Sanding and Edge Band Board Experiments

Friday May 10, 2013

I noticed that the boards had apparently NOT been through the sander at the mill inasmuch as the planer marks were pretty evident.  I worked it for a while with the Black & Decker commercial orbital sander and decided I needed a “bigger gun.”

I checked a Popular Mechanics review of belt sanders and they had good words for the Sears and the Chicago Electric (sold by Harbor Freight). As it happens, the Chicago Electric is on sale and is about half whet the Sears unit is, so I made the trek to Harbor Freight.

I fired the sander up and was making great headway but did not appreciate the removal rate, scratching, and differences in the effect on heartwood and sapwood!

I eventually brought the B&D orbital sander back after I had sanded the boards free from the planer marks. I have some learning to do with this belt sander!

 

Finally, I went to work on the “band board” which will surround the edge of the piece. I drilled one end of the countertop using a Sears dowelling jig I bought years ago.

I used some dowel marking inserts to establish the desired location for the mating holes in the band board. . . .

 . . .  and drilled them using the drill press with a depth stop set.

The aligment was not perfect (a tiny bit “tall” at one end), so I decided to try again on a fresh piece, this time using the dowelling jig and the drill press.

The results were way worse. I must cogitate on this. Maybe I need to dowel it a smidgen “tall” and gradually work it down with a plane? Need to consult #1 son.

Stay tuned!