Shopsmith Forums

Hello, Shopsmith woodworkers....I'm probably gonna be Kicked off this
site...I don't own the fabulous Shopsmith mark v, so i don't really belong here
and my last two posts about the $399.00 Sandflee were not appreciated by
Shopsmith.....I understand. it's a money thing. Well, this will probably be my last post anyway.....Here goes! Some talented Shopsmith owners have built
their own version of a Sandflee (no doubt,while saving up to buy the real one)
Under the post Sandfree.... I saw a 6" version with a well built fence and base
all fit cleverly within the Shopsmith platform....Here's another "Sandfree"
way of doing it that ALMOST! works as well as the real Sandflee....SHOPSMITH
we DIYs promise to build and use this sander ONLY! until we can save up to
buy the Official Shopsmith based Sandflee model.
USE THE LATHE FUNCTION OF THE shopsmith . Either turn your own cylinder
ANY length! or USE an old wooden ROLLING PIN as your drum
Then glue on some VELCRO.....chuck it up in your lathe....
Wrap the drum in the Sandpaper....AND
Drawing from the same ideas the other DIYs posted to construct a simple
mount (to the Shopsmith frame) A top with slot and fence and VOILA!
A DIY made Sandflee using the GREAT ! Shopsmith ALMOST as good as
a real Sandflee......BUT! remember The Devil is in the details....
You gotta Build it (sweat equity) And The most critical part you will have
to work out is a method of adjusting the TOP in relation to the drum.
( Really not very hard for an average woodworker) BUT! with GREAT rewards
THE Sandflee is a VERY! useful, almost indespensible tool...you'll see.
Well, so long Shopsmith woodworkers hope this post is useful to you.
Dave...

I like your thinking. Let me address your concerns from my point of view.
I have found this forum to be comprised of many friendly free thinking individuals, and saving money is often a concern. So don't worry, new ideas are always appreciated.
Not owning a SS YET is not in my mind important, but I hope you realize how much fun it is to use a really well built tool. It took me many years of watching demos at the County Fairs before I felt I could afford the investment. I have never regretted my purchase. Keep saving.
As for you DIY plan, interesting but problematic. The seam on the velcro could create a ridge which would defeat the smoothness expected from a "flee".
A rolling pin with bearings might spin too fast.
Just some thought.
Hope to see you sign on in the future.

The Sandpaper you would use is the same,and is attached the same as
the Shopsmith Sandflee it is Klingspor sold in a roll... the first part that is
secured to the drum is cut with an angle and then rolled across the length
of the drum in one long strip. The Sandflee website has a video showing how
fast and easy this is done... it is one reason why the Shopsmith Sandflee is
so great...you can also change paper grits along the drums length to have
both rough and progresively finer grits... first run your stock over the rough
paper, then move over to the next region already set up for a finish grit...
from rough to smooth without having to change paper ...real slick! FAST.
When i first saw the paper rolled along the drum during a hands on demo
i was surprised to see that the paper was not butted carefully against the
adjacent wrap, there was a small gap between the edges of the paper...
It did not matter...picture an old fashioned barbers pole...every bit of the
workstock is sanded equally... its a brilliant design...You can use the fence
as a dividing point one side rough,one side fine... or you can just eyeball
each zone and do without the fence for flat sanding smaller pieces...
BUT it's your choice... very flexible.use the whole width for one grit for
wide pieces or vary the grits.....It costs about $2 dollars to load the drum
up... and because you are only sanding with the grit and not the paper backing
under pressure (as with a jet thickness sander) the cut is gentle and not as
destructive to the paper....It lasts longer... No stock being squeezed.. no
burning your stock... As to your other concern about the DIY version using
a rolling pin spinning on bearings as your drum, you would only use cylinder
part of the rolling pin and chuck it up in your Shopsmiths precision lathe...
this would give you a perfect circular drum turning smoothly in your Lathe.
AS i said you could turn your own drum cylinder of ANY length...but it is VERY important that is a consistent diameter.. The Speed would be adjusted
using your Shopsmith speed control. dave

davegr wrote:Hello, Shopsmith woodworkers....I'm probably gonna be Kicked off this
site...I don't own the fabulous Shopsmith mark v, so i don't really belong here
and my last two posts about the $399.00 Sandflee were not appreciated by
Shopsmith.....I understand. it's a money thing. Well, this will probably be my last post anyway.....Here goes! ...edit in this area...Well, so long Shopsmith woodworkers hope this post is useful to you.
Dave...

Hi Dave,

I see no reason for you to leave. Stick around, but you must be using a different name now; as of this post, you are only credited with the two posts on this thread.

[quote="a1gutterman"]Hi Dave,

I see no reason for you to leave. Stick around, but you must be using a different name now]
The others were pulled by admin for promoting competing products.

mickyd wrote:The others were pulled by admin for promoting competing products.

Thanks for explaining, Mike! When did this happen?

a1gutterman wrote:Thanks for explaining, Mike! When did this happen?

Before......

On page 271 in the book, Power Tool Woodworking for Everyone there is a plan for a tool that seems quite similar to the Sandflee. A 15 1/2 inch long by 3 1/2 inch diameter cylinder is turned on the lathe. A lengthwise wedge is cut out of the cylinder and countersunk screws are used to attach the sandpaper to the cylinder.

To use it you just attach the sandpaper covered cylinder to the lathe and raise the wood underneath it with the saw table. This is what it says in the book:

"A V-cut is made in the drum, as sketched above. The V-wedge holds the abrasive paper in place. If the wedge is a tight fit, the abrasive sheet will pull tight about the drum. Be sure the wedge does not protrude above the surface of the drum.

Do not use excessive speeds, and do not attempt too deep a bite in one pass. This is important. You'll find that surfacing the wood in two or more passes will give better work."

This book is sold on the Shopsmith site, and it has lots of great ideas.

Jerry Floren
St. Peter, MN

Yeah, I tried out that system. The only way I could control the sanding to a light level, so the wood would be controllable was to use the adjustable collar on the table. However the outcome was less than desirable. I also found that grit on the table during subsequent passes scratched the aluminum table top. Moast of the scratches were sanded off of the table and a polishing (sanding) cleaned the table up satisfactorily, with one deeper scratch still there as a reminder.

I threw the drum in the trash. Knowing I'd not use it again as a SS tool, I thought there may be another use for this drum. Later, I removed it from the barrel and threw it under a workbench.

A year or so later - just last month - I found a good use for it. It made a real good sanding block for my coffee table top. It uses a whole sheet of sandpaper, and through several grit changes was able to hand sand the large table top to a level, smooth surface. Kind of like putting sandpaper on a rolling Pin. Next time I'll put non-rotating handles on it.

Thanks for your response Chuck. I was thinking of trying that as a project, but guess I will pass.

Jerry
St. Peter, MN