Safety Speed Cut widebelt?

[Dave Cav]

Thanks again for the comments. Eastside Saw is working up a quote for a 10 HP 3760 for me, and they gave me the name and number of a shop in Arlington that's working with one. I called him and long story short, he said no problems with it. I'm going to go look at it next week. I also broached the subject with the wife and at least she didn't say "hell no".....

[Barry W. Larson]

Hi:
I realize I am resurrecting a 3 year old thread, but I am wonder if Mr. Cav bought a Safety Speed Cut wide belt sander and if he would care to comment on it's performance? I am curious as I am looking at a replacement for my double drum sander and am looking at some of the entry level wide belt sanders including the Time Savers Speed Sander. Any and all information appreciated. Thanks.
Barry W. Larson
Calgary, Alberta, Canada eh!

[Martin Wasner]

The speedsander is a pretty basic machine. Lightly built from cheap components though.
I ran one for about five years, it was a good machine for the price, but it was pretty used up by the time I sold it.
As an intermediate machine, it's a very good value. Mine was only 7½hp, which may have contributed to the degradation of the machine. That's not enough power for a 37" in my opinion.


If you've got the juice, I'd look for an older, better built widebelt on the used market. One with more horsepower.

[Dave Cav]

Yes, I got it in June of 2013 and have used it quite a bit. It's perfect for a one or two man shop. Belt changes are quick and with the 10 HP motor it has a reasonable amount of power. I occasionally use a 40 grit belt for abrasive planning a big glue up or table top; it takes a decent cut but you can't hog off material like you can with a big 30 HP timesaver. It's been a huge upgrade over the drum sander and for me, well worth the investment. If you have two guys operating it, one feeding and one tailing, you can run quite a bit of stock through it in a hurry. The quality of the finish is much better than what I got with the drum sander, and if you run stock through with a 180 belt and the platen, it's nearly ready to finish right off the machine.

As mentioned by Martin above, one feature is that it's almost entirely made from off the shelf components and steel stock; it's not a huge, heavy iron machine, but it does weigh in at around 1400 pounds. I think if you got one you'd be happy with it.

[Barry W. Larson]

Thanks Dave. Sounds like the SSC is a good machine for a small shop and would be a good replacement for my double drum sander. I have a good sized RPC so I will likely get the 3ph, 15 hp motor. Does anybody have the 43 inch version to report on? I'm inclined to think that a 75 inch belt is better than a 60 inch belt - more area and cooling, but does it make that much difference in the real world? The 43 inch version is a fair chunk of change more than the 37 inch, and I am not sure how often I would need the extra 6 inches of capacity.
Cheers,
Barry W. Larson
Calgary, Alberta, Canada eh!

[Martin Wasner]

Longer belts is always better. They don't cost that much more, but they last a whole lot longer. I regret not getting the 103" belts for my widebelt.

[Barry W. Larson]

Thanks Martin. That was my impression as well. Maybe start saving my pennies (ok nickels since we don't have pennies in Canada anymore and I need to make up for the exchange rate) for the one with the slightly wider and longer belt.
Cheers,
Barry W. Larson
Calgary, Alberta, Canada eh!

[Dave Cav]

Maybe start saving my pennies (ok nickels since we don't have pennies in Canada anymore and I need to make up for the exchange rate)
Cheers,
Barry W. Larson
Calgary, Alberta, Canada eh!

Or dollar bills. Loonies and Twonies were one of the better decisions you guys made, and one we should copy down here.

And what ever wide belt you end up getting, I'm sure you'll be very happy with it once you've used it for a while.

[Rick Fisher]

I went from a drum sander to a Wide belt, just a small one .. 25" x 60" belts. The difference is night and day .. you won't regret the upgrade.

On width, I always appreciate having the 25" .. but often wish I had more width.

Power is different. Mine is 12hp and honestly I don't think it would have mattered if it had only been 7.5hp .. It maxes out at 31 amps but rarely tops 20 amps. It idles at about 9 amps and most times jumps to 14 or 15 when sanding.

The number one thing to me with a wide belt is can I condition the main belt. Mine is a 2001, and I have had to refresh it 2 times. Its surface gets old and slippery ..

[Barry W. Larson]

Thank you gentlemen for your sage advice. It appears that the longer belt might have some advantages as will an extra 6 inches of width. I should be able to handle the extra power requirements with an upgrade to my phase converter. I guess the next step is to see what my financial advisor has for input!
Cheers,
Barry W. Larson
Calgary, Alberta, Canada eh!