Thoughts on quality differences between some of the brands I’ve seen available -
I’m looking to replace my 6" disk sander/polisher…
Hitachi
DeWalt
Mikita
Wen
Milwaukee
Black and decker
others
I looked on line, but the warn parts for my 25 year old Sears Craftsmen are “discontinued.”
Hey Taylor
Just get one of the 7" ones from Harbor Freight.
They work great and you can buy 5 for the price of one Dewalt.
I know of a whole bunch of “Pro’s” that use them. I think GL actually suggests them in his video.
Of course this is not the case with all tools…but in this case it is totally true!
Just my 1.874 cents
I purchased the Mikita cause it weighed less than the Milwaukee and had the accessory D grip handle. I really like it but after seeing the apparent Mikita knockoff Harbor Freight http://www.harborfreight.com/cpi/ctaf/displayitem.taf?Itemnumber=92623 sander, I would probably have just purchased that. I know the saying “a poor man cannot afford cheap tools” but at $40 the sander is less than what I see PowerPads going for. Something to consider definitely
I own a HF variable speed sander/polisher and im not happy with it at all. If I use it for more then 10 min straight it starts speeding up and slowing down for no reason. Some times it stops all together. I let it ‘rest’ for a few minutes and its ready to go again.
Not saying that the fault lies with HF- im sure ive dropped it before. Just saying that it hasnt held up like I hoped.
I second the Harbour Frieght sanders. 2+ years and still going strong. Watch the allen bolt on the handle, only problem i ever had with both of mine.
I have used a harbor freight and it will do the job just fine but a milwaukee is the industry standard and is way better - its like a kia will get you to work every day as will a cadillac but not the same way! Depending on what you are doing will make the difference if it is worth the money to you or not. With extended use, the harbor frieght will crap out on you. They are too cheap to fix, just buy a new one… I have not used a Makita or Hitachi but have heard good things. The main difference between a cheap tool and an expensive tool will be weight and speed control (especially under pressure) and oh yea - reliability! If you use the harbor freight for a while then use a milwaukee, as soon as you put the pad on a board you will think ‘this is worth the $$’. The cheap one will get the job done but the good tool makes it way easier and more pleasurable to get it done well…
Howzit Taylor, I love my Makitas not D handles and had 2 but left one somewhere’s and lost it and will be replacing it soon.One was 13 years old and had only replaced the cord and brushes and it runs like a dream the one I lost was 9 years old and never had any thing done to it. Like the lighter weight than the Milwaukees and a friend who used Milwaukes for years gave up on them when they started burning out on him every few months, could be they are not made in the USA while My Makitas said Made in the USA,go figure. I understand the Hitachi is a nice unit also. If you go with the HF sander remember what Herb always says and change the gearhead grease with a good grade of grease and you might want to ask him what he uses for grease.Aloha,Kokua
I have a Hitachi and a Makita but I prefer the Hitachi…nice variable speed control too.
The best is a Milwaukee, if you can afford about $225 new, maybe $150 for a good used one. I like to use 6" pads because you can cut 2 pieces from a single sheet of paper. I have 3 HF sanders, 2 still in the box for 4 years (bought for replacements). The issues with HF tools aren’t so much with the design, but they seem to vary individually in quality. So if you keep returning them if bad, you’ll probably get one that is OK. All variable speed sanders have reliability problems with the speed control, everyone I’ve seen has a crappy design. They also don’t bounce off the floor well, and you need to blow them out very thoroughly after each use. The current sander sold at HF is OK for the $30 price, and you can get a 6" hook-it pad kit (includes a polishing bonnet) for about $7 more. You can get bulk 6" hook-it paper from a number of sources for about $20/50 sheets.
Old Milwaukees rule! (sounds like a beer commercial).
Horsepower, heft, and bulletproof!
At the manufacturing facility I used to work at (for 14 years), we tried every brand. Industrial tool salesman were always trying to get us to switch to their brand. We’d deviate sometimes, but always came back to Milwaukee. They are one of the few true industrial duty tools out there. The rest are just wannabee industrial tools.
I’ve got a single speed Milwaukee Sander/Polisher that’s 25+ years old, just a workhorse! I had a variable speed Milwaukee that got stolen and couldn’t find a replacement for it, so I bought a Porter Cable variable speed. The cool thing about this one is the trigger allows you to run variable speed and there’s a rheostat on the handle as well, so you have two ways to vary the speed. Only thing I don’t like about it is the delay start, it doesn’t jump up to speed, it climbs up. Once you get used to it, it’s fine, but when you’re used to bumping the trigger to keep your speed down, it takes a little technique adjustment.
Ah Ha!!!
Now I’ve started a great thread… Ha! This is all good stuff all… Info, experiences, “PM” offers…
Let me meditate for little while on all the choices…
I’m not an industrial guy, and a little whimpy, so I think I’d need to go feel one of those “heavy” Milwaukee’s, and see…
Feels good to have this kind of info overload…
Right on Mike Daniel !!!
Old Milwaukees rule!
Old Milwaukees rule!
Old Milwaukees rule!
I have 4 or 5 Milwaukees in my shop. There is no question that they are the best available. My 5000 RPM is 25 years old and purrs like an angry Bengal tiger. Cuts through anything with a firm line. It’s going strong after thousands of hours because I take very very good care of it (and all my tools.)
Heavy ? Yeah - so what. The weight of the Milwaukees is an asset. The weight helps the user cut clean and fer (and develops their forearms.)
When one considers “cost” do not forget to evaluate “cost” over time and the “cost” to replace cheaper tools with a short life span.
Thanks for the backup. The part about the weight being an asset is so true; and that’s one of those things where ‘‘you’ll never know unless you go’’.
And Taylor, you don’t have to be a big burly man to use a Milwaukee. I’m 150 -160 lbs of skinnyness, if I can do it you can too. Aren’t you guys all lumberjacks in Oregon anyway? We’re all gator-wrestlers here in Florida…
“Aren’t you guys all lumberjacks in Oregon anyway?” Hahahaha!! Hasn’t been much of that around here in ages, but there’s a little.
I’m just sittin’ on my big read ball, in my classroom office filling my brain with surfboard building resources… 
Yeah - I don’t know about the weight… And to think, I was just flexing my “popeye’s” for my beloved… Telling her, “Boy, don’t I get pumped up working on a board all the time…” Ha!
Thanks again for all the input… I’ll let ya’ll know how it works out…
I did my first 2-3 boards with the $30 Harbor freight 7" 300-3000 rpm polisher, then bought the 5540 as advised from the beginning. at first it might feel overly big & heavy (another skinbones 5’8 @ 143lbs), but after a couple boards you will see the light. built like a truck 11amp power plus zero-2800 rpm variable speed trigger + dial settings… good sandpaper, 3m scrubbers, maybe a polishing pad bonnet, all you need, can’t do without it. as I improve with flatter lams/hotcoats I notice I can skip the really coarse grits, with this machine I became more effective with less effort in less time
YMMV backyarder two cents
Like Mike Daniel, I’m not the thickest shaper on the planet - I weigh in at about 140 - 145 lb. And my Milwaukees haven’t killed me yet.
From left to right in our sanding room: 5000 RPM for pre grinds, boxes, plugs, and first machine and pad for sanding bottoms / Variable speed for sanding decks with medium pad and sanding the entire board with soft pad / and finally this little sweetheart for leveling first side lam laps before second side lams. The 5000 RPM is the Bengal tiger refered to in a previous post. Notice the distinct fire engine red Milwaukee uses to “brand” their tools.
Take good care your tools and they will take good care of you.
<a onclick="tr('album_thumb_click');" href="http://s244.photobucket.com/albums/gg37/cornelius47/?action=view&current=Milwaukees.jpg"></a>
I’m going to have to agree with what everyone says about milwaukees. I use a 2800 variable speed and a 5000 polisher. Only problem is I work at a glass shop where I am sharing these tools with idiots that never blow them out and repeatedly drop them. I recently bought an 11 amp kawasaki sander/polisher off ebay for 13 bucks, used once.Don’t know the rpm’s. I’m waiting for it to show up and I’m wondering if anybody knows anything about these machines. i can’t find any info on them . I love the milwaukees but since they are not properly taken care of, we have frequent brush and trigger replacements. just looking for some info. I do 7 boards a day, 4 days a week and my only experience is with milwaukees. Worst case scenario, I can have this kawasaki as a backup for when the others blow. Not being able to find info is bugging me, please help.
Good thread, Ive been waiting to buy a sander/polisher for a while, am glad this came along. Am considering this Milwaukee 5540 as suggested in this thread. It is sold reconditioned here:
http://www.powertoolservices.com/Tools/5540.htm
Any advice on reconditioned power tools? Good or bad idea?