Hello,

I've been using a cheap Ryobi ROS for about a year, and I'm noticing
that it tends to leave little swirlies on the work, which I have to
hand sand. My question is, are there sanders on the market that are
perhaps less agressive? Are sanders like everything else, where you
get what you pay for? Do some sanders use a finer, faster action,
which leaves a smoother surface for finishing? Is it my technique?

My next project is a butler's table, the top to which is a patchwork of
crossgrain. I won't be able to use a belt sander or even hand sand it,
so the ROS will probably be the best option. Any suggestions on this
would be appreciated.


Thanks,

Curt Blood

dustyone (in )
said:

| I've been using a cheap Ryobi ROS for about a year, and I'm noticing
| that it tends to leave little swirlies on the work, which I have to
| hand sand. My question is, are there sanders on the market that are
| perhaps less agressive? Are sanders like everything else, where you
| get what you pay for? Do some sanders use a finer, faster action,
| which leaves a smoother surface for finishing? Is it my technique?

Have you considered finer grit, stearated sandpaper?

| My next project is a butler's table, the top to which is a
| patchwork of crossgrain. I won't be able to use a belt sander or
| even hand sand it, so the ROS will probably be the best option. Any
| suggestions on this would be appreciated.

Have you ever tried using a scraper? If not, it might be time to do
that.

--
Morris Dovey
DeSoto Solar
DeSoto, Iowa USA
http://www.iedu.com/DeSoto/solar.html

http://www.leevalley.com/wood/page.a...=1,310&p=41069

wrote:
http://www.leevalley.com/wood/page.a...=1,310&p=41069



You forgot a link to an edge preparation resource.

http://www.taunton.com/finewoodworking/pages/w00007.asp

Nicely prepped scraper edge = JOY!
Bad scraper edge = _misery_

Scrapers also excel @ fixing finish mistakes, like runs.

I still sand, but scraping is a great skill to learn.

Barry wrote:http://www.taunton.com/finewoodworking/pages/w00007.asp
Good
article. Thanks! Tom

I have the Ryobi ROS too, and with fine grits (220 or so) of nice
sandpaper (Mirka gold from Amazon, for instance), I haven't had
problems with swirlies. In fact, I haven't had problems with swirlies
since junior high phys ed.
Seriously, finer sandpaper helps, and hooking up your sander to a shop
vac helps. Remember not to push down on the sander - let its weight do
the work for you.
Good luck,
Andy

dustyone wrote:
Hello,

I've been using a cheap Ryobi ROS for about a year, and I'm noticing
that it tends to leave little swirlies on the work, which I have to
hand sand. My question is, are there sanders on the market that are
perhaps less agressive? Are sanders like everything else, where you
get what you pay for? Do some sanders use a finer, faster action,
which leaves a smoother surface for finishing? Is it my technique?

My next project is a butler's table, the top to which is a patchwork of
crossgrain. I won't be able to use a belt sander or even hand sand it,
so the ROS will probably be the best option. Any suggestions on this
would be appreciated.


Thanks,

Curt Blood


The swirlies you see are probably more a function of how fine or coarse your
sandpaper is. Typical sequence would be to start @ 120, and progress through
the grits up to 220 or so. Make sure you brush away any stray grit in
between paper changes, or you can get a 120 grit swirlie when you're sanding
at 220 (DAMHIKT). Yes, you'll still have some swirlies after your finest
grit, but hand-sanding those away is usually just a few quick passes with
the grain.

-John

dustyone wrote:
Hello,

I've been using a cheap Ryobi ROS for about a year, and I'm noticing
that it tends to leave little swirlies on the work, which I have to
hand sand. My question is, are there sanders on the market that are
perhaps less agressive? Are sanders like everything else, where you
get what you pay for? Do some sanders use a finer, faster action,
which leaves a smoother surface for finishing? Is it my technique?

My next project is a butler's table, the top to which is a patchwork of
crossgrain. I won't be able to use a belt sander or even hand sand it,
so the ROS will probably be the best option. Any suggestions on this
would be appreciated.


Thanks,

Curt Blood

G'day Curt,
I use a 1/4 sheet vibrating sander after the ROS. Usually do about 120 -
180 with the Rose then 240 with the 1/4 sheet. All fixed
regards
John

dustyone wrote:
Hello,

I've been using a cheap Ryobi ROS for about a year, and I'm noticing
that it tends to leave little swirlies on the work, which I have to
hand sand. My question is, are there sanders on the market that are
perhaps less agressive? Are sanders like everything else, where you
get what you pay for? Do some sanders use a finer, faster action,
which leaves a smoother surface for finishing? Is it my technique?

My next project is a butler's table, the top to which is a patchwork of
crossgrain. I won't be able to use a belt sander or even hand sand it,
so the ROS will probably be the best option. Any suggestions on this
would be appreciated.


Thanks,

Curt Blood



Are you allowing the sander to come up to full speed before placing it
on the wood's surface and removing the sander from the stock before
shutting the sander off?

--
Jack Novak
Buffalo, NY - USA

(Remove -SPAM- to send email)

no(SPAM)vasys wrote:

Are you allowing the sander to come up to full speed before placing
it on the wood's surface and removing the sander from the stock
before shutting the sander off?


Funny, the instructions with mine (3283DVS?) say to start it on the
surface and leave it there till it stops. And I don't see any swirls
when I go through the grits to 220 or 240.

Perhaps the OP is pushing down too much instead of letting the sander do
the work? Perhaps he's running it at too low a speed? Or maybe his ROS
is really a POS :-).

Larry Blanchard wrote:

Funny, the instructions with mine (3283DVS?) say to start it on the
surface and leave it there till it stops. And I don't see any swirls
when I go through the grits to 220 or 240.

Some manufactures recommend starting the sander with the machine flat on
the stock to prevent gouging but as far as I know they all recommend
removing the machine before shutting it off. Swirls are minimized by
the random orbital action of the sander. As the sander stops so does
the random orbit.

--
Jack Novak
Buffalo, NY - USA

(Remove -SPAM- to send email)

Well, thank you all for you input. I'll check the instructions to see
which is correct. I've been turning the machine on, then placing it on
the work. It usually skips around a bit, sometimes quite a bit. I may
be exerting too much force on the work as well. I'm using Norton
sandpaper in 150, 220, and 320. Is this good enough, or are there
better? Thanks again.

CB

dustyone wrote:
Well, thank you all for you input. I'll check the instructions to see
which is correct. I've been turning the machine on, then placing it on
the work. It usually skips around a bit, sometimes quite a bit. I may
be exerting too much force on the work as well. I'm using Norton
sandpaper in 150, 220, and 320. Is this good enough, or are there
better? Thanks again.


I'd use 180 between the 150 and 220, and replace the 320 with a light
hand sanding with the grain using 240. Others may have different opinions.

And unless your wood is a lot smoother than I think it is I'd start with
120 or even 100.

Most of the time my sequence is 100, 120, 150, 180, 220 and then the 240
by hand. After the 100, it only takes a few passes with each of the
other grades.

dustyone wrote:

Hello,

I've been using a cheap Ryobi ROS for about a year, and I'm noticing
that it tends to leave little swirlies on the work, which I have to
hand sand. My question is, are there sanders on the market that are
perhaps less agressive? Are sanders like everything else, where you
get what you pay for? Do some sanders use a finer, faster action,
which leaves a smoother surface for finishing? Is it my technique?

My next project is a butler's table, the top to which is a patchwork of
crossgrain. I won't be able to use a belt sander or even hand sand it,
so the ROS will probably be the best option. Any suggestions on this
would be appreciated.


Thanks,

Curt Blood

one more thing to consider: moving a ROS too fast will cause "swirlies".

In article .com,
"dustyone" wrote:

Are sanders like everything else, where you
get what you pay for? Do some sanders use a finer, faster action,
which leaves a smoother surface for finishing? Is it my technique?

As a fella, whose bulk of his retirement (laughs) income comes from
sanding big slabs of solid surface...(black, dark brown, islands in
front of sun-lit windows..IOW...sanding nightmares).. I would agree with
a lot of the other replies. Too much pressure, too slow speed, etc.
My hunch is improper cleaning between grits, inadequate vacuum for dust
collection and/or low-grade (cheap) sandpaper.

The high-end sanders like the Rotex 150 Festool and Fein are not that
different than the lower cost ROS's other than their longevity and, most
importantly, their ability to remove the waste whilst in operation.
Keeping the job clean during sanding is what makes the big difference,
the other benefits, like balance, low vibration all add to the
professional choices.
All you need, is for a dozen pieces of sanding grit from the previous
size to be skidding around under the finer paper and you WILL get
swirlies.

I don't know how many times I have to say this, but CLEAN between
grits...

I once used a Ryobi with 100grit, followed by a PC with 150grit. The PC
actually cut faster than the Ryobi; probably because most of the Ryobi's
energy was going into shaking my hand apart, while the PC's was going into
sanding.

You won't get more than you pay for.