Orbital Sander help please

[Invicta]

A while ago I got help from the site when choosing a multi tool.
I bought an Erbauer from Screwfix which has done all the cutting and sanding I have required of it for the past 4 months without problems.

I'm back asking for help to choose a reasonably priced Orbital Sander please.
The initial job I have in mind is to sand back a "Butchers Block" style kitchen worktop (from B&Q) to remove 6 years of general marking.
I'm not sure if battery powered units will fall into my budget (or if good ones are available), so cordless or mains powered will be considered.

Any advice will be very much appreciated.
Thanks for looking,
Bern

 

[Deleted member 174758]

There are a few, not many, battery-powered sanders, but TBH they don't have much staying power. For bigger jobs you need to look at corded. Only thing I'd recommend is going for something which can take sanding sheet or roll as opposed to stick-on abrasives or Velcro (because of much higher running costs). For larger areas a 1/2 sheet machine will work faster than a 1/3 sheet model which in turn will be faster than a 1/4 sheet palm sander

 

[Invicta]

JandK,
Thank you for your advice.
I used to use sheet machines so will start looking at these again.
Have any Makes/Models got a good reputation?
Bern

 

[Deleted member 174758]

It's a bit difficult for me to answer that question in some respects because I'm trade, so I'm not that knowledgeable about DIY sanders. In trade stuff the brands to look for include (in no particular order) Metabo, Bosch, Makita and deWalt. I've owned a Metabo 1/2 sheet sander in the past and used noth 1/2 and 1/3 sheet sanders by the other three makers. TBH I don't think there's a great deal of difference betwen them, just minor details. For small jobs these days I still use a Makita BO4555 1/4-sheet orbital palm sander which works well for me. Thinking about your task you might be as well to borrow or hire a 4 x 24in belt sander for the weekend with some P80 or P100 belts to do the initial sanding down - this will do the job very quickly and so must be used with caution. Any finishing tasks can then be undertaken much more easily with lighter equipment or even by hand

 

[Invicta]

JandK,
1/2 or 1/3 sheet sanders both sound like they will do the initial work for me.
Ill look up the various makes you name.
Metabo is new to me - I'll have a look at their 1/2 sheet machine.
My BOSCH shredder & reciprocating saws have both worked well over the years so based on that I'm drawn to that make.
The various trades I've worked with all seem to have either Makita or DeWalt and like you no one has expressed a technical preference, it seems to be mainly down to what they feel comfortable with.
My budget didn't run to these last two battery powered units earlier this year which is why I went for the Erabuer Multi Tool and Drill/Driver.
As I'm a Handyman I like to try and keep a range of tools which have as much flexibility/reliability as possible because I never know what job will come in next.
I also do my own DIY.

Thank you also for reminding me I can hire kit - it's something I keep forgetting!

Using your suggestions I'm off now to do some Googling while the sales are on,
Bern

 

[foxhole]

http://www.angliatoolcentre.co.uk/m...id41735.html?gclid=CMK2-q7FhsoCFdVAGwodykIFmA
You can get a little cheaper but this I a very effective sander.

 

[Invicta]

Foxhole,
Thanks for the link.
I've looked at the reviews for the Erbauer sanders on the Screwfix site.
The one with the most and very favourable reviews is now out of stock/discontinued. The replacement has 2 poor reviews. (Sods law!).
Bern

 

[^woody^]

Look for the "orbital motion" in the specs. The greater this is, the better it will be at removing stuff. See what the ones with good reviews have, and see how cheaper ones compare.

I have a Skil sander, and it was highly regarded on the forums (well newsgroups) at the time, as it had one of the widest orbital motions of any comparable sander, but at much cheaper price. This was about 10 years ago, so I don't know if the same model is still about, but the point is I would not have ever thought of considering a Skil sander.

Slow start, variable speed are good to have but efficient dust extraction is a must.

 

[Invicta]

Woody,
This is exactly the sort of guide to specifications I was looking for.
Thank you,
Bern