Belt Sander

A belt sander, also called a strip sander, is a sander used for shaping and finishing wood and other materials, working by way of an electric motor that turns a pair of drums carrying a continuous loop of sandpaper between them. It comes in two basic forms: a handheld model that is moved across the workpiece, and a stationary model, sometimes called a bench sander, where the workpiece is instead moved against the belt, often on a machine that combines the belt sander with a disc sander. Belt sanders cut aggressively on wood, making them well suited to early, rough stages of sanding and to stripping paint or old finishes, and they can also finish smoothly when fitted with fine-grit paper. Used on metal, a stationary belt sander is effective at working non-ferrous metals such as aluminum, since the small grooves that open up in the sandpaper as it travels around the drive wheel resist clogging better than a grinding wheel does, a real advantage when working a soft metal.