Ridgid belt sander.
 

Brothers and sisters in shavings, splinters and dust, I ask about the following:

A 3 x 21 inline belt sander just showed up at the local HD.
Looks nice...heavy...flush-sands.. 3 year warranty.
A free 1/4 sheet sander tossed in and....wait for it....a bag!

Turns out that I actually need a 1/4 sheet sander, the deal seems pretty good as
my 3x21 Porter Cable is starting to do it's motor-bearing thing again..and I'm
REALLY tired of fixing it.
I'm not prepared to invest in the fabulous 'choo-choo' PC sander at this point,
but it is clear that the Ridgid belt-sander designers have closely looked at the
'choo-choo' .

So... what do we know about this sander?

Ridgid belt sander.
 

Robatoy wrote:

So... what do we know about this sander?

After you burn it up, you will still have to buy the "choo-choo".

Lew

Ridgid belt sander.
 

I spent $400 on belt sanders before buying a choo choo. I wish I would have
bought it first.

Ridgid belt sander.
 

http://www.savannahtoolhouse.com/sanders.html choo choo $409

Ridgid belt sander.
 

In article ,
"Pat" wrote:

I spent $400 on belt sanders before buying a choo choo. I wish I would have
bought it first.

This thing (R2720 Ridgid) has a soft start 10-amp motor.
That's a lot of balls for a belt sander.

The Ridgid sells for $219 Can. (PLUS I get a freebie 1/4 sheet sander),
I can't find the choo choo for under $800 Canadian.

Do I want a choo-choo? Yup! Do I want to eat? Yup!

Ridgid belt sander.
 

Robatoy wrote:

The Ridgid sells for $219 Can. (PLUS I get a freebie 1/4 sheet sander),
I can't find the choo choo for under $800 Canadian.


I wonder why?

Lew

Ridgid belt sander.
 

In article et,
Lew Hodgett wrote:

Robatoy wrote:

The Ridgid sells for $219 Can. (PLUS I get a freebie 1/4 sheet sander),
I can't find the choo choo for under $800 Canadian.


I wonder why?

Lew

Okay... twice the money I can get my head around.
THREE times the money starts messing with my common sense... I mean come
ON!......but... If I had a great week and made out like a bandit on a
few fast granite deals...okay...at $599...maybe.... but at
EIGHT_FRICKIN'HUNNERT????... Lew.. I just can't make myself do it.
$ 800 buys a lot steel to build a 4 x 8 router table.

Ridgid belt sander.
 

Robatoy wrote:

Okay... twice the money I can get my head around.
THREE times the money starts messing with my common sense... I mean come
ON!......but... If I had a great week and made out like a bandit on a
few fast granite deals...okay...at $599...maybe.... but at
EIGHT_FRICKIN'HUNNERT????... Lew.. I just can't make myself do it.
$ 800 buys a lot steel to build a 4 x 8 router table.


SFWIW, $400 USD buys one.

Getting it into Canada, that's another matter.

What happens if you have to shipped to a drop in Port Huron?

Lew

Ridgid belt sander.
 

I say buy the HD and try it out. If you don't like it, they will take
it back and either credit your acct., credit card, or give you back
cash.

As a contractor that burns tools up, I am tired of paying 2 - 3X as
much for a tool that performs as well or maybe 10% better than a big
time name brand. I am beginning to buy today's crappy tools not
because of what they do as much as the warranty they carry to protect
their sorry product. I don't believe that the PC sander is actually
THREE times better than the HD.

And speaking of warrany, doesn't the HD line carry either a 2 year or
lifetime warranty (depending on the tools) a this point? What is the
PC warranty these days?

Robert

Robert

Ridgid belt sander.
 

In article .com,
wrote:

I say buy the HD and try it out. If you don't like it, they will take
it back and either credit your acct., credit card, or give you back
cash.

As a contractor that burns tools up, I am tired of paying 2 - 3X as
much for a tool that performs as well or maybe 10% better than a big
time name brand. I am beginning to buy today's crappy tools not
because of what they do as much as the warranty they carry to protect
their sorry product.

They have actuaries calculate all this stuff. A lot of warranties are
handled by companies that do nothing but warranties.
(They sell 10,000 sanders, 1 ends up in a solid surface shop and needs
to be replaced 3 times...so what??)

I don't believe that the PC sander is actually
THREE times better than the HD.

[snip]

That's pretty much where I'm coming from as well, Robert.
There is no doubt that the PC 504 is an incredible sander, but how good
can it be? Or.... how good does it need to be?
There's a 3-year warranty on the Ridgid R2720.

http://www.woodworkersjournal.com/ezine/toolpreview.cfm

Ridgid belt sander.
 

In article et,
Lew Hodgett wrote:

Robatoy wrote:

Okay... twice the money I can get my head around.
THREE times the money starts messing with my common sense... I mean come
ON!......but... If I had a great week and made out like a bandit on a
few fast granite deals...okay...at $599...maybe.... but at
EIGHT_FRICKIN'HUNNERT????... Lew.. I just can't make myself do it.
$ 800 buys a lot steel to build a 4 x 8 router table.


SFWIW, $400 USD buys one.

Getting it into Canada, that's another matter.

What happens if you have to shipped to a drop in Port Huron?

Lew

I used to do that sort of thing all the time. Now with all the nonsense
at the border, the exchange rate, stuff you pay on the way back....
still 3 times as much as the R2720 Ridgid.

I'm going to take another look at it next time I'm at the Borg...I need
some 1/2" MDF to make some templates anyway...soooo

Ridgid belt sander.
 

Well Robatoy, after reading the review from your link, I know what I
would do. Especially if it came with a small finishing sander. I have
two sanders from them, one is the 6" ROS that looks like the Bosch with
the extended handle, and 5" that you hold the housing. Both variable
speed. The 6" even has a variable stroke.

I bought these when they had the famous "lifetime" warranty on them,
which I understand is back. I bought these because I had torn up my
last PC sander, and I found the DeWalt sanders I used to be nothing but
crap. Expensive, but crap. I was glad when they died out so I could
throw those rattling *******s away.

So I put the guys out on a house with the 6" HD sander with 60 and 120
grit to sand fascia. I was determined to really show my commercial rep
at HD how crappy his tools were, too. He did not care; he said "go for
it.. what do I care?" His reasoning was yours; most tools they sell
are weekend tools, some heavy weekend use, and lots of one project
tools. How many actually wind up in the hands of contractors? While
they were told at training that they were trying to tap the contractor
market, they wanted pricing to be homeowner friendly.

To sum it up, the sanders work better than any other I have owned. I
am disgusted. I wanted these to be crappy tools as I would like to buy
SOMETHING that is an old school branded tool that works better than
Chiawanese tools. But they built these tough. The 6" has sand MILES
of fascia/siding and trim to prepare for paint. Yet it still hums
right along and does good finishing on a new cabinet preparing for
finish.

The 5" gets the worst of it. The guys drop it, throw it in the tool
box (the carrying case long destroyed) and generally use the damn thing
as a grinder. Runs like a champ. As much as I hate seeing these tools
on my job (I want my clients to think I am using something they can't
just walk down and buy at the lumberyard equivalent of WalMart) I have
bough another one of each of these sanders and they stay in my truck in
their cases for me to use as needed.

I think you and I are the same vintage and remember when you bought a
tool, you used it hard on the job for a couple of years, and you took
it to the job for new bearings and cord. Then a couple of years later,
new bearings, cord and switch. Then repaired as needed. I have an old
Rockwell saw (long retired) that I bought in 1975 that has had 3 sets
of bearing put in it and it still runs like a sewing machine. I have a
Milwaukee saw that I bought in 1977 that has had 5 sets of bearings,
several cords and now has a heavy duty hammerdrill switch in it. It
was worth rebuilding years ago, and it was cost effiecient.

Now, the saws cost what they did 30 years ago (Rockwell 315 and 346C
were $125) and rebuilding costs as much or more than a new saw. My old
Milwaukee that served as me so well is no longer worth rebuilding. The
trigger is a little iffy (this one lasted 10 years though) and the cord
is frayed at the housing and literally smoked last time I used it, and
it really needs new bearings. Cost from Milwaukee repair here was the
same as our little tool repair shop: new bearings $85, new trigger
$42, new cord made to fit but not OEM is $22. All prices include
labor since they would have the saw apart anyway for bearings.

So the "old school" brands have us where they want us. Use the tool
until it breaks or it needs maintenance, and it is time to throw it
away. And they secure this position by having shorter and shorter
warranties on them. They are trading on their name, and that is an
account long overdrawn with me.

So if a tool pops up that has any kind of "lifetime" or one/two year
warranty, I would really be inclined to try it, especially if I could
take it back, if it was aggressively priced, and there was a good
chance that I could actually wind up with a good tool in the process.
And if this sander now comes with a 1/4 sheet sand as a "gimme" for
trying out the new product, I would probably go for it. (Yup, after
buying the 6" and the 5", I bought the 1/4 too, and it has outlasted
the Dewalts and kept up with the PC.)

PLEASE do us all a big favor and let us know what you think if you buy
and use this machine. I would love a tool review on this machine if
you could take a few minutes and commit your thoughts to writing.

Robert

Ridgid belt sander.
 

Ridgid belt sander.
 

Not trying to get anyone defensive about their favorite tools here. We
all have some tool or another from some manufacturer that we love to
death and are as protective of the tool, manufacturer and reputation as
if they were a loved one.

I have owned so many tools over the last 30 years I have no emotional
attachment to them anymore. I don't really care what I pay for a tool
(within reason of course) as long as it is reliable, especially when I
consider my labor cost of having two of my guys out on the job. It is
nice if it is maintainable by me, but not necessary. I don't care
whose name is on the case.

If there was a magical brand that made good tools across the board, I
would only buy that brand. Call it a "no brainer".

As it is now, my tool box and shop are like a rainbow coalition.
Milwaukee saws, PC recip saws, DeWalt drills, Makita saws, PC and
DeWalt routers, Bosch sanders, Ridgid sanders, etc.

For me, it is whatever works. As always, just my .02.

Robert

Ridgid belt sander.
 

Ridgid belt sander.
 

Ridgid belt sander.
 

Lew Hodgett wrote:
Having said that, I have burned up enough belt sanders, at least 6, to
know that the only one worth a hoot is the choo-choo.

IMHO, the only other must have, there is no equal tool is the Fein
Multimaster.



Unless it's the Bosch jigsaw. I have mixed feelings about what you've written.
As I get older, I'm more inclined to try to buy better tools. I still have to
balance bang for the buck with just bang though... since I haven't won the
lottery yet. I am highly cognizant of the fact that one enjoys cheap tools only
on the day he purchases them.

I generally try to read tool reviews in respectable WW rags and go for their
"Best Buys". And for what it's worth, I've had pretty good luck with Ridgid in
the past. I own their 6" ROS, 15" drill press, and table saw (which is tricked
out beyond what's reasonable).



--
Mortimer Schnerd, RN

VE

Ridgid belt sander.
 

In article .com,
wrote:

[snippage for brevity]
one is the 6" ROS that looks like the Bosch with
the extended handle, and 5" that you hold the housing. Both variable
speed. The 6" even has a variable stroke.

That 6" is a Metabo made in Germany. I have one and after replacing the
velcro pads, I have had no complaints..
It gets worked almost every day... it shares duties with a 150 Rotex
Festool. The Ridgid 6" has a Festool C22 sucker on it, and the Festool
sander has a Turbo II Fein sucker attached to it. One package goes on
service calls and installations, the other stays pretty much at the
shop. (Unless it's a very dark colour solid surface, in which case the
slightly better performance of the Rotex/Fein makes it worth the hassle
of carrying the extra bulk.)
Hopefully this shows that I will buy the better tool, regardless of cost
(up to a point, which the choo-choo' goes over...) because I make a
decent living with them.

I bought these when they had the famous "lifetime" warranty on them,
which I understand is back. I bought these because I had torn up my
last PC sander, and I found the DeWalt sanders I used to be nothing but
crap. Expensive, but crap. I was glad when they died out so I could
throw those rattling *******s away.

I bought it because I did a thorough investigation. I knew the style and
features of the 6" looked familiar...then I discovered, via a repair
depot conversation, that the Metabo parts are directly interchangeable
with the Ridgid. Lifetime warranty, low cost... a no-brainer.
In the business I sold (to retire...as if...G) I used and abused PC 6"
ROS sanders. They served me well... much more so than their latest
generation of production routers...another story) The Ridgid 6" is head
and shoulder well above the PC (grinder style) ROS sanders.
The Festool 6" is a notch better again, simply because it evacuates the
dust better than the Ridgid and in solid surface sanding, that is very
important.

[snipped for brevity ] Thanks for the input.

So the "old school" brands have us where they want us. Use the tool
until it breaks or it needs maintenance, and it is time to throw it
away. And they secure this position by having shorter and shorter
warranties on them. They are trading on their name, and that is an
account long overdrawn with me.

That really irks the **** outta me too. Mostly because I feel insulted.
They're treating people like idiots. Companies like Festool charge more
because you get more. They almost always get it right... but the
plastification of Porter Cable is following the same path as the butcher
job Black & Decker did with EMU. They now strive to be a bit better than
Harbour Freight and stuff like that. For the occasional user, it's good
enough.

So if a tool pops up that has any kind of "lifetime" or one/two year
warranty, I would really be inclined to try it, especially if I could
take it back, if it was aggressively priced, and there was a good
chance that I could actually wind up with a good tool in the process.
And if this sander now comes with a 1/4 sheet sand as a "gimme" for
trying out the new product, I would probably go for it. (Yup, after
buying the 6" and the 5", I bought the 1/4 too, and it has outlasted
the Dewalts and kept up with the PC.)

Yup... sitting on my benchtop now. The 1/4 sheet jobbie is cute and
reminds me of the little Makitas I used to buy. In my trade of limited
value, but I'm going to build some woodworking related stuff... some
end-tables and projects like that. ALL 1/4 sheet sanders leave swirl
marks on dark acrylic countertops.

That 2720 Ridgid belt sander feels awful nice in the hands. Soft start
(although in this case purely a spin-off from the same electronic speed
controls used everywhere and therefore a marketing/cosmetic feature.)
It's all cast. Nice balance. Relatively quiet. 10 amp motor.... we'll
see about that! G Turns out that I happen to have a nice big thick
countertop in production, as we speak.
Tracking adjustment responds nicely..
(Wondering if I can retrofit a PC aftermarket graphite pressure
platen..... oh drat..here he goes again...)
The dust bag sure blows up firmly and fast.... even at slow speed.
The speed control knob is in a nice spot.

Negative #1... *I* won't be using this sander overhead for any length of
time...it is heavy.
Negative #2.. no obvious way to hook up any of my dust suckers... I will
need to fit something. As a side-discharging device, I'll have to give
that some thought.... but on the up side.... there's a huge amount of
air coming into that bag...

PLEASE do us all a big favor and let us know what you think if you buy
and use this machine. I would love a tool review on this machine if
you could take a few minutes and commit your thoughts to writing.

Robert

You bet I will, Robert. This is almost a too-good-to-be-true tool for
the money. If worse comes to worst, I'll have to concede to Lew and
others..and do the choo-choo....

Ridgid belt sander.
 

In article . net,
Lew Hodgett wrote:


IMHO, the only other must have, there is no equal tool is the Fein
Multimaster.

I'm still hoping for the day when I take a gig which absolutely warrants
having one of those... G

Ridgid belt sander.
 

In article . com,
wrote:

As it is now, my tool box and shop are like a rainbow coalition.

Predominantly Milwaukee with a smattering of all other colours.

Ridgid belt sander.
 

Robatoy wrote:

I'm still hoping for the day when I take a gig which absolutely warrants
having one of those... G

It is amazing the number of non detail sanding applications I find for
that tool.

Lew

Ridgid belt sander.
 

Mortimer Schnerd, RN wrote:

Unless it's the Bosch jigsaw. I have mixed feelings about what you've written.
As I get older, I'm more inclined to try to buy better tools. I still have to
balance bang for the buck with just bang though... since I haven't won the
lottery yet. I am highly cognizant of the fact that one enjoys cheap tools only
on the day he purchases them.

Building a fiberglass boat exposes tools to more abuse in a month than
most woodworking applications will in a year.

Fiberglass and fairing putty dust are unbelievably abrasive.

As a result, cheap tools are doomed to failure in my application.

Lew

Ridgid belt sander.
 

"Robatoy"
snip
A 3 x 21 inline belt sander just showed up at the local HD.
Looks nice...heavy...flush-sands.. 3 year warranty.
A free 1/4 sheet sander tossed in and....wait for it....a bag!

So... what do we know about this sander?

Pass - get the PC.

Say, why would a guy that makes a living with tools consider using a
consumer brand? I know its not price as you seem to use Fes, Fein, and big
red often.

Again, get the PC. After 15 years I've only had to replace the cord on
mine.

Dave

COULD have been a good piece.
 

In article ,
Robatoy wrote:

So... what do we know about this sander?

These weren't the results I was hoping for. After the pleasant surprise
when I bought the Ridgid 6" ROS from HD, this was a let-down.

The 2720 Ridgid belt sander has all the right stuff. Strong engine,
solid cast chassis.... a lot of desirable features.

It has a very strong fan which sucks the dust right off the work surface
and through gaps and spaces blows the stuff all over the place. In fact,
very little ends up in the bag. I didn't bother trying to hook it up to
my Fein because by that time I fell out of lust.

So close yet no cigarillo.

The base which supports the pressure plate looks flat, but the toe and
the heel of the belt fail to push down equally. I found it impossible to
keep it flat without either the heel or the toe digging in. I have years
of belt sanding under my ..errrrrrmm...mm...belt. It is hard to describe
the frustration when my old 352VS Porter Cable does a MUCH better job at
staying flat on the work piece.

Reliability or longevity? WTF cares if the thing won't even do its very
basic duty.

I tried all kinds of belts, speeds, materials... finally I said
%%$#@%*^!!!!!!, packed it up and back to HD it went.

I posted a couple of pics on A.B.P.W.


*singing*
"pardon me Lew, is that the Porter Cable Choo-choo....

COULD have been a good piece.
 

Robatoy wrote:

*singing*
"pardon me Lew, is that the Porter Cable Choo-choo....


Think tenderhooks.

When you bite the bullet, you get off the tenderhooks, meantime, you
just hang there and wiggle.

Lew

Ridgid belt sander.
 

A 3 x 21 inline belt sander just showed up at the local HD.
Looks nice...heavy...flush-sands.. 3 year warranty.
A free 1/4 sheet sander tossed in and....wait for it....a bag!

One of these bad boys just showed up on my doorstep yesterday. I have only
had time to open the box and haven't actually sanded anything yet. I
haven't even installed the front handle yet but I sure am glad it comes with
one; the sucker is mighty heavy. I haven't even managed to kill my 30 year
old Black & Decker so I'm quite sure I'll never be able to subject the
Ridgid to the kind of abuse you general contractor guys could put it
through. But I'll give ti a whack and publish the results.

Lee

--
To e-mail, replace "bucketofspam" with "dleegordon"

_________________________________
Lee Gordon
http://www.leegordonproductions.com

Ridgid belt sander.
 

In article ,
"Teamcasa" wrote:

"Robatoy"
snip
A 3 x 21 inline belt sander just showed up at the local HD.
Looks nice...heavy...flush-sands.. 3 year warranty.
A free 1/4 sheet sander tossed in and....wait for it....a bag!

So... what do we know about this sander?

Pass - get the PC.

Say, why would a guy that makes a living with tools consider using a
consumer brand? I know its not price as you seem to use Fes, Fein, and big
red often.

Again, get the PC. After 15 years I've only had to replace the cord on
mine.

Dave

My grandmother used to have a saying: (loosely translated)

"I'm too poor to buy cheap things"

I've got some hope in scoring one of the 504(3?) PC's when my sister
comes and visits from Kansas over Christmas.

Ridgid belt sander.
 

Robatoy:

All I can say is.... crap. I always get my hope up when someone that
knows how to use a tool tries out something that has a spark of hope.
I would love for someone, anyone to make a good tool these days.

*Sigh*

For me, I still have three belt sanders that work well. An older
Rockwell (yup, the red wreath and black lower case "r" are on it), a
new model of that one that is an older PC, and my favorite, a 22 year
old HItachi that was made in Japan. That thing is an unstoppable
brute, and it is the one that I use to sand cabinets, display cases,
etc. if needed.

I was hoping for a good report as I know these old horses can't last
forever.

I have had great luck with all my Milwaukee tools, which you indicate
you have a few. Have you ever tried their belt sander?

Inquiring minds are wondering. Oh yeah, and thanks for posting an
honest review. You probably saved me more than a few hours of ****ed
off frustration of trying that sander out. I figure if a solid surface
man can't make it work, what chance does a carpenter have? (I am being
serious here... I know you guys use them all day long, and me only as
needed).

Robert

Ridgid belt sander.
 

I can confirm that, since I'm the one who gifted Lee with the sander so
he could review it for the next issue of Woodcraft Magazine.
Hopefully, he'll work his butt off to put it through some
contractor-like duties as he's checking it out for his article.
Something you want him to do with it? Post it here, and he'll do it.

Or I won't pay him.

A.J.

Ridgid belt sander.
 

In article .com,
wrote:

I have had great luck with all my Milwaukee tools, which you indicate
you have a few. Have you ever tried their belt sander?

You mean their bench-top floor sander? It was great. 4" swath of total
carnage. With a 36-grit belt, I could level a parking lot.
I used one for 20+ years till it was nudged off the 3rd level of a
scaffold and augered into a concrete driveway.
It was old, the casing destroyed and it was very difficult to control.
When I tossed it, I went to the 4" PC which lasted about 5 years. Then a
series of smaller PC's.. a Bosch... a Makita, which still runs but still
doesn't want to track properly.

But when that Milwaukee was on... the mothers in the area would all tell
their children to come inside.....

Why not a replacement? It was too bulky and you couldn't get too close
to the edges.

From what I hear in this here Wreck ..., Noah used a PC 504.

Now *MY* dilemma is to chose between the 503 and the 504.

Ridgid belt sander.
 

In article .com,
wrote:

Oh yeah, and thanks for posting an
honest review.

Thank you.

FWIW... reviews can be highly personal and therefore biased. What *I*
expect from a tool, may not be what somebody else expects.
My world is pretty flat. I can't have any kind of gouging. But maybe
that wouldn't matter so much if a guy is taking paint off a barn.

That 2720 Ridgid simply did not do what *I* needed it to do.

Can’t comment on that belt sander. In general I was not a fan of Ridgid power tools, until I got my hands on a Ridgid 6-inch random orbit sander. I got it for fiberglass work, ended up using it for all kinds of things, but mostly fiberglass. It’s more durable than I anticipated, we’re on our 3rd year of heavy use. Fwiw, fiberglass is perhaps the worst material for power tools. The abrasive dust gets sucked into the vents and in and around the motor, then the tools dies. Some power tool warranties specifically state the warranty is voided if the tool is used on fiberglass. Ridgid does not disallow fiberglass from their tools’ use.

Ridgid’s 3-yr warranty contains a 90-day satisfaction guarantee. It allows you to return the tool for any reason within the first 90-days for a full refund. I suggest you buy the Ridgid belt sander and try it out. If you don’t get enough tool-tingle, take it back within 3-months for a full refund.

http://www.ridgid.com/CatalogDocs/3Y...Y_warranty.pdf

This is from the product description of the PC 504 belt sander: Worm-gear drive delivers smooth and efficient power transfer from the motor. Something I learned about windlass design is that worm gears are LESS efficient at transferring power. The loss of power from a worm drive is in the range of 20% to 30%, so to compensate the motor has to be bigger, and that means everything gets beefier, and everything gets heavier. I believe the power loss is proportional to the length of the worm gear. Can’t comment about the “smooth” part of PC’s statement.

Ridgid belt sander.
 

Robatoy wrote in news:design-670638.14284416112005
@news.bellglobal.com:

In article . net,
Lew Hodgett wrote:


IMHO, the only other must have, there is no equal tool is the Fein
Multimaster.

I'm still hoping for the day when I take a gig which absolutely warrants
having one of those... G

I bought one JUST to trim excess thinset between ceramic tiles in the
bathroom remodel. Very cool. And it does many other things, too.

Patriarch