Drum sander or planer

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firewhatfire

firewhatfire

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I am in the market for a new tool. These see o be what I am leaning towards. If you had to choose one which would it be and why? I would like to start doing boxes and cutting boards if that helps.

Thanks in advance

Phil
 
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I'd lean towards the planer as it will allow the machining of rough lumber. A drum sander would be only used for finishing and cleaning of flat panels and parts.
 
Depends on how much material you want to remove with each pass. Both machines will do the same thing, it just takes a heck of a lot longer using a drum sander than a planer. However, on the flip side, the drum sander will give a smoother finish and you will be able to use thinner stock.
 
Monty said:
Depends on how much material you want to remove with each pass. Both machines will do the same thing, it just takes a heck of a lot longer using a drum sander than a planer. However, on the flip side, the drum sander will give a smoother finish and you will be able to use thinner stock.
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What he said!:biggrin:
 
The planer will ensure a uniform thickness of the piece -- front and back perfectly parallel. The drum sander can't do that....

The inexpensive planers will ruin a lot of wood -- snipe on one or both ends can be a heart-breaker on expensive exotic wood boards...
 
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For boxes and cutting boards, I think a good bandsaw (for resawing) and drum sander (for finishing) will be a lot more useful than a planer.

If you don't have a good bandsaw, I would suggest that before either the planer or drum sander.

If you plan on using burlwood (or wood with interlocking grain) in your boxes, a planer could lead to real heartbreak. Planers are prone to tearout on challenging grain.

If you are going to eventually start doing inlays in your boxes and cutting boards, a drum sander will be much more useful. Running a board that you spent hours on creating inlays through a planer for final smoothing is a good way to end up hating your planer. It's exactly the kind of work that a drum sander is made for.

There is no right or wrong answer here. You learn how to adapt to the tools you have. Some tools just make some jobs easier.

Ed
 
islandturner said:
The planer will also ensure a uniform thickness of the piece -- front and back perfectly parallel. The drum sander can't do that....
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I disagree. I have the Jet 16/32 drum sander and properly adjusted it does achieve uniform thickness. I use mine after re-sawing and it performs very well. If you plan on making boxes with inlays or making cutting boards go with the drum sander. With coarse paper it will remove stock fairly rapidly and you can achieve a very smooth finish with the finer grits. I would not recommend the DELTA model. I have known a few people that have or had the delta and they had problems with the bed/roller adjustment where as the Jet bed remains stationary and the drum is raised or lowered and is much easier to true up if needed. I've had mine for several years and have run quite a lot of stock through it and I check for uniformity often and I haven't seen a problem yet. You will need a DC hooked up to it and clean the paper after each use and they will last a long time. Remove glue squeeze out before running through the sander or you'll burn the paper. Good luck with your decision.
 
Wow thanks for all the great info. Keep it coming, I need it. Of course I will need a lesson or 2 when I Get either also. Looking forward to learning it.

What is the thinnest material you can run trough a drum sander vs planer
 
Paper thin on a planer...yes!

Gentlemen,

A local woodworking artist, now semi retired disclosed how he made some of his letter openers, earrings and other things with such thin ribbons of color.

He merely used double sided tape. No not carpet tape, the double sided tape that is sold by P'TreeUSA.com.

All you do is apply tape to a piece of anything such as plywood or what is handy, take think cuts and you can plane down to extremely thin. SAFELY!

When this gentleman held classes years ago, I heard people saying man, he spends more time on safety than anything else. Yes, he has all his fingers and body parts too at 65+ years.

Charlie
 
If you are headed towards segmented turning --- the drum ( and larger disk) sander is where you should be thinking.

A carrier of mdf and good double stick tape will allow you to do thin woods in either a planer or a drum sander. I use the drum sander because I have less loss.

I use the drum sander with 36 grit to clean up wood with any question of metal or stones. Saves changing planer blades.
 
I have a 16-32 performax. Performax was acquired by jet a couple of years ago (right when I bought my machine). If the design is pretty much the same (and they haven't let the mainland chinese cheap out the components and botch the assembly) then I would say the Jet 16-32 or 10-20 might be a decent choice. With the following caveats:

1) Read all the CURRENT reviews at all the usual vendors. Equipment made today is nothing like equipment made 5 or 10 years ago. Usually not in a good way. Somebody raving about the wonderful machine they bought in the good old days is only marginally useful to somebody looking to buy today. Full disclosure: This includes me and my opinions expressed herein.

2) Getting the performax 16-32 dialed in was a major headache. I've never had a more difficult time setting up a machine. Once I got it dialed in (and replaced some defective parts), it has worked flawlessly ever since. But I almost took a BFH to it, in a fit of rage, a couple of times the first week I had it.

Jet and Powermatic are the same company (for all practical purposes). After having experienced wonderful customer service with respect to my powermatic equipment I was shocked ("SHOCKED i SAY!!!") with the rude and incompetent support I got from Jet customer service regarding the drum sander. Ok, they had just acquired the product line, but I would expect somebody to be able to answer some questions on getting a new machine up and running (or at least pretend they cared). They couldn't (and didn't).

I've talked to Jet tech support a couple times since on other equipment I own. Sometimes it's been great, other times I've hung up the phone swearing to never buy another piece of jet equipment. I suggest calling Jet tech support to chat if you are considering buying a jet drum sander. See how they treat a prospective customer these days. Ask them how easy it is to get the drive belt to run true.

For what it's worth. These things aren't cheap. Do you homework. And invest in dust collection (a small sub 1hp is adequate). You would be crazy to run a drum sander without it.

Ed
 
I've been making custom jewelry boxes for yrs and wouldn't be without my drum sander.I had it before getting my planer,plus I have a Ricon BS that I use to cut most of my lumber then sand it on the drum sander,I guess to aswer your question,I would go with the drum sander 1st
 
Both tools are designed for spefic needs. You have to look at what your intentions are. You have to look at the tools you have already. If you have a bandsaw that can do resawing then by all means a drumsander is the way to go. If you have no other method the resize your lumber than maybe both tools are needed. It takes too much work to thin boards on a drumsander. I would not plane endgrain.

I have a planer and drumsander and each is invaluable to me because each does a specific job and does it well. To sacrifice one to make up for the other will not have good results and you will be frustrated. If you have to really choose than I suggest a drumsander. I have the Performax 16/32 ( now Jet) and never had a problem setting it up dead on. I have an older model when they first came out. I have used that thing that it has paid for itself 10000 times over. I used to sand boards down with a belt sander. One day I saw these at a wood show and the rest was history. Can not be without it. I also suggest buying rolls of sandpaper and cutting to your own lengths. Cheaper in the long run. Buy different grits of paper too. Also get one of those big rubber erasers. As mentioned some sort of Vac or dust collector is a must and I mean a must. Good luck in your search.


One other thing someone mentioned that a drum sander will not give you a flat even thickness board is wrong in my opinion. . You can achieve that very well if the tool is properly set up.
 
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I have the Performax 10/20 and love it. If you get one save some $ and buy the sanding belt material in bulk and cut your own, the pre-cut ones are EXPENSIVE!
 
A lot depends on what you are planning to do with it. As has been mentioned the planer is better for starting with rough wood. Since this is a pen site I am going to assume you want it for pens and smaller items in which case my recommendation would be the sander. If you are getting into doing a lot of rough wood and furniture then definitely go with the planer. I have both and both have their place. You asked earlier how thin you can go. With my planer I can go down to about 1/8" without any support boards. I have not tried thinner with a support board. On my drum sander I can take veneer and tape it to a sled and have sanded down to 0.3mm thick.
 
I went with the drum sander. The jet was on sale at my local woodcraft and I chose it over tickets to the National Championship game. Rodney I may very well wanna try a planet for a future tool. I may try to find a used planet some time down the road.

I agree thanks for the quality responses.
 
firewhatfire said:
I went with the drum sander. The jet was on sale at my local woodcraft and I chose it over tickets to the National Championship game. Rodney I may very well wanna try a planet for a future tool. I may try to find a used planet some time down the road.

I agree thanks for the quality responses.
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WHAT? Drum Sander over BCS Tickets???????
My daughter thinks the casting fumes have gotten to you!!!
 
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