A disc sander is a high-speed device used for rough finishing materials like wood, metal, and plastic. It is mounted on a workbench and can remove large amounts of material quickly. Some models come with a belt sander for flat edges. A tilting table allows grinding of corners. Portable versions include the random orbit sander.
A disc sander is a device used to sand materials such as wood, metal, and plastic. Unlike small hand sanders, the disc sander is usually mounted on a workbench. Powered by an electric motor, the disc sander runs at a very high speed. While the sandpaper disc can be attached to the disc sander using a number of methods, the most popular are hook-and-loop, adhesive backing, and spray glue. Typically used for rough finishing, the disc sander removes material very quickly.
Not intended for use as a finish sander, a disc sander is usually equipped with a medium grit sandpaper. This allows the sander to remove large amounts of material quickly. Due to the circular shape of the abrasive disc, the rate of material removal can be varied by placing the material at different points on the surface of the disc. The closer to the center of the wheel the material is placed, the faster the sanding action. You must be very careful not to burn the material as it was sanded at this high speed.
Many disc sanders are manufactured as a combination of disc and belt sanders. The addition of a belt sander gives the operator a choice of sanding options. The belt sander is a sandpaper belt mounted on two drum pulleys. This creates a long surface that can be used to sand flat edges. This is not possible on a disc sander due to the circular sanding surface. On a circular abrasive disc, one half of the disc always moves in a different direction from the other.
A portable version of the disc sander is the random orbit, or oscillating orbit, sander. This type of sander uses a circular disc; the disc, on the other hand, is driven in an oblong rotation that is constantly changing. This change in orbit creates a disc sander that is very capable of creating smooth, flat surfaces. Portable sanders that don’t work on a random orbit are usually referred to as grinders or shapers.
Many bench disc sanders have a tilting table. This table option allows the operator to grind corners on a part by simply changing the tilt of the table. The corner can then be successfully duplicated across multiple pieces. The sander disc part comes in many sizes, with the larger sizes more suitable for full home workshop use.
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