Sanded a whole deck by hand in 2019 and now I won't touch a belt sander

I was out on a job in Austin helping a buddy refinish this massive redwood deck. He insisted on using a belt sander and it left these ugly swirl marks we had to fix for 3 extra hours. Has anyone else seen belt sanders mess up a softer wood like that?

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3 Comments

mason_foster685mo ago

You used to be team belt sander too?

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lunab975mo ago

Oh man, not exactly. I mean, belt sanders have their place for sure, like if you're stripping a whole deck or something crazy. But for most stuff around the house, I just don't reach for mine that often. Maybe it's just me, but I feel like a random orbital sander is way more forgiving and leaves a smoother finish without those deep swirl marks.

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uma_nguyen244mo ago

My buddy Matt burned through a table leg in like 2 seconds with a belt sander, so totally agree with you and @mason_foster68.

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