Tools: Woodmaster W-3875 Drum Sander

W-3875 Drum Sander

Tool Description

The Woodmaster W-3875 Drum Sander is a 5HP, 38" sander.

General Considerations

1. The drum sander should never be used to remove finish. This will ruin the sandpaper roll, which is very time-consuming to replace.
2. Please consider donating with consistent use. Each roll of sandpaper costs about $20 and takes multiple people a significant time and effort to replace.
3. We only use 100-grit sandpaper on this drum sander. After 100-grit, it is faster to use an orbital sander than to replace the sandpaper roll on the drum.
4. Do not sand man-made composites such as hardboard, particleboard, fiberboard, fiberglass, epoxy, or any materials other than solid natural wood.
5. Personal Protective Equipment (PPE). Safety glasses are required. Hearing protection and a respirator or other face coverings are strongly recommended.
6. The drum sander is not a replacement for the planer. The sander is intended to smooth surfaces, not remove significant amounts of material. (<1/32").

Preparation

Moving the machine away from the wall.

Figure 1

DO NOT pull/push on the conveyor belt, extension bars, or support rollers. Center the drum sander in the walkway in front of the OPEN woodshop bay door. The conveyor speed control should be facing the open roll-up bay door.

Pre-Use Checklist

Before use, ensure the following:

• All controls and power are in the off/neutral position.
  • Sander main power switch
  • Conveyor drive (direction) lever
  • Conveyor Speed Dial (makes an audible click when moving in/out of the off position)
  • Dust collection power switch
• All power cords are disconnected
  • Drum sander power cord
  • Conveyor belt power cord
  • Dust collector power cord
• Conveyor belt is free of materials and foreign objects.

Figure 2

Training

Safety training is required before using this tool.

We do not currently schedule classes on this tool. Contact a woodshop steward for individual training.

Safety

Do not operate the drum sander without taking the class. Do not allow others to use the drum sander unsupervised without ensuring that they have taken the class.

1. Personal Protective Equipment (PPE). Safety glasses are required. Hearing protection and a respirator or other face covering are strongly recommended.
2. Mitigate risk of injury by removing all jewelry, including watches, and rings. Long hair should be tied back and any loose clothing should be secured.
3. Never feed multiple pieces at a time. No parallel or side-by-side feeding due to the significant risk of kickback. The drum sander is not to be used for production sanding without advanced training. Boards can kick back out of the machine at over 75 MPH.
4. Never remove or adjust the workpiece after the feeder has commenced. Do not attempt to remove jams or clear sawdust from the machine until powered off and all moving parts have come to a complete stop.
5. Do not look inside the sander during operation. Inspect your workpiece prior to sanding. Never sand any materials with nails, staples, loose knots, or other foreign materials.
6. Do not sand workpieces less than 8” long and 1/4" thick.
7. Workpieces longer than 36” require two people. One person is responsible for putting the belt drive into neutral when the workpiece has cleared the drum, and the second person is responsible for supporting the workpiece from the side of the drum sander to prevent the workpiece from falling on the floor.
8. Keep the Danger Zone free. Always stand to the side of the drum sander and not in the direct path of the infeed or outfeed area. Remember, no one should be in the danger zone, outside the bay door, or standing near the dust collector while the drum sander is in use. Utilize the orange safety cone to prevent people from walking through the open bay door.

Operation

Review these instructions in their entirety before starting operation.

1. Adjust the conveyor belt height. Turn the height adjustment crank handle to raise or lower the belt. There should be enough clearance to place the workpiece between the infeed rollers and the conveyor belt.
2. Place the workpiece under the infeed roller. Raise the conveyor belt until the infeed roller is lightly touching the workpiece.
3. Turn on the dust collection and drum sander. Turn the speed control dial to 70. Never operate the conveyor faster than 70.
4. Move the conveyor feed direction lever into the forward position. Listen for sandpaper contact with the workpiece. If you hear too aggressive a sanding action, lower the conveyor belt until the sanding action is acceptable.
5. Move the conveyor feed direction lever into the neutral position when the workpiece has cleared the drum. This is considered one forward pass. A reverse pass would involve pulling the lever in the opposite direction, moving your workpiece towards the bay door.
6. Repeat for a minimum of 6 successful passes. After a successful first pass, you can now feed your workpiece back and forth using the forward and reverse drive of the conveyor belt. Do this for at least 3 forward and 3 reverse passes.
7. Raise the conveyor belt by one increment ONLY when ready. A minimum of 6 passes must be performed before raising the conveyor belt height to the next thickness increment. Pay close attention to the amount of material being removed by each pass to gauge when it’s safe to raise the conveyor.
8. Check that the whole surface of your workpiece is being sanded. After a successful pass, put the conveyor belt drive in neutral. Use a pencil to scribble marks across the entire face being sanded. Continue making passes until all pencil marks have been removed.

Tips

• Raising the conveyor by one increment refers to turning the height crank by one-quarter turn for sandpaper of 100 grit or coarser. Remember, only 100-grit sandpaper should be used. If a higher-grit paper is being used for any reason, only turn the height crank by one-eighth turn for one increment.
• Listen carefully while operating. Sounds reveal a lot about how the machine is working.
  • If you don’t hear the drum make contact with your work piece on the first pass, raise the conveyor belt by one increment. Move the board back to the front and try another forward pass. Repeat this process until you hear the drum make contact with your workpiece.
  • Loud, aggressive sanding or chattering is a good sign that your conveyor is too high. Adjust as needed.
  • An improper thickness setting will cause the wrap to bind on the velcro and buckle, resulting in a chattering sound when the drum is in contact with the workpiece.
• Don’t attempt to take off aggressive amounts of material. This will wear down the sandpaper faster and may cause damage to the drum sander.
• The easiest way to gauge when you can raise the conveyor belt height is to observe how much dust is left behind after a reverse pass. If you see a significant amount of material being removed during a reverse pass, you don’t need to raise the conveyor belt because the drum sander is still removing material.

Shut Down and Cleanup

1. Power everything down. Turn off the drum sander and dust collection using their respective power switches. Ensure the conveyor belt drive lever is in the neutral positon, and the speed dial is set to zero/off. You should hear an audible click.
2. Disconnect all power cords. There are three total power cords: the conveyor belt, the dust collection and the drum sander. Please wrap these up nicely to avoid tripping hazard.
3. Disconnect the dust collector from the drum sander. Return the dust collection to it’s home (left end of the miter station). Remember to empty dust collectors BEFORE they become full.
4. Move the machine back up to the north wall. DO NOT pull/push on the conveyor belt, extension bars, or support rollers to move the drum sander! Please leave some room between the sander and the wall so it’s easier for the next person to move.
5. 'Re-lock the drum sander with the padlock. Cover the machine with the tarp and use the clamp to secure the tarp in place.
6. Remember to sweep/vacuum the surrounding area after using any tool in the woodshop.

Links

• Product page
• [Manual]