Dropped $340 on a drum sander for a single face frame job and it paid for itself in a week

Oscar Murphy · 2026-09-25T13:45:04.416227+00:00

I bid a kitchen in Rochester back in March that needed 14 face frames sanded flat, and my random orbit was leaving swirl marks on the maple no matter what grit I finished with. So I bought a used 18/36 drum sander off a guy retiring out of the trade, $340 cash with a spare belt. Ran every rail and stile through it at 80 grit, one pass each side, and the joints came out dead flat with zero tearout. Client signed off on the finish without a single callback, which never happens with maple. Anyone else running a drum sander for face frames or do you think it is overkill for small shops?

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Dropped $340 on a drum sander for a single face frame job and it paid for itself in a week | Cabinetmakers - Rigidtalk