Sanding inlay work?

[Rolf]

I was wondering how many of you have one of the "Sand flea" sanders. If you have one do you like it.?
I just did an Inlay piece and sanded it on my bench top 4" wide belt sander.
That is ok for small stuff what do you use for sanding bigger delicate items.
I am looking for something less time consuming than a random orbital and more controllable than a belt sander.

[Forester21]

We have a sand flee ~ If I could keep the sandpaper on it I would use it more.
Theresa E

[minowevie]

I was wondering how many of you have one of the "Sand flea" sanders. If you have one do you like it.?
I just did an Inlay piece and sanded it on my bench top 4" wide belt sander.
That is ok for small stuff what do you use for sanding bigger delicate items.
I am looking for something less time consuming than a random orbital and more controllable than a belt sander.

Ralf, there was a topeak on flea sanders a while back. and Sharon had one on how to make your own.
But, I am confused on why you would use shuch a lardg sander on you inlays. seems like alot of dust flying to me. and not to mention breaking parts. I guess I just don't understand the project you are trying to do. how thick is the wood. ? personaly I don't use any big sanders on my big fragile projects. only palm sanders. in differant grits. am i missing something here. sorry if i am. I will be learning here too. and thanks for you post. your friend Evie

[Rolf]

Evie,
Bottom line is " I am lazzy" and always looking for an easier way to do thigs.
I do all of my sanding now with a Random orbital.
I am looking for a more gentle and faster way to sand things like my Jeff Zaffino train, or my delicate ornaments.

[sawdustus]

sawdustus of hiawatha

I don't know what a sand flea sander is but I find it easiest to presand all my work to 220 or 320 grit before I even put the pattern on. Using reverse tooth blades of thin or delicate work reduces the amount on bottom or back sanding you have to do to remove the fuzzies that occasionally still show up.

Hope this helps.

retirement is not for the weak or lazy.

[Rolf]

I do the pre-sanding also. The sand flea is an interesting design using a rotating drum.

[minowevie]

Evie,
Bottom line is " I am lazzy" and always looking for an easier way to do thigs.
I do all of my sanding now with a Random orbital.
I am looking for a more gentle and faster way to sand things like my Jeff Zaffino train, or my delicate ornaments.

Hay Rolf, its my understanding , that Jeff , tourches hes projects. he does all the sanding at first, then does hes stacking, correct me if I am roung group, then cuts it out. then , uses, a small torch to burn the fressies off the back. I have tryed this , and it works great. it does burn the back , but no one sees that anyway. have you tried that. just wondering. be carful. don't burn your project. just pass it back and forth. Your friend evie

[minowevie]

woops I read back, did you say inlay work , well maybe i was roung in the last reply. I have never done inlay work. but the same apleys with the other stuff. sorry. your friend Evie

[Marcel in Longueuil]

Hi Rolf,

I don't have a "Flea sander", but I am thinking about making my own V-sander. Same principle, except you build it yourself.
To see it in action: http://www.onlinewoodshow.com/demos/...drumsander.php

The supplier: http://www.stockroomsupply.com/Products.php

I have heard good things about them, but they require that you learn how to use them properly (as any tool requires): pressure needs to be equal, feed constant.

I'm not sure how delicate fretwork would do on one though, but I would definitely make a scrap piece and try it out.

The advantage, if you have the room, is that you can build the 30" model for not much more that a 18" model and you can put 3 different grades of paper on the roller and do multiple passes without changing the paper, going from rough to fine. (The same can be done with a sandflea)

As far as inlay is concerned: no problem!

Regards,
Marcel

[Gill]

Hi Marcel

I need enlightenment! How does the V-sander produce a level surface without an adjustable out-feed table?

Gill

[minowevie]

Ok this is something I never done before. but it is on the old SSW forum on the sanding mop. your friend Evie http://www.scrollsawer.com/forum/showthread.php?t=6548
sdon't forget to check the #2. impho. that would be by Sharon. thanks sharon.

[lucky788scroller]

I dont own a sand flea, but I know a few that do own them, and I have seen it in action many times.Those that have it seem to like it.I have seen some really fragile pieces sanded on them, and it does a good job.For sanding your inlays and such, it would be a handy tool.If one buys one expecting to do heavy duty sanding on it, or any kind of sanding where precise wood dimentions are required, they would be disappointed.By sliding the wood over the rotating drum, if doing multiple passes, it wont totally uniform in thickness anymore. Much like passing a board over a jointer, no matter how exact your tables are, infeed or outfeed, the board will not end up a uniform thickness. If sanding inlays is your main intent, I would suggest a tool like a Performax sander, where the wood is fed on a conveyor under a rotating sanding drum.Because your piece is sitting flat on a moving conveyor, it will remain uniform in thickness if the sander is set up right.If you find my pictures of the ratcoon in a previous post, the back was sanded through a performax after gluing up. I sanded multiple passes until all of my recessed pieces were sanded off until it once again was flat on the back (almost 3/8th inch). I know I didnt help much, but, its another toy for you to consider. Dale

[lucky788scroller]

Here is the back of the ratcoon i mentioned. The frame part WAS about 3/8th of an inch farther out from the rest of the project until I sanded it like I mentioned in the previous post. Dale

[Marcel in Longueuil]

Hi Gill,

I believe the actual reason is that the hook&loop sandpaper doesn't rest on a solick background: it floats at the end of the loop that holds it to the roller. That way, it flattens to the proper level and doesn't require a lower feed table.

Yes, tha's it: it flattens. Sounds reasonable...That's my story and I'm sticking to it.

Honestly, I don't know... It probably doesn't: I mean you adjust how much you take off by changing grit (Have a look at the demos)

If I put out the cash and buy one I'll let you know. So far the people I have talked to have enjoyed theirs and find it very usefull. But I'm not betting my house without trying one first

Regards,
Marcel

[lucky788scroller]

This is the sand flea! I think some of you are thinking of something else maybe. If not, excuse my misunderstanding. Dale http://www.rjrstudios.com/