How does the Belt Sander work?

The belt sander is a machine used to quickly and easily sand different types of materials, such as wood. The belt sander It contains an electric motor that rotates a pair of drums on which the sandpaper is mounted, which, moving at high speed, performs the sanding of the material.

Types of belt sanders:

The belt sander can be a portable machine (in this case the sander moves on the material), or it can be a stationary machine (in this case the material moves on the sandpaper).

These machines can be of different sizes, there are them from the very small (which because of their size facilitate their transport), to huge machines that are generally located in large companies and factories. The belt sanders Small ones are generally used domestically, at home or in small woodworking businesses, and are usually portable, although in some cases they can also be stationary. The belt sanders Large ones are used mostly industrially, in large businesses and are usually of the stationary type.

Some portable belt sanders come equipped with a dust collection bag, which will help us collect the dust. Also take into account, when purchasing a belt sander, its power (depending on how it will be used).

Operation of a belt sander

The belt sander It is made up of a closed strip of sandpaper stretched between two rollers. One of these rollers is responsible for generating the movement of the sanding belt, and the other is the one that performs the task of controlling the tension and lateral displacement of the sanding. Is sander It has a plate between the two rollers that keeps the sanding belt against the piece to be sanded.

The belt sander used for sanding large, flat surfaces. It is not necessary to exert pressure on the surface to be sanded, as the sander it has a very strong polishing power. For this same reason, it is recommended not to stop the machine at any time when we are in the middle of the sanding process.

Some safety measures when using a belt sander

• The cable must always be behind the machine. It must not be in the path of it and it must be in good condition.
• Use a mask or chinstrap as a lot of dust comes off.
• Wear safety glasses and why not, hearing protectors.
• The sandpaper must not be worn, since otherwise we run the risk that it will be cut or that we will not achieve the desired work. Also, a worn sandpaper will make us have to use more force, causing us premature fatigue and an additional effort for the sander.
• When you are finished using it, we recommend blowing or removing the dust with a brush from the belt sander.

Where can we use an orbital sander

• Fiberglass, such as sinks.
• Carpentry: different woods. Depending on the depth of the sanding, we must select the appropriate thickness and then, for a finish, it is advisable to pass the sander, with a fine-grained sandpaper (for finishes). At this point, we must bear in mind that there are soft and hard woods.
• Walls: we can sand walls finished with plaster, filler, paste, etc.
• Surface of steels or similar (plates, etc).
• Sanding of wooden floors: in general, in these cases, professional type sanders are used, totally superior in size and power, than a belt sander conventional.

Types of band ligators: