wrote:

Some background comparative info he

http://www.diyfaq.org.uk/powertools/sander.htm

(I take it we are talking hand held belt sanders here and not the bench
mounted tools)

Can anyone tell me: what is a belt sander used for? Is it more
powerful than other types of sander or are they all pretty much the
same; is a 120 grit a 120 grit no matter what machine it's attached
to?

With a coarse belt they are very fast and aggressive - they can remove
wood almost as fast as planing. If you use finer belts then you can get
a nice finish, but the trick is to keep the thing moving or else you
will risk cutting marks and groves in the work. The sanding frames will
help if you want a flat finish on bigger areas.

I have a 1/3 sheet orbital sander which is pretty good but for
stripping paint it can be slow, I thought a belt sander might be
quicker?

Quicker certainly, but probably less controllable and more likely to
cause damage unless you are careful. A Random orbit sander (see FAQ
above) may be more appropriate for this task.

--
Cheers,

John.

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