Harbor Freight Angle Grinders

None of these for two reasons.

First, if you're working on a surfboard you'll need something with variable speed down to around 1000 to 1500 rpm at times. These 10,000 rpm burners will be near useless on a surfboard.

Second, I went the HF route on a Variable Sander/polisher. Bought the better, stronger, lighter, more expensive one. It failed after maybe 10 hrs worth of use. Opened it up and found a burned circuit in the speed controller. I was pissed.

They are way less expensive. Some people get lucky and some are unlucky. Your choice.

I bought a Makita replacement. Super smooth, balanced and powerful. Not cheap though.

Good luck.

i probably advocated the HF in that other thread.....but i must recommend against it. i was actually one of the lucky few who got a good one. i've been using my $30 HF sander for a couple years now and it's still goin' strong. however, every time i'm ready to use it, i wonder if it's going to start, or burn out before i'm done sanding. you want your tools to be reliable. if cost is a big concern, see what you can't find on CraigsList....there's always some good power tools for cheap on there.

Like Ryan said a grinder @ 10000+ RPM is pretty useless for sanding boards and ding repair. Useful for fin foiling though............
Have used my HF sander/polisher for at least 25 boards and ding repairs, not a problem, guess I got lucky.
I know that you get what you pay for, but, for a hobbyist its perfect I reckon

AM

What you really really want is something like this:

Combined rotary action and excentric. Flick the switch...

Rotary:320-660 RPM
Excentric: 3300-6800 Orbits

So for sanding and polishing!

Hook to the shopvac and they sand dustfree....

but they are expensive...

Hey, Kelby -

Let me chime in, a bit late but I have a really good excuse.....

First off- steer clear of some of the Home Despot and Lowesy 'tools' . Or, if you don't , check the model numbers Very Carefully versus what you see at a 'real tool store' for the same brand tool. What happens is that with those two outfits, they are big enough that the tool company will bring out a special, cheapened edition of a tool. And cut corners, so that it's just not the same. And of course, the staff at Home Despot and similar tend to be people who have no idea of how to use said tool, so they'll be of no use in picking one over another. I know one guy works at one of 'em, he used to sell cell phones. You think he knows sander/grinders? Me either.

A kind word for the Orient: look, many of the good-brand tools now are made in the same factories as the HF. Especially bigger shop tools like Delta. I have, for example, a Yuasu or something similar, gasoline powered water pump. Looks just like the Honda that goes for 3x the money. It should...when they made all the Hondas they needed to make for that lot, they made a few more, switched stickers and there ya go. Look carefully, you may find a deal.

Volvo Theory. Huh? Right, Volvo Theory. Look, Volvos have this reputation for lasting forever, and I think I know why. See, when Joe Shmoe buys a Volvo, he figures he spent a bunch of money for a car that'll last a long time, so he suddenly becomes a maintainance freak and really does the upkeep right. And yes, it does last a long time. But hey, if you did that kind of maintainance that regular, hell, you could make a Yugo go forever. Take care of your gear.

Parallell example: one of my brothers buys nothing but Makita and Yellow and Decker* - oh, sorry, DeWalt. He thinks they are peachy keen. But they live in the open back of his pickup. And die young. Now, me, I have Rockwells. Not Porter Cable, Rockwell, those things are all old enough to vote, at least. And I take care of them. My brother, he actually gives me grief for babying my tools. So, they were better tools then and they are better tools today than the crappe' he has ever was or ever will be. And will be for the rest of my working life.

*Yellow and Decker - There are some tools I just don't trust. A new HF item, until I have used it a while and found its quirks. Anything Makita. And everything made by Dewalt/Black and Decker. The former can be a crapshoot, though I have to say that in value for money they can be great. And 90% of the HF stuff I have is good enough for anything but production and for irregular use it's the nutz. Makita stuff is made for a different kind of hands than I have. They don't fit. Rockwells and Milwaukees do.

You know what they say: Big hands.....


.

.

.
....big tools.

Last, don't fall in love with the idea of buying new. The indisputably good stuff, like Rockwell and Milwaukee, can be found used, like when a disgruntled employee sells off some good tools, or somebody goes out of business, stuff like that. Repaired tools don't always get picked up. And the old stuff, even after somebody runs a truck over it, can be worth fixing. Or the newer Hitachis ( two lines of tools, production grade and junk, steer clear of the junk) or Feins or Porter Cables.

Hope that's of use....

doc...

Hey Bill,

I got a sander from HF that has out lived the best of the best,,,,,,,,,,,cost me 25 bucks back in like 97.I also have the newer HF version variable sander THAT'S A COUPLE YEARS OLD too !..............I bought the warranties for my varible and a cordless drill.Never once even had to think about using them.

I also use them for foam/shaping, wood/skateboard use and metal/firearm usage ..................it's not normal around here if I don't fire-up my sanders for a couple ...........everyday.

I also like my Makita sander,but I kept losing the wrench................not no more...........got it taped to the cord.Also the design of the Makita is superior to any of the other sanders due to the fact that it doesn't use a button stop to remove the pad.This allows for better gearing.Herb

Hey KB,

This the same basic discussion that I read when I was shopping. I went with the HF higher end VS sander. I neglected to buy the extended warrantee. My bad for sure. I cleaned the original grease out and replaced with with Slick50 grease. I think it might've been Herb who recommended that. Good tip. Unfortunately, that didn't help the burnout on the speed controller. Oh yah, I used to think my Ferro sanding pad was warped. It was the HF sander. Didn't even spin straight.

I'm a hobbyist and didn't want to spend the dough considering the little amount of work I actually do. I was frustrated that there wasn't a mid-level version of what I was looking for. I just couldn't bite the bullet on the cost of what the pro's are using.

To the guys who've bought HF product and had good success, more power to yah. My luck wasn't as good. I was working one Saturday and the thing took a crap. It had been showing signs similar to what Benny was talking about. It's hard for me to find much time to do board work so I was bummed when it crashed and I had to go shopping for a replacement.

I looked up a local tool supply place in Anaheim and compared VS sanders. This is the Makita I bought.

http://www.westerntool.com/product.htm?pid=421356 BTW is comes with both a side handle and the D handle as well as a polishing kit.

I chose this one because of the power, rpm range, weight, and name. With very much respect to the pro's on this board but I thought the Milwaukee was heavy at 9.3 lbs. vs 6.6 lbs. for the Makita. 10 amps has proven to be more than ample (amp joke) and I rarely need to go above 2000 rpm. The electronic speed control is sweet. No more bogging and speeding up. It's really smooth and I'm happy with it.

I know that cost is up there for us hobbyists. Consider this, these tools are pro level auto detail equipment also. You can kinda justify it that way.

Good luck.

Howzit reverb, Love those Makitas, I blow the dust out before every sanding job since the fiberglass dust can damage the motor windings, just don't do it with the grinder running, amazing how much dust come out of the casing.I also blow out the trigger and the rheostat.Aloha,Kokua

Howzit reverb, I have 2 of the variable speed Makitas, MDL# 9207SPC Aloha,Kokua

You're in for a suprize !

Take your time,the sander can remove material faster than you can see it coming.Make sure that you change you paper frequently,especially if you buy cheaper stuff.If you don't change the paper frequently,the paper will bald,and rather than sanding ,it will heat up the area and then blistering,browning delam...............what I refer to as a cookdown.

In a short time you'll master the beast and can't believe how long it use to take you to sand the same board.

My HF sander polisher came w/ a soft pad/medium pad set-up using velco type tech.These pads are good enough to do the job,not the best but it will work.

Also I bought the smaller variable speedster.A 6.5 amp or something like that.The larger 11 amp seemed to be overkill for surfies,but still useable.If you bought the lighter/smaller one like mine,then you got it with the hoop handle,I particularly didn't like it so I converted it over to a standard side handle.Try the hoop job and if you like it great,if not get back to me if you can't figure out how to convert it.Herb

Having used a HF sander for the last 3 years (approx 25 boards) I have the opinion that it has made my sanding really hard work. I have had to adapt to the low quality of the machine in order to get my work done. I don't think it is well balanced and it is very noisy. The rotation seems to get looser. But I have to admit, for 25 bucks it sure has taken alot of abuse. It finally died the other day and I had to get another one because I was low on cash. It turns out you can't get the one that goes from speed 1-8. They have a new one which is a 2 speed. I am not sure of the exact RPM's but from the feel of it I think the speeds are bad for sanding surfboards. Too fast and too slow. Sanding is alot like surfing. You need to anticipate, feel, and be aware of your surroundings. You need to be able to adjust your speed to suite the conditions. Everyone does it a little different. I think you get what you pay for with the HF sander. It's not a good habit to get into, and when it breaks you will need to learn to use another.

Ok, I will read up on grease. I guess I could wire up a new dial for the speed and get rid of the switch. I am willing to try that considering I still have the one I just purchased.

Quote:
I wanted a cheap sander polisher and found this one for use 3-6 times a year:http://www.ekitchenandhome.com/copo7invasps.html $49

Seeing your post and being curious I did a quick search after I saw that it was a Coleman brand. The first hit for PMB7284 Coleman that comes up in Google I found a bit cheaper price at http://www.cssauction.com/product/___19/coleman-7-inch-variable-speed-sander-polisher.html $35.00 for one unit or $28.00 for four of them for those interested.

Kokua, I hear ya. You kind of get tricked into thinking that the brand name is synonymous with quality. I’ve got a Coleman camp stove and lantern that are over 30yrs old that belonged to my father and have been used on numerous surf trips and are still going strong. But they were completely made in America.

I’ve got an American made Milwaukee sander/polisher that is over 25yrs old, not used constantly but used a ton. But some of the best tools I have, and friends have are Makita but the ones that are made in Japan.

The Makita you recommend for a sander/polisher is still made in Japan. I’ve not used them personally but have a friend that uses them nearly every day…good tool for sure. Makita’s made in Japan are quality.

okey dokey; got me a Harbour Freight Polisher/Sander for $29 dollars.
I'm aware of the obligatory 'grease the gears..
This should be enough to resurface a board bottom and apply 1 layer of 2oz glass.

However, the package comes with some screws, handles and such
but includes two wierd pieces that are not covered by any instruction booklet.

Sort of 2 of these: chiclet sized piece of metal with a wire protruding, the wire is covered or encased by a loosely
wound spring, the spring and wire end in a thin metal endcap.....Can't figure out what this is for???????

Howzit Otis, I don't own a H.F. tool but from your decription I'd say those are a set of brushes for the motor.Aloha,Kokua

OK, not quite OT, but... I need to do some ding repairs for the first time in quite a while, and decided to pick up a power sanding tool of some kind. Since this tool is solely for ding repair (I don't plan to use it for board building), I thought that it would be nice to find something battery-powered that I can take to the beach and use there, if necessary (I don't like 12V -110V inverters). It also seemed like a good idea to get the cord out of the way. As far as I can tell, ain't no battery-powered sander/grinders, per se. However, I did find a Hitachi VS 18V right angle drill on sale for $25. I also found a 5" backing plate to fit it that accommodates the stick-on variety of sanding disc. RPM is 300-600, which is a little bit in the low side, but might be sufficient as long as I don't need to do any finish buffing. Next step is to find a universal side handle I can attach. Used to be able to find these for conventional drills, but evidently they have gone out of style. I'll rig something with handle, tapped flat nut, and a couple of hose clamps if I can't find a commercial product. Next priority (after some testing to make sure this will work at all) is to find a way to adapt a hook & loop system - looks like a much better selection of discs for that format. This may be a stupid idea and a colossal waste of effort, but I really like the idea of portability in this type of tool. I also like to follow my own path :-> I'll make a report of success or folly when I know more...

-Samiam

My HF has been running solid for 2 years, now. I really think it's just the luck of the draw. Although, I'm about to embark on 11 new boards in a relatively short amount of time...I have a feeling this could be the end. Might want to give her a re-grease before getting started on this next job.

My Apologies to you Kawika,

Here I am defending something that I shouldn't be supporting in the first place,and like Solstice said ,"Just Lucky" is more likely what it really is.

I have gotten several tools ,hand and power from HF and they were junk..........REAL JUNK...........so you're right,,,,,more than I am ....foresure.

The HF sanders are like sub-pop-out boards..........there a good entry level tool to see if you'll stay with it..........but if you want a real pro level tool.................well all I have to say is you get what you pay for.

For us magicians of the crafts...........well let me put it to you this way..............When I use to skate backyard pools in the 70s.I use to trade off with some poor kids beat to s#@t Gren-tek popout junker and would hang wheelers and carve/takeout 6 feet of tiles on it.The kid didn't do any better on my pro skater because he didn't have the skill to make a difference,even though he could tell right off it was the superior skateboard...............In time,,, alot these kids came in to there own and made it Big !................I wonder how many of them would remember me ,let alone admit it.

Again Sorry..........I must be feeling better to be picking fights again.........a true sign of ,"getting better"...........Plus I don't need my reading glasses to type or read this
(last couple days)even in this dim light............first time in better than two years.

"K" you're okay in my book ,it takes alot of balls to stand-up to someone established and hold your ground on what you think is right/correct..............for that I give you my hat's off ,Brother ! Herb