Though my head is not yet above water regarding the recore project, I'm beginning to look ahead to the impending topsides project. Several of us appear to be Good Old Boat subscribers. Inside back cover of the last issue is an AllProTools.com ad, including the Bosch 6" sander that's had my eye for a while.
$260 for the 1250 model seems like a decent deal to me.
Anyone done business with AllProTools.com?
I know this is a mostly Porter-Cable kinda crowd, but does anyone have experience with the Bosch sander?
Bosch 6" sander
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CharlieJ
- Wood Whisperer
- Posts: 649
- Joined: Fri Aug 19, 2005 7:42 pm
- Location: South coast of Texas, Matagorda Bay
No experience with that sander although my big Bosch router is holding up well. Bosch has an excellent reputation. I might buy one if I were in the market and my 10 year old Porter Cable 7335 gave out.
That said- I'd think long before getting a 6 inch sander. If you are ONLY using it on the exterior it will be fine, but on the interior there are many places you'll fine a 5 inch sander fitting into where a 6 incher won't go.
PLUS, the sanding disks are more expensive for the 6 than for the 5. Of course when my shop is running full bore we might use a couple of 150 disk boxes a month so that makes a difference to me. Might not to you.
That said- I'd think long before getting a 6 inch sander. If you are ONLY using it on the exterior it will be fine, but on the interior there are many places you'll fine a 5 inch sander fitting into where a 6 incher won't go.
PLUS, the sanding disks are more expensive for the 6 than for the 5. Of course when my shop is running full bore we might use a couple of 150 disk boxes a month so that makes a difference to me. Might not to you.
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Tim
- Shipwright Extraordinaire
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- Boat Type: Pearson Triton
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I still say you can't beat the PC 5", especially for at least $145 less (you can find them pretty consistently online for about $100). This assumes that one is looking for a tool capable of heavy-duty stock removal and grinding, given the particular affliction we all seem to share here.
Frankly, to my eye, that partiticular Bosch looks best suited to finish sanding only, and less so for more heavy-duty jobs. Maybe that fits the bill for you. It does look like a nice finishing sander, but something about it just doesn't look up to the task of grinding.
This isn't against Bosch in the least. I have a few things by Bosch that have been very good (jigsaw, belt sander, and something else, I think...). I just wonder if any tool calling itself a "sander/polisher" is really up to anything heavy-duty. The suitability of this tool would depend on its intended use, I think.
I've never heard of this vendor before today, but that doesn't mean anything. I bought my most recent PC 7335 from some unheard-of online vendor that I found through froogle.com, and the service was great. I can't even remember the name now.
Frankly, to my eye, that partiticular Bosch looks best suited to finish sanding only, and less so for more heavy-duty jobs. Maybe that fits the bill for you. It does look like a nice finishing sander, but something about it just doesn't look up to the task of grinding.
This isn't against Bosch in the least. I have a few things by Bosch that have been very good (jigsaw, belt sander, and something else, I think...). I just wonder if any tool calling itself a "sander/polisher" is really up to anything heavy-duty. The suitability of this tool would depend on its intended use, I think.
I've never heard of this vendor before today, but that doesn't mean anything. I bought my most recent PC 7335 from some unheard-of online vendor that I found through froogle.com, and the service was great. I can't even remember the name now.
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Noah
- Skilled Systems Installer
- Posts: 190
- Joined: Mon Jan 10, 2005 2:17 pm
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- Contact:
I have the Bosch 5", and it has held up very well...except for the crap bearing they put in the first time. The original "random" bearing got jammed up very quickly. Turns out it wasn't a sealed bearing, but open...the perfect place to get full of dust and fail. I took the sander apart and got a new sealed bearing from the local tool repair place. Now 4 years later it is still running great. This is a sander that has seen terrible abuse. It is connected to a shop vac almost all the time, and with a 37ft wooden boat I do lots of sanding...probably about 100 hours this spring. It does bottom paint, topsides paint, epoxy filler, varnish, etc.
Good luck,
Noah
Good luck,
Noah
I want a shop!
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CharlieJ
- Wood Whisperer
- Posts: 649
- Joined: Fri Aug 19, 2005 7:42 pm
- Location: South coast of Texas, Matagorda Bay
Interesting that you should have problems- maybe you got a bad bearing ?
I've had a pair of 7335 PC ROS machines in daily use in the woodshop for close to ten years- both still running with the original bearings. One of them shelled a chunk from the armature a few weeks ago, but after the pounding it's been through I guess it got tired.
Those sanders have been through the building of 7 wooden boats, and the interior rebuild of three glass ones. All I've EVER done was replace brushes.
I've had a pair of 7335 PC ROS machines in daily use in the woodshop for close to ten years- both still running with the original bearings. One of them shelled a chunk from the armature a few weeks ago, but after the pounding it's been through I guess it got tired.
Those sanders have been through the building of 7 wooden boats, and the interior rebuild of three glass ones. All I've EVER done was replace brushes.
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Noah
- Skilled Systems Installer
- Posts: 190
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- Location: Burlington, vt
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Well I got my current one because I had used a couple of other Bosch sanders and they were awesome.
The original bearing was un-sealed, and clearly destined for an early grave. It gave up after only one year of use. I purchased the sander in 2000, maybe 2001, and it was dead pretty shortly after that.
The replacement bearing was sealed, so all that sanding crap wasn't going straight into the thing. It has lasted very well. Perhaps it was a design failure with a new model or something, but it sure seemed like Bosch tried to engineer a finite life into the tool.
The original bearing was un-sealed, and clearly destined for an early grave. It gave up after only one year of use. I purchased the sander in 2000, maybe 2001, and it was dead pretty shortly after that.
The replacement bearing was sealed, so all that sanding crap wasn't going straight into the thing. It has lasted very well. Perhaps it was a design failure with a new model or something, but it sure seemed like Bosch tried to engineer a finite life into the tool.
I want a shop!
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Figment
- Damned Because It's All Connected
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- Boat Name: Triton
- Boat Type: Grand Banks 42
- Location: L.I. Sound
Remember the prayer for the dying sander?
Yesterday the PC went from "not really random orbit" to "not even remotely random orbit". The death rattle was pretty alarming. Why did this happen? Because it somehow sensed that the new (reman) Bosch was riding the happy brown truck to my door.
If not for a giftcard that had been collecting dust, there's no way I would have splurged but man I'm pleased. This thing is SWEET. I don't think I've ever used a sander with a squishy foam pad before. It really reduces the skittering, keeps more abrasive in contact with the surface, makes for a much more effective tool.
I'm toying with the idea of having the PC repaired, and having a foam pad fitted while I'm at it.
Yesterday the PC went from "not really random orbit" to "not even remotely random orbit". The death rattle was pretty alarming. Why did this happen? Because it somehow sensed that the new (reman) Bosch was riding the happy brown truck to my door.
If not for a giftcard that had been collecting dust, there's no way I would have splurged but man I'm pleased. This thing is SWEET. I don't think I've ever used a sander with a squishy foam pad before. It really reduces the skittering, keeps more abrasive in contact with the surface, makes for a much more effective tool.
I'm toying with the idea of having the PC repaired, and having a foam pad fitted while I'm at it.
PC Sander
I just went to the Porter Cable website, they did not show the 7334, but have the 7335 and 7336. So I called the PC 888 number. The 7334 has been discontinued but the 7335 and 7336 have the same moter, etc. Then went to the Lowes website. They have the 7335 for $105. Seems like a pretty good deal.