Gettin' Rid of The Fuzzies! Orbital Sander or De-Furring Pads?

[fireandrain 39]

I'm thinking about committing more resource into "sanding" some of the fuzzies that inevitably come up with the redwood decks we do out here... I've usually done a bit of sanding with an orbital/80G on contact surfaces, i.e. handrails,benchs,etc... I have heard some of you folks mention the use of de-furring pads instead. From what I hear, this approach can reduce labor by 2/3. I've never used the de-furring pads...What do you guys think about them? Maybe some of you could share your de-furring ups with us, that would be great! Also, curious what kind of cost this set up would be...

Thanks!

[Kirk 14]

Rick, how do you get that Makita to do the work without holding it? Is it like a roomba?

Kirk

[RPetry 564]

Rick, how do you get that Makita to do the work without holding it? Is it like a roomba?

Kirk

Kirk,

Hah, wish it were so! But I think you may have one heck of an idea there.

[fireandrain 39]

Ha! thats great. Actually, I dialed in an auto chem mixer yesterday I think... I was mixing up some sod. percarb and just filled the 5'er, tossed in my mix, dropped in a mixer paddle attached to my 14V drill, set it to low, clamped the trigger engaged with a standard tarp clamp and walked away! The drill slowly spun around the edge of the 5'er and I got my chems mixed while I was clearing the deck of plants,etc.. Anyone else do this? Seems great in a pinch w/o help around and in a bit of a hurry.

[YVPW 20]

The Harbor Freight buffers are very good, DO NOT waste your money on Dewalt or Makita. With some tools it's good to pay more, but not with the buffers. I've got 7 of the Harbor Freight buffers, and after 3 years only have had to replace 1.

[Mountain View 14]

I bought one of the Harbor Freight variable speed buffers and it works just fine. Used the Osborne brush on one Ipe deck. Maybe I'm not used to it but I wasn't super impressed. Ended up using 60/80 grit with my random orbital and was much happier with that. Haven't tried the defelting pad yet.

[fireandrain 39]

So many guys raving about the Harbor Freight polisher... went and had a look at one today. Price was right, $29 on sale. Didnt like how it felt in my hand, super heavy, big drawback for me as Im fighting CTS and a bad tennis elbow. Yup, 37 yrs old and Im already fallin apart! While the Makita runs around $190, I think Im going to pull the trigger on it anyways. If I had 5 guys out there defelting 3x p/wk, I think Id stock up on the harbor freight model. For now, Id rather have something more light weight and better quality.

[YVPW 20]

I've never really noticed a difference in the weight of the Makita or Dewalt to a Harbor Freight buffer. I have a friend who owns a detail shop and he has both the Dewalt and Makita. I've picked them up and didn't notice any difference at all. All of the buffers get heavy after about 10 hours under the eaves of a log house, lol.

[Beth n Rod 1,279]

Defelting pads are lighter weight than Osborne's to work with.

Beth

[Oakley35 14]

Does anyone know if the defelting pads will fit the Harbor Freight polisher and how many I will need for a 500 sq ft Ipe deck?

Thanks for adivce!

Ray

[Colorado ProWash 21]

Does anyone know if the defelting pads will fit the Harbor Freight polisher and how many I will need for a 500 sq ft Ipe deck?

Thanks for adivce!

Ray

First you will need the backer pad DeckGuide Pro Center © 2004 - G&K Distributors

And when you buy the defelting pads you will get a box of 10. You shouldn't need more than 10. You probably will only use 4 or 5.

DeckGuide Pro Center © 2004 - G&K Distributors

Not sure about if the backer pad fits the HF Polisher other people have used the HF's so I'm pretty sure it will fit.

[Oakley35 14]

The HF polisher says that it comes with a 7" hook and loop backing pad. That is the same size as the DeckGuide backing pad so my guess is that it would fit the same. That is just a guess of course, biased by the fact that I really do not want to spend another $26 if I do not have to.

Good to know I will only need 1 pack of 10 for the job.

Thanks,

Ray

[YVPW 20]

It will fit the Harbor Freight buffer, actually the Harbor Freight comes with a backer pad if I'm not mistaken. Or I may have picked it up at there store, can't remember. You can use it for the defelting pads. The pads work great on smoother wood.

[Oakley35 14]

Thanks YVPW, I am going to place my order today.

[MudDuck 20]

I've got to order one of these too. But the defelting pads shown are 9" and 10" and the polisher / sander is a 7". What gives? Did anyone ever figure out whether you have to order the backer pad with the HF?

[YVPW 20]

The defelting pads hang over the edge of the backer pad. But they still work fine. I know you can get the backer at a HF store. I don't think it comes with the sander though. You can get some backer pad's that are flexible.

[sealwizeofatlanta 14]

A question about process...when are you planning to tackle the fuzzies? Obviously after you have cleaned/stripped, but before or after you stain? My thinking is if you do it before you seal/stain, then a reclean is required (wood dust)? Doing so after sealing/staining may cause a finish issue?

[Celeste 341]

Defurring before staining - the dust goes very easily with a leaf blower.

[Beth n Rod 1,279]

Defurring before staining - the dust goes very easily with a leaf blower.

Bingo. :)

Beth

[MMI Enterprises 289]

That was not really on the test, was it?... maybe I skipped a grade though.:lgbonk:

[jbruno 14]

what speed are you running the polisher at while defurring??

[Colorado ProWash 21]

what speed are you running the polisher at while defurring??

The osborne brush can be ran at higher speeds. You need to go slower with the defurring pads. I start out slow with the defurring pads until it wears a little bit and then turn it up a little more. You don't want to turn it up to 5 or 6. Keep it between 2-4 and you should be good. You pretty much just adjust it to whatever your comfortable with.

[fireandrain 39]

I've got 1500 sq. of floorboards to de-furr next week, first major defurring job for me. Im gonna venture to guess that I'm going to generate quite a bit of dust from this one... Rather than blow it "off", which might mean over to the neighbors side, Im thinking it might be better to use the shop vac 1st, and after most of the dust is collected, blow what remains. Any thoughts?

[jbruno 14]

The osborne brush can be ran at higher speeds. You need to go slower with the defurring pads. I start out slow with the defurring pads until it wears a little bit and then turn it up a little more. You don't want to turn it up to 5 or 6. Keep it between 2-4 and you should be good. You pretty much just adjust it to whatever your comfortable with.

Gracias Amigo!!

[YVPW 20]

Don't go over 1500 rpm's with either Osborn or defelting. It will wear them out quicker and really doesn't defelt any better. Also with the Osborn you can heat the wood up too much causing stain penetration problems later. Stay around the number 3 on most buffers.

[MMI Enterprises 289]

Don't be intimidated Matt... Hd Supply is $25 for the 17". Take that info and tell the Home Depot or whatever rental yard ya deal with and have them price match. Always works for me anyways. If you did not get the hipros then get the sanding driver with the bolt. Stick a floor pad between 80 grit paper ($6+ at HD supply compared to HD) and the driver to help cussion it. It take 2-3 paper is all. The low speed swing is way more agressive than the orbital machines due to the shear swath it cuts so even 100 grit paper or a screen up in the 120 range will do fine. Never rent the 12x18" rectangle sq. orbital. They suck in comparison with their tiny circular paths they give the paper.