10/20 drum sander

[Roger Fitzsimonds]

I have swmbo's blessing to buy a drum sander. I am looking hard at the 10/20 drum sander. I havn't seen a lot of chatter about these. Does any one use one and do you like it? I make small stuff, Jewelery boxes and the like. I dont do much cabinet work so I dont think the wider one's are a good fit for me.

Thanks
Roger

[Paul Dwight]

I've had the Performax 10/20 for about two years and I'm happy with it, although it doesn't see a whole lot of use. I use it mostly for sanding shop-sawn veneers. It's a serious tool -- I bet it weighs 80 pounds.

I think there's a learning curve for drum sanders in general, and the 10/20 is no exception. I have never been able to keep grits finer than about 120-150 on the machine without the paper burning. Higher feed speeds seem to reduce burning. Be sure to check freshly-installed paper after a few minutes of run time because it stretches, and if the wraps overlap the paper will be ruined. Good dust collection is an absolute necessity.

If you force yourself to go through the learning process and become competent with the tool, it will probably save you some time removing planer ripple. My Festool Rotex is about as fast as the 10/20 at removing planer ripple, which means my 10/20 gets used only when I'm preparing shop-cut veneer. I don't think the 10/20 is capable of finer finish sanding. It's really a stock preparation tool, IMHO.

I'm happy I have my 10/20 but I use it so little that I would probably save the money if I had it to do over again.

Hope this helps. -- Paul

[Mike Goetzke]

I recently bought a used but relatively new one. I needed the same learning curve as Paul. My first use was sanding down some end grain cutting boards so at least I had some thick stock to learn on. I had burning and ridges (since I had to use two passes) at first but became a pro at the end on the project. Only thing that disappointed me (and I think it's common) was that I still needed to hit the boards with my ROS to remove some very small ridges created by the drum sander. Overall it does save some time and reduces hand/arm fatigue associated with sanding totally by hand.

Mike

[Mike Langford]

I have an older model (made in U.S.A.) 22/44 Pro Max III that I bought from a friend/former customer of mine. I sold it to him (new) around '89/'90 and he sold it to me in 2004!(barely used)

I LOVE it.....now I know 22/44 is overkill for my small shop but......

I bought it mainly to dimension stock for instrument building that I wanted to try my hand at (it's a Luthier's dream!)
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The only time I've ever had any burning is when I get in a hurry and try to take too "deep" a cut/pass (mostly on maple) and I only use 120 grit.
As far as feed rate, I've never had a need for anything other than wide open!

Part of the learning curve is to realize that it's not a planer.
The very small ridges that Mike G. is experiencing, may be where the wood has stuck to or burned on the sandpaper and each pass leaves a small ridge or unsanded spot because the spot is void of sanding grit.
I'll second the fact that good dust collection is an absolute necessity.
I also use a gum sanding belt cleaner every 5th or 6th pass or so and give a blast from my air gun.

The only complaint I have with mine is the size of the stand. That sucker splays out 46" on every corner and will hang on everything in my shop when I move it!
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[Tom Sontag]

I love my mine, with reservations. I seem to trip the internal circuit breaker too often, but that is clearly me and my habit of pushing power tools. Take small increments.

If you think you want a drum sander, the answer is yes you do. I got the 10/20 only for space reasons and frankly is does everything I need. I look at it as basically a thicknesser for veneers or small thin parts. If I take something all the way to 220 on it I fully intend to hit it with 220 by hand or ROS to remove the lines.

So, it is slow, but it does stuff that cannot be done better any other way.

[Jim DeLaney]

I've had my 10-20 fro about three years. My feelings/opinion of it are pretty much the same as Paul's. The first thing you learn - especially on wide pieces - is that 1/64" is almost too heavy a pass. 1/128" is more like it. For sanding veneer resaws, it's great. Also, for sanding string/banding to final thickness.

If you're looking to use it instead of a planer - don't. It's great to use after planing, or after resawing. That's what it was really intended for.

[Mike Langford]

I'll second the slow part too!

[John Huber]

First, I second all the positive comments on the Performax 10-20. Second, here are a few tips:

1. To avoid burning, you must get the abrasive TIGHT on the drum. Otherwise it tends to creep and eventually overlap, causing burning and grooves in the stock. When you pull the end of the abrasive tight, use a bent-nose needle-nose pliers for a good grip. After doing the right hand end, go back and re-do the left end.

2. Take the time to align the drum parallel to the bed. Take a piece of FLAT MDF that is about 9" x 9". Measure the thickness with a digital caliper on all four corners. Put a pencil mark all over the face. Run it through with a very light cut. Note where the pencil mark is sanded away. Measure the thickness on all four corners again. Re-adjust the alignment. It may take several passes or even several pieces of MDF. I like my alignment to be about 0.005" high on the left end (opposite the motor).

3. Flip the stock end-for-end, upside down, and end-for-end for each thickness setting. There is compliance in the frame and this method avoids taking off excess stock while still getting it smooth.

4. For small stock (say less than 100 sq in), a 2" shop bac attached with a DC reducer gives adequate dust collection.

My only regret is that I didn't get it sooner!

[Lee DeRaud]

4. For small stock (say less than 100 sq in), a 2" shop bac attached with a DC reducer gives adequate dust collection.

Ok, you lost me on that one...

When you say "small stock", do you really mean narrow stock?

At any given moment, the abrasive is hitting a narrow stripe the width of the material. What difference does the overall size of the piece make to the amount of dust being generated per minute?

(Or to put it another way, if the shopvac can handle the dust from a 10"x10" piece at normal feed rates, why can't it handle a 10"-wide piece of any length?)

[John Huber]

Here's my observation on "small stock" dust collection with a 2" shop vac on the 4" port on the 10-20. For small stock, the piece is generating sawdust for only a few seconds on each pass. Even if the sawdust load on the shop vac is momentarily large, it soon clears between passes. But a long and wide piece of stock will generate sawdust for a much longer time and the shop vac has a hard time clearing it all, that's why the 10-20 port is 4" diameter.

[Lee DeRaud]

Here's my observation on "small stock" dust collection with a 2" shop vac on the 4" port on the 10-20. For small stock, the piece is generating sawdust for only a few seconds on each pass. Even if the sawdust load on the shop vac is momentarily large, it soon clears between passes. But a long and wide piece of stock will generate sawdust for a much longer time and the shop vac has a hard time clearing it all, that's why the 10-20 port is 4" diameter.

Ok, I see what you're saying. But I was also under the impression that having sawdust build up on the material and drum during the pass was a Bad Idea.

[Ron Blaise]

I have swmbo's blessing to buy a drum sander. I am looking hard at the 10/20 drum sander. I havn't seen a lot of chatter about these. Does any one use one and do you like it? I make small stuff, Jewelery boxes and the like. I dont do much cabinet work so I dont think the wider one's are a good fit for me.

Thanks
Roger

get a bigger unit. Rule of thumb is get the biggest and best you can the first time. That way you won't need to upgrade later and believe me you will. I bought an almost new 22-44 Performax Plus last year from one of the Creeker's at half what it costs new. You don't have to buy a new one, you'd be surprised how many people buy tools to use only one time for a specific job, then sell it. Try advertising for one on our forum and see what might be available first. You might be suprised.

[Roger Fitzsimonds]

Thank you every one for the responses and advise. I really appreciate it. This is why this is the only forum I go to now.

Roger