The Orbital Sander
The orbital sander functions with the help of sanding pad oscillations. The oscillation of the orbital sander imitates the gyrating hand motion of manual sanding.
Characteristic properties of orbital sanders
The oscillating motion of orbital sanders is not very pronounced, but with a very high
number of oscillations per unit of time. Orbital sanders are always equipped with a hard and straight sanding pad. The shape of the sanding pad is rectangular. On plane workpieces, one can achieve a very high surface quality with a orbital sander. However, in case of sharp corners and edges, convex or concave surfaces, there is a risk of local oversanding due to the straight and hard sanding pad. This can also damage the sanding pad.
Removal rate of orbital sanders
For practical purposes, the removal rate of an orbital sander depends mainly on the grit of the applied abrasive. Technically, the sanding performance of an orbital sander is the product of the oscillation orbit diameter and the number of oscillations per unit of time. During practical application, however, the ergonomic design of the orbital sander plays a major role. The better the handling and the vibration damping of the orbital sander, the less fatiguing is its application for the user, which has a direct effect on the work progress.
Materials for sanding
The potential applications are universal and depend on the applied abrasive. Usually orbital sanders are used for the processing of wood, wood-based materials and varnished surfaces. Orbital sanders are not recommended for the processing of metals and stone-based materials, because the removal rate on these materials is very low.
