So I've been kicking around the idea of building a drum sander as I need one, and they are expensive...

Have been looking at ideas on line and came across a few nice ones.. Most interesting was a guy who built a jig that mounts on his wood lathe and uses the lathe to turn the drum..

But I think the nicest 'simple' DIY sander is THIS ONE...


Ideally, I'd like to make one sometime down the road that has a second drum so that two grits of sand paper can be used at once, and also has a powered feed (conveyor), and calibrated adjustment system..

But I think this guys table would be a nice little addition that would get me going.. Trouble is, I'd really like something that could handle cabinet doors, which means this should be in the neighborhood of 25 1/2" wide instead of 13 1/2" like the one shown..

I know 'nothing' about what sand papers are available and what not.. So my first question is this.. Is such a design 'feasible' with a drum twice as wide? Is sand paper readily available for the wider width? Or does it work that way.. Basically I need some education on how the sand paper comes and what my options are... So I'm having a little trouble forming the questions...

Or should I just build it narrow like this and save for a jet sander?

I've heard that the belt versions are better then the drum.. But I haven't found any plans or examples on line, and also don't really know anything about available sanding belts.. So input there is appreciated as well..

Also, I have a lot of 1" Hot Rolled Steel bar stock.. There are a few motors laying around here and there from old shop equipment, burnt up water pressure pumps, etc.. I have plenty of scrap wood, even some scrap formica and contact cement... I'm sure I can find some old entry door hinges laying around..

So I would need pulleys, pillow blocks, velcro, and the sandpaper.. as well as the hardware to make the adjusters underneath...

Was looking on line for pillow blocks and it looks like [ame="http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_noss?url=search-alias%3Daps&field-keywords=bearing+block&x=0&y=0#/ref=nb_sb_noss?url=search-alias%3Daps&field-keywords=1%22+pillow+block+bearing&rh=i%3Aaps%2Ck% 3A1%22+pillow+block+bearing"]amazon has a decent selection[/ame] of them, but they vary widely in price, and I have no idea what is adequate, and what is not gonna cut it...

Is something [ame="http://www.amazon.com/1-Pillow-Block-Bearings-UCP205-16/dp/B0045JMMXK/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1314969965&sr=8-1"]like this[/ame] adequate?


Finally, I'm not going to be able to afford a 4" dust collector for a while, so will using a 2" shop vac be worth the trouble, or should I just try and fashion some sort of gravity collection bin and accept the fact that there's gonna be dust flying and set it up somewhere accordingly?

Anyways, in the planning stages, but want to get going soon... Any and all input from those of you with experience in such machines and/or DIY versions, would be much appreciated..

Thanks,
Mark
:cheers: