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DIY Disk Sander (again)

First I failed, then succeeded to build a disk sander and everything was good.

For about a year. Then something failed catastrophically and the disk flew in a high arc through the workshop 😱.

When disassembling the remains I found one of the M3 bolts that had secured the vacuum motor. It probably came lose from the vibrations and the spinning disk ran into it? I don't know. But I knew I needed a new sander.

I was this 🤌 close to buying one, when I came across a classifieds listing for a small table saw at just 20 EUR. I knew it would be a shit saw, but a weak table saw motor should be ideal for a sander? You can't go wrong for that price, so I bought it.

This weekend I spent some time to rebuild it into a sander. Instead of building a whole new motor housing, I reused the steel frame of the saw.

The disk is still the same I made for my first two attempts, but this time the connection is a bit simpler. The back is reinforced by a plywood circle I cut on my scroll saw and then is held by a nut, for which I made a recess using a forstner bit.

The rest of the construction isn't much different from the last version. I also re-added the motor speed controller, but I don't think it was really necessary for this motor. It's still a little bit too fast but much better than the vacuum one.

Tags:
woodworking, diy, workshop, sander
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