Was dead set against belt sanders for floors until I tried one on my oak hardwood

I always thought belt sanders were way too aggressive for DIY floor work after watching a friend gouge a rental in college. Finally borrowed a Makita 9903 last weekend to sand down a 12x15 room in my 1920s bungalow in St. Paul and honestly it was way more controllable than I expected. The trick was keeping it moving and using 80 grit first, not jumping straight to 36. Has anyone else had a change of heart on a tool they swore they'd never touch?

2 comments

2 Comments

sean_martin441mo ago

The Makita 9903 is a solid machine, but you should know it actually takes 4 1/4 inch by 21 inch belts, not the standard 3x21. That means you have to hunt around a bit to find belts for it. I ran into the same thing when I borrowed one - had to order 80 grit belts online because nobody in town stocked them.

jennifer_west1mo ago

Picked up a used Skil 7-1/4 inch worm drive saw last month that everyone online swore was too heavy and unbalanced for trim work, but @sean_martin44 had a point about learning the tool's quirks before judging it. After spending an afternoon cutting door casings with it clamped to a makeshift workbench, I realized the weight actually helped keep the blade steady on miters. So yeah, sometimes you just gotta give a tool a fair shot before writing it off completely.