Stockroom Supply V-Drum Sander review

[unixpro]

Last Christmas, my wife gave me a "The Works" V-Drum sander kit from Stockroom Supply. She gave me the 24" kit. This is my review, now that I've had the chance to seriously put in into use.

First, this is a (slightly) cheaper version of the Sand Flee Drum Sander from RJR. The Sand Flee is slightly smaller and costs nearly twice as much, even when you include the things that "the works" doesn't. On the other hand, you don't have to build your own case for the Sand Flee, and it seems like it's a bit lighter, and it comes with a fence. The price for the Sand Flee base model, which is 18" wide, is $699. The price for a "The Works" kit from Stockroom is $235 for the same size. I received the 24" version, which was $309.

When Stockroom Supply says that the kit is "the works," they're not exactly being truthful. First, the kit doesn't come with a motor, and you can't get one from them. I asked them where to buy one and they pointed me to Harbor Freight. I also learned that HF doesn't sell motors in their retail stores anymore, so I had to buy one on-line. Add just over $100 for the motor. Next you have to add in the cost of wood and materials to build the enclosure. a basic enclosure will take 1 sheet of ply and 1 short sheet of MDF for the top. You can buy tops from Stockroom for $89 for the 18" size, but they're really pretty simple to make. Total cost for the sander and required materials, then, comes to about $450. Still a ways from the $700 for the Sand Flee, and I'm getting a 24" sander instead of an 18" job.

Building the drum box was a pretty straightforward process, although they try to confuse you by providing at least 3 alternative configurations in the basic materials. The bottom line is that you can build all kids of different enclosures for the thing, including ones that have drawers, are on wheels, etc. I built the basic one which is a box about 3 feet x 1.5 feet (I may be a bit off here), with an internal shelf set in at an angle going down from left to right, with the dust chute at the bottom of the box on the right side. The motor is on the outside of the box, wired to a switch and linked via a link-belt to the drum. The top is MDF and on a hinge. Following their directions, I put screws under the front of the top to adjust the height. You want the drum to just barely hit the wood as it's passed over.

With the box built, I was ready to roll. I'd heard that this kind of sander was very good for fretwork and really wanted to see how it worked, as I had quite a bit to do. It was magnificent. With the top adjusted properly, I had absolutely no problems sanding even the smallest pieces of fret. In contrast to my belt sander, the motor actually moves fairly slowly. This has two big advantages. First, I can actually touch the drum while the thing is moving without it ripping my skin from my finger. Second, it doesn't grab the piece nearly as much (not at all?), which effectively eliminated the problem I've had in the past with the belt sander launching my pieces across the room. I was able to safely sand everything from extremely intricate 1/8" panels to little tiny pieces that just needed a light dusting to big 3/4" pieces.

The sander is not anywhere close to being as aggressive as the belt sander. That being said, there is are two things that the belt sander can do far more effectively than the V-Drum. The first is material removal. If you need to take a piece from 1/4" to 1/8", I do not recommend using this sander unless you have a fair amount of time. The second is angle sanding. When I'm doing, for example, a roof, I cut the roof square on the saw, then take it to the belt sander and set the platform to the desired angle and sand down. You can't do this on the V-Drum unless you create a jig, and then the removal would be slow (see point 1). For everything else, however, the V-Drum was an excellent tool.

The kit comes with 3 rolls of sandpaper at (I think) 80, 120, and 180. You can buy additional rolls at grits up to 320. One roll looks like it would wrap the drum twice. The paper can be cleaned with a regular cleaning stick, so you'll get lots of mileage from a single roll. changing a roll is a fairly simple process, although finding a good place to keep your rolls when not on the sander can be problematic (at least in my shop -- maybe I need to clean up again??).

If I were to make recommendations to the people at Stockroom Supply, I would include the following:

• If you're going to sell "The Works," it should include a motor. Truthfully, it should also include the wood and other materials to build the basic enclosure, but both my wife and I were extremely surprised and disappointed to discover that the motor was not included.
• If you're not going to include the motor, at least sell them on your site. Having to search all over and end up e-mailing you to find a supplier is a major PITA.
• Only send one version of the enclosure plans. Or, if you send more than one (that's always nice), send clear plain paper plans for the basic one and put the rest on the CD or something. Having one set on the CD, another on the jewel case for the CD, and a third (I think) in the documentation was confusing.

All-in-all, I highly recommend this tool for anyone doing a lot of work who doesn't want to use their belt sander. I most strongly recommend it for anyone doing a lot of complicated fretwork who just needs a couple of quick passes over the sander to get rid of the tape adhesive, squeeze-out, etc.

I have no interest in Stockroom Supply and was not solicited for this review. I just think the tool is a good one, if a bit expensive, and thought I'd share my experiences with you. Other local woodworkers I know have been very interested in knowing how well the sander performed.

[minowevie]

My Neibor has one, and I was empressed with it. I am try to get hubby to make me one. but I think we can go cheaper than they offer. I love how it sands things, it is almost a planer. or jointer, what ever, but I do like it. I am wonting to do one for corian. I think I would get a nice surface and not hurt my other tools. thanks for all your impute. your friend Evie

[Jim Finn]

..." I also learned that HF doesn't sell motors in their retail stores anymore, so I had to buy one on-line..................., but both my wife and I were extremely surprised and disappointed to discover that the motor was not included................."
~~~~~~~~~~I bought one of these just a few months back and picked up a motor at harbor freight retail store here in Lubbock Texas. $75, I think. The description of this sander on their website definetly states that there is no motor in "the works kit".
I also like this sander but one has to make sure you keep the feed rate uniform or it will put ripples in your wood.