Popular Woodworking 2009-06 № 176, страница 20

• Tool Test-—

Craftsman Oscillating-spindle Sander

Ifyou have sculpted culsiosmoolh.cabriok lesstoshapcorifyouneedioihkkness-jand small paves, you need an oscillat ing-spindle sander - and Craftsman's *21500 oscillat-ing-spindk sander has a few features that place it near the front of the class.

First, this machineisquiet. It'sso quiet thai you cant hcarthe 'A-horscpower motor over the sound of your shop vacuum and It's noticeably quieter than your battery-powered drill.

At V« hp, this sander ranks near the bottom for power when compared to other bcnchtop models. However, when put through everyday shop operailons.the outcome equals thai of the other sander*.

The direct-drive motor spins one of six •M'-iallsandingskeves. Five rubber drums withcorrespondingdiametersare included. Sleeve diameters range from tlx* Vi'-tpindk diameter up to 3*.

The I'sptndle stroke onthcCrafisman is a category leader. And the Craftsman sander has 30 osci I lat ing st rokes pcrminute-half the number of most otlier benchtop sonde rs. lhat slower stroke makes it easier to handle

stix'k whik sandingand providesa smoother cut. but that cut Is not as aggressive as you sand to your by-out lines.

Another nice feature on this sander is its l8*-round cast iron tahletop. There is plenty of surface area to accurately balance a workpiccc during sanding and I found, because there arc no 90" corners to contend with, you will not catch your workpiccc on any corners as you work. That reduces the chance for sanding divots into your project.

Additionally, dust colkclion is through a 2' port and the on/off switch is lockablc. At 58 pounds, the machine iseasy to lift onto your bench. Extraslcevcsaie sold in packs of three with three difkrent grits.

With a median price point, I think tie Craftsman »21500 would be a great shop addition tohandk any usual sandingiajks

throw not U.

Dust Deputy a Pet-peeve Exterminator

Central dust collection is nice for big machines but there are some operations where a shop vacuumconncctcd toa sander. router or miter saw makes more sense. Wc have both in our shop, but our small vacuums have always been a mixed bk-ssing,

Yes. we collect the dust and debris directly at the source, but we never know that the col lection bag on the vacuum is full until it is too full. When it stops working we know it's time to change the bag In a busy shop the hags fill quickly, and it lakes some diligence and expense to keep spare bags on hand.

Enter the Dust Deputy from Oneida, riding in to rescue us from the desperados of debris. This small cyclonc. molded from anantt-static plastic, sits atop a five-gallon bucket and catches most of the junk before it can gel to the vacuum. The end result is lhat the filters on iIk vacuum stay dean, the hags take forever to fill, and we can easily sec when the bucket is getting full.

Oneida ofkrsjust t he cyclonc. or a com-pktc kit lhat includes buckets, hardware and hose. We tested the complete kit with

a plastic cyclonc. and assembly took only a kw minutes. There isalsoan industrial version available with a welded steel cyclone and 10-$illon collection barrel.

We hooked it uptoour mitcrsawand ire quite pkascd with ii. Almost cverythingtlat gets sucked out of the saw swirlsaround the cyclone and falls intolhc bucket. Emptying the bucket is faster and easier than takiig apart the vacuum to change the bag. Wc havenl seen any lossof suet Ion. and the add! • t ion of thccyckmc is a huge improvement.

At first glance, this seemed like a pricey solution, but doingthc math showed us that the money we were spending on replacement bag* and fillers for the vacuum wxwkl make up (or the cost of the cyclone In a shun period of lime.

Perhaps most important, we arcnt ignor-inga full shopvacvumanymorc. Wecancav ilysce wlicn it's lime to empty the conuitvr. and asa result we aren't blowing dust and debrisaround the shop. The investment in the Dust Deputy is payingoff in money, tine, kss frustration and ckancr air. PW

—Robert W.Iaiq;

Oneida Dust Deputy

Oneida Air Systems • 800 732-4065 or Street price* $59 to $199

30 ■ Popular VWxNtwwtH* lurx .W)