Belt/disc sander recommendations?

[Brian Austin]

I'm shopping for a belt/disc combo sander. Minimum 9" disc/6" belt, probably 3/4HP would be the lowest motor size. Bench mounted preferably since I prefer to make my own stands (they never have enough storage underneath) but if it comes with a stand, I'll just remount it on my own.

I've looked at the Grizzly 1014Z, a couple of Jet models and Shopfox (which I know is a slightly upgraded Grizzly). I'm having a real hard time getting excited about spending $300+ for a spinny thing to make dust for my DC. I know I NEED it (my cheap import knockoff is falling apart) but still...

Any recommendations, personal experiences, etc., would be welcome. Is there a reason I need a combo or would better move be a simple 12" disc sander? What's the benefit of the belt? I don't use these for finishing; more for shaping.

Thanks for any input!

[Chad Young]

I have the Grizzly you are looking at and like it very much. The only downside is the dust collection. But I can not compare it to the other units as I have not used them. The Grizzly unit is quick and easy to change the belts and the left right tracking adjustment is a snap.

[Jim Becker]

Brian, I bought the G1276 from Grizzly about two years ago and am pleased with it. It does what it's supposed to do. It's a heavy duty machine and it runs at 1725 rpm instead of 3650...and that's nice for woodworking, especially with easy to burn "sugar rich" material such as cherry and maple.

That said, I wish I would have bought an edge sander instead for the work that I generally need sanding for, at least to-date. I've only used the disk once...and that was just for convenience so I didn't have to pull the machine out of the tool corral to get to the belt.

[Ken Garlock]

Brian, take a look at the unit Wilke Machinery has for sale. It fits you needs as I understand them. I have never heard a bad word about Wilke/Bridgewood. AND, they are currently discounted $50.

Belt/Disk Sander on Sale

[Doug Shepard]

I was able to find a good deal on a used Delta Sanding Center several years ago. I do use the belt portion as well, but the disc seems to get the majority of the use. Te disc gets the shaping work and the belt usually has 150 or 220 grit on it for putting a finish sanding on edges. IMHO you'd be better off with a 12" disc. The price differences aren't all that significant but you'd give up 1.5" of sanding capability since you really only use the downward spinning half of the disk. My uncle has a standalone 12" disk sander from Grizzly. It works well, but since there's no mass to the machine it tends to scoot around the benchtop. Not a problem if you're only sanding small items or if you're going to fix it in place on a custom bench, but a bit of a PITA if you're just going to rely on the "non-skid" base.