Cleaning sanding roll?

[Turaj]

Using my Drum Sander (Delta) to clean up some pine (first time with pine) and noticed the sand paper is getting gummed up quickly. Was thinking to run the machine with the top open and push the stick (abrasive cleaner) against it to clean the paper but I am hesitant about running the sander with the top open.

How do you guys clean the sanding roll?

[cork58]

Leave the dust collector hooked up and open the hood about 1/2 way and clean away. After you've cleaned it just turn off the drum and brush the drum really good, clean off the rollers (top and bottom) and then the conveyor belt. You don't want any rubber between the wood and the machine.

Once you have so much build up that the cleaning stick won't work anymore but the paper is still good its time to get serious. I have a wash tub in the shop so I take the paper off and spray it with oven cleaner. Take care to have good gloves, eye protection and maybe a dust mask. Let it sit in the tub for about 15 minutes and then just wash off and while its still wet rub the paper with your hands to get the really stubborn spots with gloves back on.

It will curl up like no tomorrow but don't panic, hang up to dry. After is it completely dry wrap it back on the drum, yea its a pain but put up with it. After it has been on for awhile and used till it is plugged up it will remember the drum and not be all curled up again.

That's how I do it, that paper isn't cheap, but I am.

[atgcpaul]

Leave the dust collector hooked up and open the hood about 1/2 way and clean away.

That's what I do.

I haven't had to get extreme because I haven't run any wood softwood like pine through it. Sometimes for the stubborn bits, I'll pick them off with my fingernail or carefully with a flat screwdriver.

[capncarl]

I go thru sandpaper like mad on old heart pine, and won't even run it through the drum sander cause it clogs too fast. If you keep using the clogged paper it seems to set up and can't be cleaned. I tried cleaning the pine clogged drum sander with the big eraser but most will not come off that way. I recently found that AWSOME cleans the paper better than anything I've tried and is not as toxic as oven cleaner. It's $1 for a quart spray bottle at most dollar stores. Spray it on, let it set 5 minutes, use a soft bristle brush to scrub the paper a bit and rinse it off. It will dry out your skin so use rubber gloves. AWSOME also cleans sanding ros disks, and everything else pretty good. I don't believe I would try to clean the paper on the drum sander, take it off.
capncarl

[Turaj]

Thanks Guys

My paper is not as bad yet to use the washing method (at least I hope not) but it is good to know how it work.

Perhaps using the drum sander on White Pine is not such a good idea to begin with!!

Again, thanks for the confirmation and the new techniques

[capncarl]

When sanding pine with my ro disk sander I change out sandpaper every couple of minutes to keep it from burning in and get a better cut. That means about 4 times as much sandpaper used vrs on other wood.....but it is not wasted....just wash it up and it's good as new, except it curls when it drys like cork58 said his belts do. It wastes time changing disks but probably gets the job done faster because of fresh sharp paper.
capncarl