Delta Rockwell 6x48 belt sander

[mrbreezeet1]

SteveF said:

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[blockquote]EvilTwin said:

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[blockquote]SteveF said:

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I've got it up and running. The motor is definitely under powered, I'll be upgrading it.

More troubling is a slightly dished platen, which is totally unacceptable. It's a good 1/32" hollow, maybe a bit more. So, what's the best method to fix this? JB Weld and self adhesive graphite? Take it to a machine shop? If the answer is machine shop, anybody got a ballpark on cost?

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On a powermatic 30a I redid a few years ago, I used something called Lab Metal to fill in the divot and then sanded it flush by laying some wet or dry paper on the top of the saw and then using that as a flat surface to even it out. Once that was done, I used some graphite cloth to overlay the platen and its been fine ever since.

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I thinking of using the JB Weld I already have to do the same basic thing. I attempted to save some time by buying a resurfaced platen. Big mistake, a poor job of machining left the outboard end tailing off over .008 and a .004+ hollow in the middle. Now I've got to send it back. I'm very much not impressed.

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[/blockquote]
Hi Guys, longtime member, just have not been around as much, or doing as much work in the shop, but getting back to it some.
anyways, I have a powermatic sander with a dished platen as well, i was thinking of filling it, and doing the graphite paper as well.
but I have heard that it is very messy when running.
have you found this to be the case?
BTY not sure if I showed these here, but when I did my delta sander, both facet knobs were missing.
OK, "facet knobs" I thought, got these cheap somewhere, and modded them a little for use on the sander .
had to drill and tap them. Sort of novel too. (real old fashion facet knobs.....lol.

[EvilTwin]

Love the "faucet" knobs. Not sure what would be messy. The application of the filler and graphite cloth or actually using the sander? In any case, once the cloth is down, there is no dust or mess from that and the belt running over it. If thats not the answer, then repost the question.

[Stwood_]

Really nice price...

Yes...........

[Bob Vaughan]

Nice find.  Considering what little you have invested to begin with, you've got a lot of room for additional expenses before you approach even 60% of what that rig would cost new if available today.  To get an idea of what it would cost today, I cut some images of the 1970 list price of the basic machine alone, a cut of the inflation calculator, and a cut of the catalog list showing how little you got with the basic machine.  I expect that at today's dollars, that rig new (equipped as it should be) would cost well over $2K.

   


The most common problems with those sanders are:
1. Drum crown worn away so that the belt doesn't track (resulting in cut up guards)
2. Top idler drum shaft & bearings 
3. Various hand knobs broken
4. distorted platen (you've already found that)

I used one of those sanders for 15 years after restoration and had no complaints.

[RogerD]

You can find parts for your sander at Renovoparts.com.

Here is a link to the missing ratchet handle. http://www.renovoparts.com/406-03-033-00...et-handle/.

Roger in Texas

[RogerD]

You can find parts for your Delta sander at Renovoparts.com.

Here is a link for the Ratchet Handle http://www.renovoparts.com/406-03-033-00...et-handle/

Roger in Texas