PC RO sander question

[Paul Greathouse]

This is a question for those of you that have used both the PC333 random Orbit sander and the new PC343. Is the 343 as good as or better than 333 in sanding performance.

The reason I ask is my 333 bit the dust after a long and hard life. I am currently looking at some 333's on Ebay but they are in some cases priced higher than the 343's. Has PC's quality slipped with the 343's or is this just a coincidence. I know I would be happy another 333 but I would rather get a 343 if the quality is still there.

[Paul Greathouse]

Doesn't look like too many have used both sanders. So, for those of you that have the PC343 sander, how do you like it? Would you buy it again?

[Steve Clardy]

333's were/are good sanders. I've wore a few of them out.

I have a new 343k that came with a router purchase.
Haven't even opened it up yet to check it out.

[Gary Muto]

I've had the 333 for a few years and have always liked it. I guess I'm not as discriminating as some. I recently purchased a 343 and I like the extra power. It has 8 holes instead of three so the dust colletion is better too. Can't speak to durability or the effect of long sanding sessions since I've only used it on a couple of small jobs.
I also can't speak to the Bosch model, since I haven't used one.

[Jim Mims]

333's were/are good sanders. I've wore a few of them out.

I have a new 343k that came with a router purchase.
Haven't even opened it up yet to check it out.

Me too! Thanks for the heads up on the Amazon router/sander deal.
I also have a 333 which works great. Wasn't there a thread where it was mentioned the pad from the 333 (5-holes) also fits the 343 (8-holes)?
Just in case you have supply of 5-hole pads you want to use up.
- Jim

[Steve Clardy]

Wasn't there a thread where it was mentioned the pad from the 333 (5-holes) also fits the 343 (8-holes)?
Just in case you have supply of 5-hole pads you want to use up.
- Jim

Yes. I read it somewhere

[Doug Arndt]

My brother has a 333, and I bought a 343 for our kayak build project.
Two items are the 8 hole ("standard") paper vrs the 5 hole on the 333,
and the dust port on the 343 can take a standard hose end, the 333 has a strange shape.
I'm glad I got the 343 instead.

[Loren Hedahl]

I've had several sanders "bite the dust" over the years, and found there wasn't much wrong with them.

One had a bad switch.

The others all had lower bearings that had -- well, bit the dust.

The last one was a PC quarter-sheeter. It was easily disassembled, the dust shields on the bearing were opened with a watch maker's screwdriver and I was able to free the bearing up with WD-40 and compressed air.

Once it was re-greased and reassembled it ran better than it had for months.

Cost? About an hour -- same as driving to the nearest Lowe's and back.

[John Callahan]

Fwiw the 333 has a 1" outlet (pop the canister off), same as their 371, 352, 362 belt sanders and 345 and 347 saws. PC's optional hose (p/n 39332 iirc) hooks right up. I don't like the new 343's ergonomics ............ for me the 333 is a more comfortable sander. Might just have to get new brushes put in my ancient 333.

[Dennis Hatchett]

I'm very pleased with the 343 I recently received with the PC Router from amazon. Would have never purchased it otherwise but I'm pleasantly surprised that I like it more than my dewalt and Festool.

Just kidding all you Festool junkies. I don't own a Festool because I'd never pay that much for a sander, but I like teasing you.

Anyway, the PC 343 just did all the sanding on an entire cabinet order and it did just fine.

[Paul Greathouse]

Thanks for all the responses, looks like I will be just as happy with the 343 as I was with my 333. I may even look into repairing my 333 as a backup.

[George Octon]

It has a terrible fit where the dust collector attaches to the sander! It's loose and it leaks like a sieve! Very poor design. Does anybody ever test and use these things or do they just try to see how many they can sell?! I noticed that the Ridgid collector screws onto the sander. The Dewalt attachment seems pretty solid too. The new model does seem like it has more power though which isn't saying much. The older one was probably the weakest in its class.