there but there are some nice scars to remind me of the lesson.

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That pic is my oscillating spindle sander setup with my resaw fence to thickness violin ribs. Worked very well.

Yeah, routers are NOT sanders.

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Routers have pretty crap torque. It's all angular velocity, so slowing 'em down (and I'm not even sure you can get them to slow down all that much, and speed controllers only work on non-variable speed routers) will get you something slow that'll stall something lovely.

Use routers for routing. Buy a sander for sanding (or use a drill press if you're on a budget, although again, not ideal).

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  • 3 weeks later...
An oscillating spindle sander. $50 will get you an acceptable one.

$50??????????? where? I paid over a grand for mine, yeah it's bigger, but only because the small ones were still $600 to $800 and I couldn't justify buying a small one for just a few hundred less and having it be less useful for multiple tasks over the bigger one.

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*used

Maybe $50 will just get me an acceptable one. If not an oscillating sander, $50, or there abouts, will certainly get a hobbyist(which you must remember, most of us are) quality drum sander, used. I have a nack for finding nice tools for nearly free. For instance, I have a $500 dewalt scroll saw that I paid only $125 for. Actually, I got the saw for free and had to replace the circuit board. I got a free dewalt compound miter saw, I've managed to get a free thickness planer as well. My planer is a 6" $150 harbor freight model, but, set up well, it works like a charm...and it's very durable. My 20gal compressor was had for cheap, but I can't remember the price.

"My momma told me, I betta shop around(shop, shop, shop around)"

peace,

russ

Edited by thegarehanman
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These what you're refering to?:

http://www.harborfreight.com/cpi/ctaf/Disp...temnumber=42006

and http://www.harborfreight.com/cpi/ctaf/Disp...temnumber=47032

?

I'm just hoping my drill will spin fast enough for these (and no it's not cordless... but still skeptical, they seem pretty big (ie: lots a rotational inertia).

Chris

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