I have had 2 different manufacturers of orbit sanders and my current one is a very common Porter Cable a whenever I purchase new discs, only one of the five dust return cutout holes line up!
Rick - photos of your issues will put everyone on the same page as you
for the most accurate responses.
(it is ok to mention the names of mfg. of the discs).
Edit: I remember seeing on another forum where a member made
a jig for accurately installing the paper discs to the pad.
was just a simple piece of wood with some dowels to help with alignment.
(I will try to find it).
this isn't the one, but, an example: (you can use 5 dowels instead of 3).
Are you sure you are buying sandpaper with the correct number of holes? 5 and 8 hole are common on 5 inch sanders, although there are some manufacturers who use something else. Most of the sand paper suppliers offer paper in most every hole possibility, you just need to look for the correct one. What’s worse is when you have two different sanders and they use different number of holes.
I would like to see photos of your sander bottom and the discs you bought. Some sanders have eight holes and some have five. I think that there are few with six holes, too.
You can also buy "universal" sanding discs that are compatible with both eight hole and five hole sanders. The Diablo sanding discs that I bought at the local Ganahl hardware store are like that: https://www.diablotools.com/products/DCD050150H04G
In the meantime, just make do and punch out the extra holes you need to match. If it were me, I would punch out the extra holes, rather than running the discs with only one hole.
Caveat about Diablo discs:
I needed sanding discs to go with my Ridgid random orbital sander, so I bought packs of Diablo discs in assorted grits to get started. They were a familiar brand and the best value in the store at the time I bought them, but I can't say how Diablo discs compare with others in terms of quality. I am still using them. They work fine for my needs.
Judging by the responses so far, I guess I’m really missing the obvious when buying sand paper discs! I have a 5 hole Porter Cable and all of the sanding discs for 5 inch orbital sanders I see on Amazon are 8 hole discs.
Did you miss the Amazon link in my post above? The one for the "5 Inch 5 Holes Sanding Discs, 100PCS 60 80 120 180 220 Grit Sandpaper Assortment" for $18?
In addition, the Diablo sanding discs that I use fit both 5 and 8 hole sanders. I mentioned that above, too. They are also available from Amazon. There are too many options on Amazon to include links. Just search on Amazon for "Diablo 5 inch sanding discs" to see them.
Mesh sanding discs work with any hole pattern. Mirka Abranet makes 5 inch sanding discs that are highly regarded for their quality. They have a reputation for lasting a long time before needing replacement. You can buy them on Amazon too, and I noticed that there are other companies making similar mesh sanding discs.
Rick - is there a reason you do not buy 5 hole discs ?
(just wondering)
my PC-OS is an eight hole - I am motivated now to make
an alignment jig for it tomorrow.
I have bought several different types of discs, not regarding
the holes as most of my serious sanding is done outside so I don't
hook it to the shopvac very often. but when I do use the shopvac,
I use the correct 8 hole discs.
oh - when the velcro pad stops holding the discs, you can get a replacement
pad off of ebay for just a few bucks.
I mostly buy from Amazon and always look for the best price so I’ve ended up with a huge box of sand paper discs with 8 holes thinking that it’s a universal type that fits most brands.
Now that I know the deal, I have many discs yet to use and I will do as you do, sand outside!
I’m wondering how the correct discs with my hose attachment would work. Are they very effective?
"dust free" sanding is directly related to your shopvac, filter, length of hose,
yada yada yada. . . check back with us after you find some 5 hole discs.
or - you can research to see if the 8 hole pad will fit your sander.
if it does, then you can use all the 8 hole discs with the vac as needed.
then, make a jig for easy alignment.
I wish I could answer your question, but the honest truth is that I do not know. I do woodworking mostly outdoors, so it would be hard to tell for sure. I believe that dust extraction works very well when I connect the Ridgid random orbital sander to the shop vac when using the Diablo discs. Dust escape is much worse with the small filter bag that came with the sander. Despite the apparent effectiveness of dust collection with the shop vac, I still wear a mask, but I always wear it when I am using any woodworking machine, doing hand sanding, or cleaning up.
The Ridgid sander has an eight hole pattern. The Diablo discs have four large holes that match up with the holes on the sander, so four holes are open and four are covered. There are other smaller holes on the Diablo disks which are also covered because they do not match up with my sander. The smaller holes are for five hole sanders like yours, and perhaps others.
I used the sander yesterday with the shop vac, and very little dust seemed to escape. There was essentially no dust on the board I was sanding. There was a very tiny amount of dust on the outside of the sander near three small rectangular motor vent holes, which I noticed when I put away the sander, but the sander was clean overall.
The shop vac creates suction at the work surface that make it harder to control the sander. Not that much harder. The vacuum hose ridges can also catch on board edges, the workbench, etc.
Hopefully others can offer better answers for your question about dust escape with indoor use.
Rick - what a lot of people don't take into consideration
is that the more holes you have, the less abrasive material
you have in that "ring of holes".
but - the dust removal is greater with 8 holes vs 5 holes.
of course, nobody from NASA Rocket Science Division has ever
done a scientific study on the subject.
just something else for the Millenials to ponder over.
Just use a nail to punch holes where the holes in the sander base are. It really doesn't make much difference as the major sanding work is only done by the outer inch or so of the sanding disk.
OK, before everyone jumps on me, just feel the sanding disk when it is worn out. The outside circumference is worn while the closer you get to the center, the fresher the sandpaper is.
It wears on the center out. The only sand paper worn on the outside first are the ones that eat the edges of veneer.Only time im on the edge of the sander is when trying to get scratches out if there not too deep
The outer edges wear first because people tend to tilt the sander to sand faster. I constantly have to remind people at the senior center wood shop not to do it as it makes grooves.
You are rightly concerned about dust. Sanding is without a doubt the most dangerous task in ww’ing.
Now I may lose you, But hear me out. Because many people can never see themselves shelling out $400+ for an orbital sander (and I was one of them) I wanted to see what all the fuss was about. All I can say it is worth every penny. Superior dust collection, quieter, far less vibration, note efficient sanding.
However, I would say my air sander is about as good (3M). Of course that has huge compressor req’s. I feel no need for a dust mask when using either of these.
Although a standard shop vac will work, without a HEPA filter you’re not really accomplishing the job. Here again, a dust extractor is investment that seems like a luxury you quickly realize is worth every penny.
Sandpaper quality is something to look at too. I buy most all mine from Industrial Abrasives.
I few years back I switched to Abranet disks by Mirka. They make an entire spectrum of grits, you will avoid any finish problems from stearates, they last long, and are affordable. The best part is they give you a velcro pad which attaches to your sanding pad and the discs slap right on without having to align them.https://mirka-online.com/9a-232-ap-...MI7dnEyd_N6QIVCIbICh1KEQXBEAQYBCABEgJRG_D_BwE
I’m guessing my dust extraction is decent? I have a good size Rigid vacuum (with the lowest micron filter) with a dust deputy cyclone. I never wear a respirator (but should) and definitely want to get a decent, efficient orbital sander.
I made a bunch of these out of mdf and dowels to hold and align RO sanding discs.
I made the first one without gluing in the dowels to use as a template for the rest. I used an old hand crank pencil sharpener to taper the dowels before gluing them in.
Also made a simple cabinet to hold them.
You can buy 5-hole paper. I also have a regular paper punch in my shop to punch holes in the sandpaper disks for those that don't line up.
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