The belts I've purchased for the sander range from 40- to 1000-grit. The belts are uncommon at hardware and home improvement stores, but readily available from online sources. They cost about $1.50 apiece when bought in multiples. The cover slips off for changing belts. The large drive wheel was out of round but easy enough to fix. The wheel at the back is mounted on a pivot; a spring pushing against he wheel tensions the sanding belt.
photographs by the author
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Thanks….Great article…..Next time to Harbor Freight….One in the basket…
Very useful article. Showing how you trued up the drive wheel to make it a smoother tool makes an inexpensive tool decent. I’m going to add this tool to my Harbor Freight shopping list.
I’ve been surprised to be really satisfied with some Harbor Freight tools. Their electric heat gun and oscillating multi tools have held up well and were good values. Thanks much for your publication.
Thanks, Christopher. As soon as I saw the image of the belt sander, I started to think of how much easier it would be to sharpen chisels with one. Also, I’ve moved in the last year and I’m now much closer to a Harbor Freight outlet than before. Hmmm.
I bought mine from MSC; couldn’t pass on the price, but mine is a two-wheeler and 1×40.
Mike
What sites were you able to shop for different grit sanding belts?
I just went on Amazon and searched for 1 x 30 sanding belts. There were lots of grits and lots of sources there.