What grits on your Drum Sander?

[Bernie May]

I currently use 80 and 120 grits on my drum sander, currently for cutting boards. I just bought some 220 and 320 to get even smoother surfaces. I don't really mind changing the belts. What grits do the rest of you use?
-bernie

[Joseph Tarantino]

80 and 120. beyond 120, it's ROS or hand work.

[Peter Quinn]

80, 100, 120 grit. Beyond that its by hand or ROS for me.

[J.R. Rutter]

When I had a drum sander, I used 120/180 almost exclusively. No luck finer than that.

[Cary Falk]

120 grit. .

[John Coloccia]

I tried 36 grit tonight. What a mistake. 80 and 120 seem to be the sweet spots for me.

[Chris Padilla]

100-120 grit for sanding down veneers. Beyond that, the finer grits tend to clog too quickly and you have to really futz with the sanding height.

[Mike Cutler]

80/120 on mine ( Steel City 26" ). I have a roll of 150, but haven't used it yet.
After that I finish by hand with finer grits, or a scraper. I need to try an ROS.

[Jeff Duncan]

Yeah should have asked us first as those are a bit high for a drum sander. The highest I used was 180 and found that was too fine. You may have better luck than I did though....let us know how you make out.
good luck,
JeffD

[Richard M. Wolfe]

80 and 120. beyond 120 it's ROS or hand work. (Is there an echo in here?)

[Gordon Eyre]

80 and 120. beyond 120 it's ROS or hand work. (Is there an echo in here?)

Amen, with 80 being the most predominent. After that it is ROS and hand sanding.

[Greg Portland]

I have tried up to 220 and it is -very- touchy (easy to burn the backing). Also, I still need to sand or scrape it afterward. I go up through 120 grit now using a very light final pass. A heavy pass will result in some deep gouges that are difficult to sand away.

[Anthony Whitesell]

36, 80, 180, and 220. I use the 36 for "planer" work on short pieces. Like you, I don't mind changing belts. I even made an attachment for the drill (out of 3/4 copper pipe, an end cap and 1/4-20 bolt) to roll them up quickly.

[Paul Johnstone]

I use mine for finish sanding.
The guy at Klingspore said that planed wood is approximately the same as sanded with 100 grit, so no need to go courser than that if you are finish sanding.

I use 120 or 150 on the first drum.
Then 180 or 220 on the second drum.

I mostly use oak and maple, and have no need to touch up with a ROS.
The key to using the finer grits is to take very small passes. Periodically run the board at the same sanding height a few times to let the sander "catch up" (listen to the sanding noise to get an idea of how hard it is working).

[Bernie May]

Paul-
I couldn't agree more.
"The key to using the finer grits is to take very small passes. Periodically run the board at the same sanding height a few times to let the sander "catch up" (listen to the sanding noise to get an idea of how hard it is working). "

Those multiple passes at the same height really do make a difference and you can hear it in the sound.
-bernie