Using a porter cable sander

Kaino

When i sand i do the edges then go down the middle but the sander leaves like these lines from the edges of the pad. Is this me or the sander?

Whitey97

what grit are you using? and what type of pad?

Kaino

220 grit, one of the yellow ones with the velcro back.

Whitey97

I'm going to say it's how you're holding it, I've got a number of them I use 120-150 grit with, and I have minimal "swirl marks" and they come right out with a hand pad

Kiwiman

I guessing you mean you can see where the last pass with the sander gouges in deeper than the first pass, not much, but you can see it in the right light. I always give it a quick couple of swipes with a radius pole sander...helps get rid of the swirlys too.

Kiwiman

Hey, I just read you're an Ocker.....Geeday maaaate!

Kaino

Gday kiwiman, what you describe is exactly what im talking about. Depends on the light whether you can see it or not. Its not bad but im not happy with it so like what you do i jump on my stilts and go around with a hand sander and go over any joints that look bad. Wasnt sure if this was normal or if it was me doing something wrong with the porta cable lol.

hey ive never seen any kiwi flushers over here in western australia. Seen heaps of kiwi teams doing the colorbond tin roofing but aye.

Whitey97

Perfectly normal. There's got to be some sort of draw back for the perfect tool. It's just the way it works. You have to go around and check it all over with a light anyways. Usually I just take my pole sander and run, litterally run, through it and it helps even more

Kiwiman

Yeah, there's thousands of Kiwi's infriltrating OZ as we speak, disguised as workers, we plan to overthrow your government and take Robbie Deans back.
Invest in a radius pole sander, if you know the ones I mean,they use the 9" velcro back disc, hugely better than a standard pole sander. We then finish off with angled sponge sanding blocks and a 500w halogen.

Kaino

Cheers guys for the replies i will get myself one of those radius pole sanders.

Robbie Deans plays that stupid rugby game aye . Im from an aussie rules state mate, the best game in the world haha.

silverstilts

I have used the PC sander for years and one thing i have noticed with the Velcro pad is that they do not work as well and they also do not wear as long. so i reverted back to the original ones , and besides how long does it really take to change one about 10 sec. if you are leaving swirl marks lighten up on the pressure once you get the hang of it there is no better way to sand.

tapingfool

ya, the PC sander is great, but make sure you keep the pressure even..

Whitey97

I haven't had much luck with the PC brand pads, I've been sticking with the Norton's and having no issues. (the filler pad)

big billy from bc

using a porter cable for the 2nd to last sand, and then the radius sounds for the final , sounds like the way to go!!! One last thing, i take my sanding sponges and run them through my compound saw to sqaure off the edges, and presto there new again!! as my walls are like glass for final sand and i can never get e new sponge that is smooth enough, so the older the better!!!

A+ Texture LLC

Sounds like a finger choppin good time.