Best 150mm Random Orbital Sander around £100?

[wau5]

Hello Sirs , I'm after a good & quality 150mm ROS that has low noise levels/low weight and has good dust extraction.
I used to have Metabo sxe450 myself but I sold it recently as I was finding it really hard to use as it was really really heavy, the dust extraction port on it was really weirdly shaped so I couldn't use it with my vacuum and it was really noisy and basically very rough and untamed+ backing pad on mine wasn't the best so I just got rid of it.
I also have used Mirka Deros for few months in past and it has been the best sander I have seen,just superb, however I find it really really really overpriced at near £400 and I'm just not doing enough work at the moment to warrant such an expense, but as you see I'm giving a hard time to the metabo sxe450 as I had access to much superior tool at the same time and it was a good tool overall, but just nowhere near as good as mirka

I recently found Metabo has released a new 150mm ROS ,which can be bought for around £83.
https://www.amazon.co.uk/Metabo-SXE...id=1482692020&sr=8-1&keywords=Metabo+SXE+3150

Which seems much lighter, less noisier as it says online, and seems like with better dust extraction port as well than the old sxe450?

So I'm wondering what's the best stuff you could buy that has 150mm pad and is around £100 or less?
I'm not looking to spend more as in that case I could add a bit more and buy mirka.

Thanks, and have a merry Xmas everyone!

 

[Deleted member 174758]

I'm after a good & quality 150mm ROS that has low noise levels/low weight and has good dust extraction.

In that case there are just two options: the Mirka Deros and the Festool ETS 150 (or the updated ETS 150 EC). Both are getting on for £300, though. The ETS 150 EC is a lot more expensive.

I used to have Metabo sxe450 myself but I sold it recently as I was finding it really hard to use as it was really really heavy, the dust extraction port on it was really weirdly shaped so I couldn't use it with my vacuum and it was really noisy and basically very rough and untamed+ backing pad on mine wasn't the best so I just got rid of it.

Firstly, agreed, they are heavier than a Deros or a Festool, but I find them no heavier or noisier than the equivalents from Bosch (older), deWalt or Makita (used a few of them). If you are sanding on the flat then the weight is immaterial and for door edges, etc it isn't that bad - certainly lighter than the average power planer. For sanding ceilings, then yes, they can become heavy on prolonged sessions, but we generally get the dryliners to do that sort of work . I find the vacuum actually makes more noise than the RoS and in any case I wear either ear plugs or ear defenders for extended sanding sessions, so that's how I'd recommend dealing with the noise issue for any power tool. Either way a SXE450 Duo is a lot quieter than a circular saw. I'd also dispute the SXE450 Duo having a "weirdly-shaped extraction port" - the dust hoses from the Metabo ASR2025, Bosch GAS25, Festool CTM26, Festool CTL Midi and Hilti VC-40 M vacuums (all industrial standard tools) all plug straight into an SXE450 Duo so if your vacuum won't plug into that tool it probably won't plug into an ETS150, either. Not sure about the Deros because when we had a loaner it came with a Fein DX. The rough and untamed comment I also find interesting having had the self-same complaint about mine a couple of times. Did you know that both the SXE450 Duo and the newer SXE450 TurboTec have a dual orbit system? You can switch from coarse sanding to fine sanding (or back) by depressing the red button and turning the pad backwards. In coarse mode (6mm orbit) they cut very aggressively and can require both hands and the front knob to control. In fine mode (3mm orbit) they are a lot less aggressive and far easier to handle. BTW want to try aggressive/rough then try a Mirka Deros with the 7mm orbit (Deros sanders come in 3mm, 5mm and 7mm orbits) and P40 grit - comparing different orbit machines can give a really odd impressions as to which tool is "rougher". Worth noting that on any RoS the brake band wears with use and needs to be replaced periodically - and worn brake bands contribute to rough running of these tools. As to backing pads: they have a finite life as well, you know. I get 12 to 24 months out of them when used heavily and with some sanding sheets, such as Mirka Abranet, you absolutely must use an interface pad unless you want to shorten the life of the Velcro backing pad. This is because Abranet is very thin against conventional sanding discs and the hooks on the tool's Velcro backing pad can poke through the Abranet and get worn down on the surface of the workpiece, fast.

At a guess I'd have to wonder if your SXE450 (was yours a Duo?) couldn't just have done with a service and a few spare parts, although yes, they are heavier and noisier than Festools or Mirkas (from side by side experience). But, hey, they cost less than half as much (noting that both Festools and Mirkas come with Systainer boxes whilst the Metabo comes without a carrying case). Incidentally the SXE450 TurboTec which replaced the SXE450 Duo weighs in at 2.2kg as opposed to 2.6kg and has better extraction - not as good as Festool's ETS150, but using Mirka Abranet instead if conventional abrasives makes quite a difference, as does using a vacuum cleaner instead of a dust bag on the tool.

I recently found Metabo has released a new 150mm ROS ,which can be bought for around £83. Which seems much lighter, less noisier as it says online, and seems like with better dust extraction port as well than the old sxe450?

Amazon is quoting £92 at the moment, Lawson are still at £87. Maybe a lighter tool, but it's a single orbit tool (3mm), so if you need the coarse orbit (for heavy sanding, e.g. paint removal) it may seem painfully slow. At 1.6kg it's probably nearer the weight you can handle comfortably, too. Any idea where they are made? Only asking because Metabo have started shifting a lot of production to China and there have been some negative comments on various forums about Metabo quality (mainly to do with mitre saws, though).

The only other tool I can think of which might come into the area you are talking about might be the newer Bosch GEX125-150 AVE a 125/150mm random orbit sander. They come in at a similar weight to the Turbo Tec (2.4kg), have bags of power (at 400 watts) and are low on vibration as well as noise (we had a loaner for a couple of days). They cut a bit more aggresively than the Turbo Tec or Duo on fine orbit too because of their fixed 4mm orbit. Downside is that they are running at about £200 to £210 street price. If I didn't have such a reliable and durable cast-iron SXE450 Duo I might consider one. But then I'm site-based and aggressive cutting is required about half the time I'm using a random orbit sander

 

[wau5]

Thanks for taking your time to write all that,
I have tried the festool ETS in past (just tried but not used really) and the mirka felt much much better,like there wasn't even a competition..
the new 150 EC however looks pretty good and is a true competitor against the deros from the looks of it, however I'm not keen to buy any of the festool tools just because of their fanboys /their glorified marketing and that they have specific sanding discs so you have to buy theirs and pump more money their way..I don't own any of their tools for price reasons so Maybe I just don't know what I'm talking about

My metabo was very old hand-me-down type of sander which probably indeed needed a service and a new pad, but Just decided to get rid of it as wasn't ready to spend anything on it as it was too heavy/cumbersome to do anything more than flat surfaces and it was sitting unused.

I see you got a lot of experience with sanders, how would you compare the mirka deros to metabo sxe 450 TURBOTEC if you have used both?
The deros is something like £380 with good kit, and the sxe450 turbotec is like £125 (haven't searched much so maybe even cheaper).
I really liked the deros I had and If I had enough work to do which requires sander I would ''invest'' in one again, however I know very well that I will just use it occasionally for DIY projects now.

 

[wau5]

I just rememered why I liked the deros so much, it was a 150mm sander AND you could operate it with a single hand while with the other hand you could take whatever the thing your sanding was and turn it around, keep the thing in air and just keep sanding it, when I was doing some production work sanding up A LOT of small timber that thing was just so good compared to the heavy metabo unit I had with which you weren't able to do that. Oh and also when sanding walls/ceilings it was so light, and so easy to control that you could work for hours, where with the heavy metabo which weighs a ton you couldn't get good access to some places and it was tiring to use it for such stuff for more than a couple of minutes.

damn seems like there's no real alternative if you want a very light/small unit but still want lots of power and 150mm?

 

[Deleted member 174758]

I think that you've answered your own questions, there, TBH. The Deros is a very similar size to the pneumatic Dynabrade sanders used in so many workshops and is a true one-handed sander, but it is a finishing sander and most purchasers will buy the 3mm orbit tool (you can also get 5mm and 7mm orbits I believe). The SXE450 TurboTec is a completely different animal because it has two different orbit patterns - a 3mm orbit for finishing and a 6mm orbit for aggressive sanding (e.g. paint removal). In effect it is two machines in one. If all you do is finish sanding of wood then the Deros would be a better choice, especially if you spend long periods sanding. If, on the other hand, you need to do both finish sanding as well as stuff like paint removal (e.g. typical site work mix) then the SXE would mean only needing to carry around a single tool to handle two tasks - potentially significant if you are site-based with a smallish van. At least that's how I see it for my own circumstances.

Don't get me wrong, I like the Deros a lot, but for what I do it isn't the right tool because it simply isn't versatile enough. It's also eye-wateringly expensive. As to "Festool fanboys", there seems to be a bit of inverse snobbery going on in some places on the net. Some Festool kit is really good and there really isn't any meaningful competition for it out there. Festool were certainly the first firm to realise the need for good ergonomics and good dust extraction and it's their plunging rail saws which have changed the entire trade saw market in recent years. That they now have competition is really a sort of compliment if you think about it. I have some Festool kit but personally I only buy where the tool merits the expenditure. I even had two ETS 2 150mm finishing sanders (the precursor to the ETS150/3) back in the late 1990s for workshop use and they really were so much better than anything else on the market - mainly because of their dust extraction.

 

[wau5]

I think I have
I had the deros with 5mm orbit, and used it really for both for finishing and stripping. I used to do a lot of joinery work and making custom stuff sanding for long hours every day so it was justifable, but that was some time ago and I have shifted a bit what I do now, but still need a sander- just not sure If I want to spend £380 on one when I would be using it only for maybe 1hour per week.
Thanks mate for writing all that, I will wait when the new sxe450 comes in stock at one place where it's for a good price of £110 and try it out,if it's no good for me I can just send it back within the 14days, the power of internet heh
maybe the updated model is a touch better than the old knackered one I had.

 

[foxhole]

I find the problem with the orbital sander is the pad , they wear very quickly and so don't hold the sand paper and my makita costs £50 to replace .

 

[Deleted member 174758]

What abrasives are you using with it?

Edit: Just to highlight my points above, the pad is one thing that always wears out on an RoS, as does the brake ring, so it's as well to look at the "running costs" for anything like this that you want to purchase. Out of interest the Velcro backing pads for the SXE450 TurboTec (and the Duo) are £15 to £18 a pop (£15.00 from Lawson HIS) whilst the brake rings for the TurboTec (#14 / 344097790 on this diagram) are under a fiver plus VAT although the special grease they require is about £11 + VAT (but a tube will last for years).

 

[wau5]

Well I got some cheap £50 sander in the end and from a decent brand as well!, the specs on the paper looked good, and everything else looked good as well , had variable speed/good dust extraction port,low weight etc, everything I needed Or So I thought.. What I received was a sander that can't even be compared to mirka, total crap, you can stall it with just by pressing against wall, so loud that seems like the whole house would take off, can barely even take off any material etc.. damn.. will be sending it back asap.
So.... I thought about it more and
Ended up ordering the Mirka Deros after all,Found a good price from angliatoolcentre.

£332 after coupon with systainer case and 150mm/125mm backing pad combo
https://www.angliatoolcentre.co.uk/mirka-deros-sander-pid42637.html
that's the cheapest I have ever seen them go for.
coupon for 5% off making it £332 if anyone needs: FLHTW9G

You get what you pay for...