Orbital Sander Vs Drum Sander – Which Floor Sander Should You Use?
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A fine finishing tool is essential for any wood floor sanding job. It can remove deep scratches and reach small spaces. It can be difficult for DIY novices to decide between drum sanders or orbital sanders. Our team compiled a list of the differences between floor sanders to save time and money.
What Is An Orbital Floor Sander?
If youre thinking of doing some light sanding to make the wood flat and clear, then an orbital sander is most definitely the best option for the job. Even DIYers could see that the tool was well-suited for edge sanding, as it has a rectangular surface.
It has an oscillating plate with sandpaper attached to it. The equipment will continue to sand the wood randomly if you spin it in an orbital motion. This will allow you to ignore the directions of the tiny swirls and grains on the flooring.
What Is A Drum Floor Sander And How Do You Use It?
You may not know it, but a drum sander is affectionately called a big machine by many wood sanding experts. Why? It’s a big machine made of bulky materials that sands rough hardwood floors.
Drum sander has large spinning drums often operated in a standing position. The drum sander’s large weight and spin speed make it an excellent tool for deep sanding scratches or stripping old floor finish.
This machine requires a lot of space, and you must follow the floor’s grain pattern. Thats why its complicated for beginners to use this sanding equipment.
What Is The Difference?
Method Of Sanding
Before pitting drum sander vs. orbital sander, our resident woodworkers would like to note that both drum and orbital sanders have different sanding processes to offer. Drum sanding involves using a large spinning drum with paper to remove hardwood floors.
Meanwhile, orbital sanders mainly operate using a grinding method. Unlike drum sanding that opts for aggressive motions to get the whole floor sanded, orbital sanding uses a pad that moves in a circling motion.
Speed And Labor
Orbital sanding is gentler than drum sanding. It’s only natural that it takes a lot more time to complete the job. However, if youre planning to sand bedroom floors with finer grits, our team suggests going for most random orbitals as they produce a less scratchy outcome.
Although faster, the sanding process could lead to unintended scratches when sanding the grain or reaching corners, given how much firepower drum sanders have over orbital floor sanders.
Ease Of Use
An orbital sander can be a lot easier to operate than a drum sander, it is obvious. A belt sander is more difficult to use due to its heavier weight. Newbies might find an orbital sander simpler to control.
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