delta drum sander throws sandpaper belts
Bob
is the best place to get it!
The machine is 6 months old, and up until yesterday, was only used to
sand 1x stock, which it does very well. Yesterday, I ran my first panel
through it. The panel is 29 inches wide and has a moulding around the
perimeter that needs to be sanded down even with the panel (panel is
23/32" birch plywood, with a 3/4" wide trim moulding). Every time I put
the panel through, the drum sander tears up the sandpaper belt, even
with a brand new belt.. It breaks in random places, but usually at
either end adjacent to the retaining clip. It happens regardless of the
thickness setting or the feed roller speed - I can set it to just barely
sand the surface and move very slowly and it still breaks the sandpaper
belt. The drum is parallel to the feed roller and the sanding belt is
tight in the clips. I don't know what else to check. The owners manual
was useless. Interestingly, it shows the drum installed 180 degrees
from the way mine is. I'm not sure which way is correct, but sanding
panels would put stress on different parts of the drum than sanding 1x.
The drum on the 18-36 on display locally at Woodcraft is installed like
mine. Woodcraft was no help troubleshooting (no surprise) but they did
offer to call Delta on Monday. I likewise will call Delta.
Would greatly appreciate any help from fellow woodworkers out there.
Thanks.
Bob
Fred Kuhn
18-36. Now I think you found the answer to your problem yourself. Sounds
like your d..... drum may be installed 180º out. Standing at the input side
(power switch of your left) the long end of the drum shaft has to be going
left towards to the motor belt. The 90º slot in the drum (where you start
your sanding belt) should be on the right side. The angled slot in the drum
(where you end your sanding belt) should be on the left side.
Upon close examination of my sander it appears that the drum shaft may NOT
go right through the drum from end to end. If this is the case then what we
have is stubby shafts installed into each end of the drum. If this is the
case then the stubby shafts are installed ass-end-to a.k.a. (backwards) on
your drum. Looks like some minimum wage assembler had a bad day.
Mine drum is as per the owners manual!!!!!!
There are a few other things to be aware of with this sander.
1 - Set your "NEW" drum absolutely parallel to the feed table +-0. I find if
I follow the owners manual settings, the right side will sand heavier than
the left.
2 - Gently lift up and push down on each corner of the feed table. If you
hear a "clicking" sound take up the slack by tightening the "large" feed
table support nuts (they are touchy). If you have the large nuts "snug" (no
up and down play) and you still hear a clicking sound, the three (El-cheapo)
table support bearings holders may be allowing the table support bearings to
shift up and down. I found mine were sloppy and I staked the outer edges of
the bearing holders with a center punch. That is how I cured that problem.
IF YOU DO NOT take up this minor up/down play in the feed table supports you
will get something similar to skip when using a thickness planner and what
can drive you squirrelly is that it will happen randomly.
3 - If you think that there is a need to tighten the feed table height
adjustment belt, BEWARE!! You have to loosen both "LEFT" hand table supports
"FIRST". They must be free to rotate. If you don't loosen them up you will
tighten up the belt on the right hand side but the left side will remain
loose. What happens next can be frustrating. The d.... belt may jump a cog
and you will have to completely align you feed table because one of the
corners will be lower than the rest. Delta was supposed to print an
ammendment to their manual.
4 - The feed table belt can ruin expensive trouser belt buckles.
5 - The "NEW" sanding belt that you just plugged up with glue or hot sawdust
can be renewed by taking it off and soaking it in water for a few minutes.
Let it dry and install again.
I'm planning a few modifications. A brush under the feed table somewhere to
clean the feed table belt. Four small, light, plastic fins attached to each
end of the drum to propel air through the drum to lessen dust buildup inside
the drum causing vibrations. A long Plexiglas window in the dust cover to
allow me to see when the belt is "starting" to build up with crud.
I "really" like my Delta drum sander now that I have the bugs out and I'm
running with 320 grit. I greatly prefer it to the Pro-Max but to each his
own.
Fred
"Bob" <inthede...@hotmail.com> wrote in message
news:3B89AB2E...@hotmail.com...
killus]@zdnetonebox.com Dave Ballard
>
[snip great Delta drum sander tips]
>
>I "really" like my Delta drum sander now that I have the bugs out and I'm
>running with 320 grit. I greatly prefer it to the Pro-Max but to each his
>own.
>
>Fred
Geez, Fred, how much tweaking did you have to do on the Pro-Max to make you
prefer the Delta?
Dave
Fred Kuhn
consistently run material through without producing fine chatter marks
(similar to dull planner blade chatter marks). Next, regardless of the belt
grit used there was too much cross grain scratching for my liking. It might
have been their setup procedure but for the price they wanted I said,"no
thank you".
I start by ebonizing my oak, usually one coat of vinegar and iron fillings
from a tool sharpening shop. Next I do my grain fill and I apply a coat of
aniline dye. Then I run the material through the Delta with a 320 grit belt.
A few light swipes with 400 grit sand paper and I'm lacquering. This two
step ebonizing "almost" eliminates rubbing through the black where the oak
is tight grained, especially on curved surfaces. I still get the odd one.
If I'm doing a deep mahogany color I put the oak into an old freezer
together with a 500 watt heater and a dish of ammonia, shut the lid on the
freezer and let the oak cook for about 24 hours or until the tight oak grain
starts to get a deep gold color. Next I do my grain fill and apply a coat of
aniline dye. Then I run the material through the Delta with a 320 grit belt.
A few light swipes with 400 grit sand paper and I'm lacquering. Once again
rub throughs are almost non existent.
Hey, what can I say? It works for me.
Fred
<dave.ballard[spammus killus]@zdnetonebox.com (Dave Ballard)> wrote in
message news:3b8b075f.91283649@news...
Bob
Thanks for the great feedback! I'll check on the things you noted this weekend
and report back. I'm not exactly sure what you are referring to with the drum
positioning being different from mine. Yours and mine are exactly the same -
the 90 degree slot is on the right and the angled slot is on the left (facing
infeed table, power switch on left). In the sanding belt installation section
of the manual, it clearly shows the 90 degree slot on the LEFT.
Sorry I didn't respond sooner. Been in Chicago on business. I did get to see
Sammy Sosa slam #52 over the left field fence!
Bob
Bob
Thanks for the great feedback! I'll check on the things you noted this weekend
and report back. I'm not exactly sure what you are referring to with the drum
positioning being different from mine. Yours and mine are exactly the same -
the 90 degree slot is on the right and the angled slot is on the left (facing
infeed table, power switch on left). In the sanding belt installation section
of the manual, it clearly shows the 90 degree slot on the LEFT.
Sorry I didn't respond sooner. Been in Chicago on business. I did get to see
Sammy Sosa slam #52 over the left field fence!
Bob
Bob
Thanks for the great feedback! I'll check on the things you noted this weekend
and report back. I'm not exactly sure what you are referring to with the drum
positioning being different from mine. Yours and mine are exactly the same -
the 90 degree slot is on the right and the angled slot is on the left (facing
infeed table, power switch on left). In the sanding belt installation section
of the manual, it clearly shows the 90 degree slot on the LEFT.
Sorry I didn't respond sooner. Been in Chicago on business. I did get to see
Sammy Sosa slam #52 over the left field fence!
Bob
Fred Kuhn
Hate to add insult to injury but I checked my owners manual AGAIN and nearly
flipped. The manual has a date of print as 1999. It bloody well shows a 90º
slot on "BOTH" ends of the drum. Now isn't that a pickle!!!
I also have an accessory manual and it shows an angled slot on the left and
the 90º slot of the right. At any rate I'm sure the angled slot was put on
the left to make it easier to finish off the sanding belt installation.
Now I will assume you start your belt installation from the right side of
the drum and proceed to the left side of the drum. I will also assume that
the motor is wired correctly and driving the drum in the right direction.
Standing at the side with no motor, looking at the drum end, the drum should
be rotating clockwise. Kapeesh???
I've never ripped any belts. It sounds to me like the outside edge of your
panel is catching your belt right where they are clamped to the drum. You
have to make two passes anyway so why not set the edge of the panel in about
4" from the drum end (motor side). That way there is no way it can possible
catch the belt at the clips/clamps. BTW, what kind of belts are you using?
Are they good cloth backed ones?
Want cheap belts with grits 400 and more? Just buy a 6" x 6' belt, grit of
your choice. Cut it at 90º where it is taped together, you now have a 12'
long x 6" wide strip. Now at one end make a mark 2" in from each side. At
each mark make a small cut with a pair of siccors. At each mark rip the belt
lengthwise. In five minutes that single 6" x 6' long belt yields three 12'
long x 2" wide strips. Use an old Delta belt as a pattern and trim the
diagonals for each end. You will probably have about 12" waste from each
strip. The waste pieces always come in handy - don't throw them out.
Now compare the cost of one 6" x 6' belt to three Delta strips.
Ya know, sometimes I'm so tight I squeek.
Fred
Bob
I talked to Delta today. Interesting conversation. They told me that some of
the recent drum sanders were shipped with a defective clip on the left side of
the drum (the side with the cutoff). Apparently when the drum is turning and
pressure is applied, the sandpaper can slip out of the clip and create enough
slack and to break the sanding belt. They are sending me a replacement clip
that has been modified to hold the paper more securely. They are also sending
me some extra rolls of sandpaper to make up for the ones I broke (pleasant
surprise!). It's all coming in 2 day air. I asked them about the pictures in
the manual. The technician was surprised to hear this - even more so when he
looked at his copy and it was like mine! He said that some of the earlier
models did have 90 degree clips on both ends and whoever put the manual together
didn't update the pictures. Oh yeah, he also said to make sure there isn't a
sharp edge on the drum right where the paper bends to go into the clip on the
left side. The sharp edge could cause premature wear and a break at that
point. Solution is to file the edge. Mine is not sharp.
My motor is apparently wired correctly - it turns clockwise when viewed from the
non-motor end. I had already tried your suggestion of moving the panel away
from the left side a bit. The belt still broke.
Are you wired for 120V or 240V? I'm on 120. I had an electrician do some work
recently, and had him run a 240, intending to convert the saw over to 240.
Haven't gotten around to it yet.
Thanks for the suggestion on making my own sanding belts! I'm using Delta
sanding belts right now, only because the sander is new and I want to make sure
everything is working correctly. I will definitely try your suggestion.
I'll post to the NG how it goes after I install the new clip next week.
Bob
Fred Kuhn
Nice to hear you got some results from Delta. I hadn't thought about those
sharp edges because I do not have any. Hope the new clips work for you.
If you are really plagued with the table feed belt constantly tracking off
center, before you replace the belt try this. Remove the feed table and
then remove the feed table belt. Now place the feed table "upside" down on a
good flat surface. You will notice that the feed belt rollers are not
touching the flat surface. There is approx. 3/16" gap between the rollers
and the flat surface. What you want to ensure is that for "each" roller the
gap is "even" from one end of the roller to the other. Just about any hard
material approx. 3/16" can be used for a feeler gauge. You don't have to be
too fussy but the more accurate you are the better off you will be. The
brackets that hold the feed belt rollers have a bit of play in them where
the attachment screws pass through. (Mass production requirement). If the
person who assembled your feed table had a bad day, it is possible for one
or more feed belt roller ends to be higher or lower than the rest of them.
If you find a roller end that is really out of whack, just loosen the
attachment screws on that roller end bracket and raise or lower that roller
end. Whole job only takes about 15 minutes once the feed belt table has been
taken off. About once a week I loosen the feed belt completely and then
retention it. I found that not only does this really help but it insures
that you don't have the belt "too" tight with the result of really loading
down the fed belt drive motor.
Another trick on saving sanding belts from the garbage bin. Whenever you get
one of those d...... dust burn build up lines on the belt - DON'T pick it
off with an ice pick or screw driver. Just undo the belt from the left clip,
pull the belt off the drum until the burn line is handy. Now hold a small
diameter screw driver or finishing nail against the cloth side of the belt
and roll the belt over the screw driver and between you fingers. Just
pretend you are rolling a cigarette with the screw driver being the tobacco
and the belt being the paper. Pulling the belt down over a sharp edge of a
piece of wood works also. What happens is that as the belt bends sharply the
dust burn build up line will crack up and almost all of the burn line flakes
off. A little methyl-hydrate and a stiff brush should get the rest off.
BTW, someone mentioned on this NG a while ago that cutting four short pieces
of 1/4" hose and putting one piece over each bolt that acts as the input and
output roller stops really cuts down on the clunk when the rollers snap down
off the material. Sometimes when the input roller snaps down off the
material the shock can give you a faint skip line about 5" from the end of
your material. It depends on how heavy a pass you are making.
I got 120/220V. with a 50 Amp main breaker in the shop but every thing is
connected 120V. The 220 was for a welder which I got rid of years ago.
I have to say Delta has always been good to me whenever I needed them. My
machine runs like a fine watch.
Fred
"Bob" <inthede...@hotmail.com> wrote in message
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Gary Watts
on the drum? The manual states you can (2200 rpm vs 3500 rpm I think) but
doesn't say why you would. Mine came from the factory on the lower speed.
Gary Watts
Fred Kuhn
polishing effect or whether it would just plug belts and smoke the material
all to blazes.
I'm going to call a Delta rep. because they once told me they were going to
publish feed rates and drum speeds. I forgot all about it.
Fred
but then I've never tried it either.
"Gary Watts" <gwa...@cv.hp.com> wrote in message
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