and info, experience, comments?
$59.00
http://www.costco.com/…24-Cat860&topnav=
Autobody review
Looks suspicously similar to this HF grinder. Hopefully it’s better quality.
I use the lower amp HF SANDER…It out works all my other sanders…except my Mikita 2 SPEEDER…Sh#t the speed dial on my Milwalkee broken last month and it’s half the age of my NEWER HF.
BTW…I still have the oldskool HF TWO speeders …two new in the box…that’s because the first one I started using is still running…that’s like 7 years old.
I have no complaints about my Harbor Freight sanders…H
I haven’t had any problems with my HF yet, but even so, I think I got a 3 year warranty for $5 that will probably be worth it. My only issue with that one would be the hand protector thing over the trigger. I’d be afraid you could hit the board with it or scratch something. Or catch it on something. I could screw that up a lot of ways I’m sure.
Herb! I swear HF should be paying you. (smiling as I say this)
I know about your HF sanders. You my friend have had the best luck of anybody with those sanders. In fact when I bought my first sander you were a big part of my decision making. I bought the upgraded one with needle bearings, more amps, etc.
Wasn’t it you recommending replacing the factory gear grease with Slick 50 grease? I think it was. I did that too. Yet a couple repairs into the life of it and it took a crap. A circuit burnt on the speed controller. By the way it wobbled the whole time I owned it too.
I guess I’m on the other end of HF sander luck. I’m sure if I’d had the luck you did, I too would be in here talking about how good my sander has been. I wasn’t that lucky. I know of some other guys that have had wierd problems with them.
I guess it’s a gamble. The price is right for sure, and you might wind up with a good sander.
Anyway, I wasn’t really trying to start a HF sander debate. Oneula was asking for comments on the Costco sander. I was merely pointing out that the Costco one looks almost identical to the HF grinder. Looks like they came out of same plasitc injector mold and sand casting. Something to consider depending on you feel about HF sanders.
Check out the shapes. Very similar. Actually, identical. I flipped the image to get the same orientation. That’s why the trigger and arbor locks are reversed.
it’s weird but the harbor freight sander I got doesn’t look exactly like the one your showing and yes mine went out with a bad switch which still needs to be repaired. I tried to buy a Milwaukee but ended up with kokua’s makita for about the same amout of money. Since I have a Festools Rotex setup is wasn’t imperative to get such a dust devil device but these heavy tools do come in handy at leveling things quickly as well as buffing things out later. It’s funny cause I remember doing everything with an old half sheet finish sander and rubber sanding block back in the 70’s. Must be getting weak and spoiled in my old age…
One thing that should be noted is that no one should consider buying a power tool/sander if you don’t also own a compressor to blow out the dust which just kills such things. Fiberglass and resin dust must be the worse thing to get in a power tool aside from metal shavings.
One nice thing is that maybe there’s a benefit in getting some sort of return policy with Costco to take it back and replace it if it breaks… That’s one difference I would see with them versus a place like Harbor Freight. I’ve heard that cosco changed it returns policy though…
LOL,YA Ryan,I remember those conversations,funny how things work out sometimes
My older two speed HF is not a prize sander…it’s a bit unblanced ,but good for gross roughouts.finsheets…doorjams etc.
My newer HF(like 2 years old ).Is really smooth and balanced…ya luck…you bet…I’m sure the quality control is get better…but probably still a gamble,I’m sure.
I’m not at all happy with my milwalkee…I guess I’m on the bad end of luck with those sanders.
If I could only have one sander , it would be my makita…it a bit noisy ,motor wise, but a true workhorse foresure.H
I replaced my HF with a Makita that I really like. Never used a Milwaukee.
after along time watching some of the best imho i never saw anything other than a
in thier hands.
smiling when i say this(i like that one!)
You’re a smart man Ryan,keep learning.H
Let me jump in here with a comment or two.
A long time ago I got a temp job at University of Hawaii machine shop, full of industrial professional level lathes, BIG band saw that welded and annealed it’s own blades, Bridgeport mill, etc. I was just a kid and the guy that ran the shop had a few bucks for help, so one day he leaned out the door and asked, point blank, if I wanted to work. Of course.
Turns out he had been, among other things, the shop teacher at Punahou and had taught my uncle (though he didn’t remember it, my uncle did). Grif Woodruff was a salty old guy with occasionally a really foul mouth. I was surprised and a little shocked at times but hey.
Anyway one of my chores was to sweep out the place. But one day I discovered that using the air hose I could blast it all out the door in no time flat. After a couple of days Griff put a stop to it, telling me that blowing down the machines really only forced the grit further into the works. No more blowing 'em down. Back to the idiot stick…
…
I have a 7 amp Black and Decker that must be 20 plus years old. Every couple years I take it apart and use a toothbrush to remove what built up crud is in it, then regrease it, and reassemble. Still running just as well as when I bought it for 50 clams.
I have a variable speed made-in-China with very little torque and fewer amps (4?). The variable speed crapped out pretty quick and though it still runs, I don’t use it. For 35 clams, it worked for a while.
I ebayed a single speed 10 amp Milwaukee for about 90 bucks. It’s a great heavy beast that will quickly grind through anything it touches, without slowing down a bit…if you don’t have a nice light touch… DAMHIK.
Of these three, the B&D 7 amp job is probably the one I should be using the most. But after all, the torque of the Milwaukee is irresistable. I make do with the light touch; I use the soft pad in one hand for rails after I knock 'em down a bit with the power. It really needs a router speed control unit on it, which I will get sometime from HF.
It’s late, I ramble, now I’m gone.
After reading the reviews on the sander Oneula posted, I logged on to Costco, entered my CC# and was ready to hit “submit” when I decided I already had too much crap on my hands, including several sanders.
After flaking on my order, I decided to list one of mine on eBay instead. At my rate of production, I’ll never burn them out anyway.
The one I’m listing is a Milwaukee #5460 with variable speed and lower end RPM… 0-1750. The motor is an 11 amp powerhouse. The starting price is one dollar with no BS reserve. It’s a good lightly used sander with no defects. I’m throwing in a grubby but usable sanding pad and offering a money back guarantee.
EBay listing #200179924132 starts Sunday at 5:00PM.
Howzit Herb, The speed control on Milwaukee grinders is a weak part and one of my glasser friends has had to replace it more times than I can count. I can remember looking into his garage and seeing 4 Milwaukees laying on the floor so I asked him why and he told me they were all burnt out. He now uses a Delta and a Makita. I loaned him 1 of my Makitas and he couldn’t believe it was over 10 years old and runs perfectly, so he bought 1.Aloha,Kokua
I agree with Kokua, the speed control is really a cheap design on the Milwaukee. I’ve replaced many of these (about $40 each) for others. On mine, I replaced the whole trigger/speed control with a very heavy duty single switch and use a variac power controller.
I use a Festool Rotex for rails and repairs, and the Milwaukee for full-sanding and polishing. For grinding down fin boxes and rough work, I use a old HF with a variable speed. Never had any problems with it (5 years), but it doesn’t get the heavy use like the Festool or Milwaukee.
You get what you pay for usually. I had a cheap Ryobi sander, upgraded to a Makita square handle sander. Pretty much chucked my Ryobi in the bin after five minutes use of the Makita.
hey charlie
what’s the model number on those B&D’s?
We have two about the same age they are two speed only but they don’t fit the powerpad or any of the pads you’d use on these other sander/polishers.
I’ve been using the B&D primarily as a polishers with a wool bonnet be nice if I could find a way to use it with a medium or soft power pad… These old tools are the best…
you’re right about blowing air
my dad being a master pearl harbor machinist/tool maker from the 1940’s was one of those guys who’d spend an entire day taking part stuff, brushing and cleaning it out before putting it away or using it again. Unfortunately we usually never got anything done timely due to all the prep and cleanup effort even though our tools lasted forever.
But without blowing or cleaning as you’ve indicated your tools will get trashed in a very short time as I have found out… The other thing is that taking apart stuff is easy, putting it back togethor correctly is the clincher…
The only nice thing about the Costco offer is that it’s won’t cost you more than the sander to have it shipped to Hawaii which is the worse part of buying anything not on the island. My harborfreight sander cost me more in shipping as does alot of things we need but have here but have to order from across the sea.
Just got myself one of the HP sanders and now I find that there is no one around here I can find so far that sell pads to use w/ spray contact cement. It is all the velcro which costs about double per sheet of paper. Home depot does have 7" hard pad but nada for the foam softer kind. Is Foamez the best place for that? Any other sources?
There may be supplies at some of the shops down in SF.
You should ping LasOlas here and see if he knows of any local suppliers.
You can also try mailing Larry directly (larry@proboxfinsystems.com), he
could tell you if he’s got any suppliers in your neck of the woods.
FoamEZ would save you a drive though and their processing/shipping is
super quick.
Quote:
There may be supplies at some of the shops down in SF.
You should ping LasOlas here and see if he knows of any local suppliers.
You can also try mailing Larry directly (larry@proboxfinsystems.com), he
could tell you if he’s got any suppliers in your neck of the woods.
FoamEZ would save you a drive though and their processing/shipping is
super quick.
DITTO, on all of the above suggestions.
Hey Kokua
I agree IMHO can’t beat the Makita’s either the 2 speed classic or like my new 9227CB electronic variable speed with no load speed 0-3000 rpm. I reckon pay the money and enjoy using the quality tools.
Cheers
Mooneemick