How many Hobbyists have a Drum Sander?

[Byron Trantham]

I have Griz 18/36 DS and a Jet OSS. I use them both. They have their place.

[Leigh Betsch]

Woodmaster 38". Industrial quality. Buy used, and don't look back, you won't regret it.

[Christopher Pine]

I use it a gooD BIT. I would have never bought it but... http://www.sawmillcreek.org/showthread.php?t=68510

Chris

[Chris Tsutsui]

Yeah I would have pulled the trigger on that too.

I'm waiting for something like that... Or sadly enough.. a cabinet shop goimg out of business getting rid of an industrial model.. sigh*

All too common nowadays.

[Marty Paulus]

Chris,

I understand better now the need for a planer, jointer and drum sander. We have none of them currenly since we currently buy s4s lumber and resaw from there. Based on that I am not sure the planer is the right tool. The DS seems to be more of the right choice for our current needs. However the need for a dust collector is becoming more and more apparent for our small 'shop'. In fact a BS would also help with our resaw work. Another tool I am trying to convince some folks we need. Thanks for your insight on this!

[Jerry Todd]

I would not be without my WoodMaster 25 inch Drum sander. Every time I do a panel glue-up I am reminded how much I use it. Also, a few of my good woodworking buddies bring their glue-ups to my workshop to use the drum sander.

[Chris Padilla]

Chris,

I understand better now the need for a planer, jointer and drum sander. We have none of them currenly since we currently buy s4s lumber and resaw from there. Based on that I am not sure the planer is the right tool. The DS seems to be more of the right choice for our current needs. However the need for a dust collector is becoming more and more apparent for our small 'shop'. In fact a BS would also help with our resaw work. Another tool I am trying to convince some folks we need. Thanks for your insight on this!

So I assume you are resawing on a table saw right now? What is your goal for resawing? Veneer? Breaking down thicker stock? However you resaw, how are you cleaning up the resawn surface right now? ROS or handplane or something?

I buy wide rough lumber whenever I can. Right there, you need a jointer and a planer to handle that but let's skip ahead and assume that I've gotten my rough lumber S4S'ed (face planed, planed, edge-jointed, ripped other edge: S4S) so now you and I are at the same place with our lumber. Once you start resawing (on a bandsaw), you are going to create two rough surfaces. Since I'm creating veneers resawing, I'll drumsand one of the rough surfaces smooth using the planed surface as a reference. Now my previously S4S'ed lumber has 1 rough face. At this point, I send it through the planer again to smooth it out...resaw again...plane...resaw...plane. All my veneers will have one smooth surface doing it this way. If I am very careful with my bandsaw set up and resawing technique, I shouldn't have to plane much off to make a new smooth surface. Of course, I could drumsand instead of planing to create a new smooth surface...but it will be slower.

So after all that, it sure sounds like you could do ok with a drum sander or widebelt sander instead of a planer.

And, YES, you must have good dust collection with any powered largish sander but the same is true with a planer so you need it either way.

[Stephen Edwards]

I worked for years without a drum sander. Now that I have one I'd sure miss it if it were gone. As others have said, it's generally not a thickness planer. But it's great for its intended purpose.

I work quite a bit with eastern red cedar, which has very irregular grain patterns and subject to blowout on the jointer or planer when face planing . Most of the cedar lumber that I buy is from a local mill that resaws cants with an industrial sized BS. When I order 1 1/8" thick boards, I get 1 1/8 boards, right on the money, end to end. (You should see that saw spit the boards out. Amazing to watch!).

I sticker them and let them air dry. When they're dry and I'm ready to do a project I cut the boards to a rough length and rip to a rough width. Hardly ever do I use more than a 48" inch length. So far, they're always flat enough that I don't have to face plane a face to begin prepping the boards. This is where the drum sander is a BIG help for me. I'll surface one side of the boards with the DS. Then put that side against the fence on the bandsaw using tall feather boards and resaw to the finished thickness plus appx 1/16 or 1/8. Then it's back to the DS to get it down to the finish thickness. I can resaw 12".

Yes, it's slow. Get a stool to sit on and something to read while you're sanding the boards! The upside is that I no longer have blowouts and voids to deal with when working with cedar. I've heard that OP use their DS for the same purpose when working with other highly figured woods, which I have little experience with.

I use my jointer and planer more than I do the DS. But for certain species I've found it to be invaluable.