Official Luthiers Forum!

I am driving myself nuts trying to decide between the Performax 16/32 and the Delta 18/36 Drum Sanders. I have heard differing opinions as to the one better suited for top, back & side sanding. Would those of you who have experience with one or both please offer your likes/dislikes and recommendation? Also, what grits of sanding rolls do you recommend for tops, backs & sides?

I know that this subject has been discussed before, but I am looking for recommendations related to these 2 specific models.

Merry Christmas to All!

Mike Franks
mjfranksguitars.commfranks39076.574375

I have a performax, and a friend has a delta. I really don't see a lot of difference. They are both good tools and both will do the job just fine.

Al

Merry Christmas to All!!

May I chime in here with a related question?

If one doesn't have either of these fine tools mentioned, what is the best way to sand tops, sides, and backs to the correct thickness? By the way! What is the correct thickness?

I”m working on my first guitar, which is a “stewmac” dreadnought kit. Everything was already sanded to the correct thickness, at least I think it was.

Anyway, I’ve been thinking ahead as to what I will be in for when I build my next guitar from scratch. Tell me if I’m wrong, But, I was thinking that thickness sanding will be one of the first steps. Of course, there is so much more that I would love to ask you all about guitar building, but I better finish this one first.

Sincerely, Newbe Robert

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Everything has beauty, But, not everyone see's it!

Robert-
Welcome to the OLF, and Merry Christmas!
For thicknessing tops, you can do the job with a sharp hand plane. For backs and sides, it is a bit more tricky, especially if you are using wood with wild grain, but a plane/scraper can do the job in most cases.
A lot of people have built thickness sanders of varying complexity- you can find lots of info online. However, you should think about the economics of building yourself vs purchasing, especially if you don't have a source for a cheap motor.

You've come to the right place for advice and support. There are lots of experts (not me) here to help.
Cheers
John

Hi Mike

And Seasons Greetings to you.

We've got a Performax 16/32 and love it.

I don't know anything about Delta's as we can't get
them in Australia but can heartily recommend the Performax.

Cheers

Bob

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Bob Connor
Geelong, Australia

Thank you John,

I will take your suggestion and research it. And, I'm looking forward to the advice and support from yourself and the other OLF members when I get down to the nitty gritty of guitar building!

You mentioned building a sander. I’ve got a couple of AC motors, and I think they are 1 hp. There still attached to 2 de-funked air compressors. I never through them away, thinking I just might use them for something! Ya-Hoo! Wouldn’t that be great if I could build a sander with one of them!

Robert

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Everything has beauty, But, not everyone see's it!

Thanks Hesh,

I’m sorry too Mike about chiming in here! Its just that your question got me thinking.

Next time I’ll start a new topic.

Well, it finally stopped raining, so got to go outside now with my boys, and fly their new planes, and all the other stuff that the want to play with.

Signing off for now.

Merry Christmas once again to All!!!

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Everything has beauty, But, not everyone see's it!

Mike, I have had the Delta for a couple of months and think it works fine for hobbyist use. Having the extra two inches was a factor for me, as well as Delta having an X5 mail in promotion on the tool right now.

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David White, Toronto

"All my favourite singers can't sing."

Hi Mike, I had a performax 10/20 and wasn't very happy with it. I sold it. I recently purchased the delta 18/36. BIG DIFFERENCE! I love it. I realize the 10/20 was smaller, but I had no luck with it. I use the delta all the time now. Everyone has different luck with different machines. That's just my experience.

Thank you to all who have replied to my question so far. Hesh, I thought about the Performax 10/20 and have read your previous praise of this machine. My concern with the narrow machine is in sanding rosettes. I am uncomfortable with the thought of sanding through the middle of a rosette and then flipping a top around to sand the other half. One of the primary reasons that I want a sander is due to the difficulty of scraping pearl and wood rosettes and getting a level surface.

I made another trip to the Woodworke's Store tonight and still can't make my mind up. Here are my thoughts on each machine:

Performax Pros _ Lighter, more compact (easier to move to a corner of the shop when not in use) and from the looks of the smaller dust hood and small drum chamber I can probably use a powerful shop vac.
Performax Cons - Sheet metal bed, movable vs. fixed machine head, slop in the height adjuster (it appeared from playing with the demo in the store that you have to turn the handle more than 1/2 turn before the head moves downward in adjustment) 16" vs 18", single drum speed. Really cheap looking hardware, particularly the various adjuster screws.
Delta Pros - Cast iron table, ridged fixed machine head, smooth accurate feeling to the adjustments with little slop or backlash, rugged looking hardware, 2 drum speeds, longer feed conveyor, 20% less expensive for the sanding rolls.
Delta Cons - Dust hood and drum chamber has much move volume, will definitely need a dust collector vs. shop vac. Delta machine is larger and heavier (this could actually be a benefit if I did not have to keep it out of the way when not in use)

I am going nuts trying to decide, but leaning towards the Delta. John Watkins told me that he has been using his on a daily basis for 5 years or so and it is still going.

Mike Franks
mjfranksguitars.com

I have owned a Performax 16/32 for several years. It is an adequate tool for my small shop and is great for smaller pieces of wood such as fingerboards, peghead veneers,bindings, etc. It seems to be very sensitive to adjustment and line between getting the job done and tripping the breaker is very fine. It will take down a rosewood back to finish thickness but not quickly or without effort. I buy 80 grit rolls in bulk from Klingspor and go through them rather quickly. The drum must also be as parallel to the table as possible, and getting it in adjustment can be time consuming and frustrating, especially considering the stamped-metal construction. I don't have any experience with the Delta or the 10/20. Good luck with whatever you choose.   

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It's not the miles ahead, it's the stone in your shoe


In Markham,Virginia

Thank you, Hesh & Jon for your informative comments. Hesh, I should have been more clear with my comments regarding the store demo. First of all, the demo was a 16/32, not the 10/20. I did not operate the demo, nor do I believe that it had been properly set up or ever used. It seemed to me that the reason for the slop in the head adjustment was due to it being too tight. When I attempted to lower it, it would stick and not allow gravity to cause it to drop. I either had to push it down by hand or turn the screw until the backlash was taken up and then it would drop considerably with a jerk. I do believe that a proper adjustment would help or eliminate this problem. The store had a floor demo of the 10/20 and I felt that it was a more rigid machine with a more precise feel to the adjustment. I did not intend to slam the Performax machine. My overall opinion is that the Delta seems to be a more "industrial" built product than the P-Max 16/32.
What specifically is your opinion on the difference between the 10/20 & the larger P-Max? You mentioned that others who had moved up to the larger machine regretted not keeping the 10/20. What made them feel that way?
I work a lot with Brazilian Rosewood. Do you feel that the 10/20 would perform well with the resinous (is that a word) hardwoods as well as give me a good finish on spruce and mahogany? I build about a dozen or so instruments per year. The thought of a smaller machine that would fit in the space of a go deck is very appealing to me. I just need to be sure that it would serve all of my needs well and not ruin expensive sets of wood. I am well aware that a drum sander is not designed to take the place of a planer. I want to be able to sand resawn back, tops and sides from the .150" -.180" thickness down to a bendable dimension. Are my expectations realistic?

By the way, I have also visited your excellent web site and love what you are doing. I live in Rochester Hills, MI and have built guitars for a few musicians that hail from Ann Arbor. I would love to meet you some time in the near future.

I have 16-32 and really like the machine. Mine does have some slop in the height adjustment which I find a bit annoying. but it does seem to produce good results. I opted for the larger model mainly for the larger motor and larger feed capacity. I did make sure to have separate 20 amp circuit for it and I have never blown a breaker. I use my 16 gallon shop for dust collection using a 4 to 2 1/2 inch reducer. It works fine for the small volume that I do. I also use an abrasive cleaner regularly and it seems to extend the life of the abrasive. I really don't think you can go wrong with either unit.