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Has anyone used the makita 5010 sander to grind edges and polish glass? I am not sure which disc to use. I believe it is a silico carbide disc. I want to use the self adhesive ones but not sure where to find them. I do have a Covington wet belt sander but it is overheating and shuts off. Not sure where to take it to fix it and not sure of the expense.

Any info would be appreciated. Thanks.

that is a dry sander. it will sand glass but you will have airborne glass dust and that is no bueno. rosanna

The Makita 1 1/8" x 21" dry belt sander is a great tool to use if you are working on relatively large pieces of glass. As long as the glass is heavier than the sander, it is easiest to do it this way. I started out with the Makita, and made the mistake of replacing it with a Chinese knock-off from CR Laurence. I originally bought my Makita when a commercial glass shop went out of business and I bought a lot of their tools. I used it daily for a really long time before it finally stopped functioning. I get my belts from CR Laurence.

I know that everybody here favors wet belts, but the dry belt is not dusty and actually works well. You just have to be careful not to dwell on a small area too long. My primary use is to seam edges, but I also use it to grind whole edges. I once took a 40mm thick countertop to a company to polish the edges after waterjetting. I was shocked when they told me that the guy who did it worked on it for 8 hours with an 1 1/8 X 21 belt sander, then did the final polish on another machine. The countertop was curved and they didn't have a machine with wheels that wide for curved glass.

rosanna gusler wrote:that is a dry sander. it will sand glass but you will have airborne glass dust and that is no bueno. rosanna

Important point...no one wants to get silicosis! I've been spritzing water on my wet belt sander belts as I work and am quite happy with the results. It's a pain in the patush, but I only use it for a few minutes. I'm sure the same process could be used with a dry sander if carefully applied. Also it's been mentioned here before that CRL Polishing Oil (found some on eBay) can be used on dry belts/disks instead of using a wet sander; my belt loaded when using this product but I think I used too much oil - the label says you can't use too much but I think that is not true.

Does anyone have any idea of the cost or even where I can take my Covington wet belt sander for motor repair?

I have used the makita 5010 in a commercial glass shop once...they were showing me how they smoothed edges.
I am really at a loss here. My pieces are no more than 1/2 inch thick...and no larger than a foot and a half. I don't want anything that is not safe.

Any suggestions? Thanks for the input so far. I'm still confused, though!

Call Covington directly.

They are very responsive and should do the repair for you.

Tony

Susanne B wrote:Does anyone have any idea of the cost or even where I can take my Covington wet belt sander for motor repair?

I have used the makita 5010 in a commercial glass shop once...they were showing me how they smoothed edges.
I am really at a loss here. My pieces are no more than 1/2 inch thick...and no larger than a foot and a half. I don't want anything that is not safe.

Any suggestions? Thanks for the input so far. I'm still confused, though!

I'm wondering why your WBS is overheating. Try turning the drive wheels by hand; if they don't turn easily there is probably some misalignment or obstruction causing the problem. Is the drive belt too tight; is the sanding belt too tight; are moving parts well lubricated/not corroded; are there any foreign objects/debris caught in moving parts? Are you applying too much pressure to the belt?

I believe this was posted in the past, using a dry Mikita sander and oil

http://m.youtube.com/watch?v=mJRO4jK7n0Y

Sheree

S.TImmerman wrote:I believe this was posted in the past, using a dry Mikita sander and oil

http://m.youtube.com/watch?v=mJRO4jK7n0Y

Sheree

wow! i feel sorry for that guys lungs. r.

I will call Covington and see if they can help me. I really have no clue when it comes to machinery.

Maybe I'll rethink the Makita 5010 disc sander. It was quick and effective at the glass shop.

Thanks for the input!

Susanne

Susanne B wrote:I will call Covington and see if they can help me. I really have no clue when it comes to machinery.

Maybe I'll rethink the Makita 5010 disc sander. It was quick and effective at the glass shop.

Thanks for the input!

Susanne

the glass shops around here are just sooo unhealthy in their work practices. i went in one winter day to get some glass. they were edge grinding a large order of table toppers. the dust was so thick in there that it looked like smoke. a friend who works thewre complained that they all had a hard time breathing in the winter ' because it is so shut up' . just amazingly bad practice. r.

Rosanna, how bad do you think it would be if you used it on a couple of pieces a month, a lot of ventilation, and a mask? I would not use it often but I want to be safe.
Thanks!

Outdoors with a respirator would be best. Indoors the dust is going to get every where. You could rig a collector or exhaust for it. R.

I want to mention another thing -
I learnt that It is not good for the glass to be grinded dry. The grinding/rubbing of the glass creates heat which may cause the glass to explode, or break.

As for the motor - I bought my WBS at Covington, even though I am in Israel. I paid a lot for shipment etc.
However, because of electricity difference [ours is 220] I DID NOT buy the machine with a motor. A friend of mine who is a mechanic told me he would help my buy a motor here. So I did, and he installed it for me.
The lesson for this is - that I am sure you can do it in USA too, find a mechanic who makes motors, ask him to make a 1/2 hp motor for you, and find someone who can install it for you. OR - you can ask Covington, perhaps they could ship you a motor, and recomend someone who would install it for you............

either way,


good luck

Havi

Havi wrote:I want to mention another thing -
I learnt that It is not good for the glass to be grinded dry. The grinding/rubbing of the glass creates heat which may cause the glass to explode, or break.
good luck

Havi

Havi, I have broken glass by overheating it on a wheel with a water feed. (it was a long time ago, as I recall it might have been a felt wheel with cerium and I let it get too dry) You have to be careful either way.

My drybelt sander is one of the tools I use most. I have no plans to change that. There is not much dust, and when there is, I spray it with some glass cleaner, mostly because the spray bottle is sitting on the bench.

I think it is foolhardy and irresponsible to promote dry coldworking. Novices and newcomers to the glass craft should be given safe advice not "seat of your pants" opinions.

DonMcClennen wrote:I think it is foolhardy and irresponsible to promote dry coldworking. Novices and newcomers to the glass craft should be given safe advice not "seat of your pants" opinions.

Have you ever done it? I am talking about a tool and technique used daily in thousands of glass shops. The belts I use are designed specifically for dry grinding on glass. If you find a chip of glass pops off, you got it too hot. Everybody is personally responsible to protect their lungs when exposed to dust.

I've done it, a lot. It is certainly a good option for arrissing or edging large pieces of float where it is much easier to bring the tool to the glass. However, a huge percentage of the people here are concerned with finishing edges of much smaller fused pieces, where it is much more difficult to use these small sanders.

Brock wrote:I've done it, a lot. It is certainly a good option for arrissing or edging large pieces of float where it is much easier to bring the tool to the glass. However, a huge percentage of the people here are concerned with finishing edges of much smaller fused pieces, where it is much more difficult to use these small sanders.

Agreed. When it is easier to hold the sander than the glass, the technique comes in to it's own. I have a 3 x 24 wet sander, but I seldom drag it out. I have diamond hand pads for taking the sharp edge off of smaller glass.

Design starts coming up with a process that matches your skill, tools, glass, and shop capabilities. Only then can you apply aesthetics. Maintaining personal safety is an assumed given.

You seem to always want to have the last word. Mostly it's pointless bloviation . . .