Motor Speed For Flat Sander???

[Michael J. Spangler]

hey guys, i have a really nice 6X48 i want to get up and running, what speed motor should i run on this? i could put on some step pulleys but from experience i'd prefer to run it slower. any suggestions?

thanks a ton guys i appreciate the help ahead of time!

p.s. what's the deal with gear motors? are they just motors with gear boxes to slow em down? thanks!

 

[sunshadow]

I have a regular 1720 RPM motor on my Sears 6x48 (I use it mostly for wood, but it works for metal if I need wide and somewhat flat) I could step pulley it to slow it down or speed it up, but it works most of the time at normal speed. the only time slower is necessary is cocobolo, purpleheart, and other really resinous woods.

Gear motors are regular motors with a built in reduction transmission

-Page

 

[Stacy E. Apelt - Bladesmith]

I have two 6X48's and one is set slow and the other faster, I use the slow one for stabilized burl wood and the fast one for rough shaping swords. I have never checked, but I would guess the slow one runs at 800-1000FPS, and the fast one runs about 2000 FPS. I mostly run 50-80 grit on the fast one for cleaning up the blades prior to HT.
Stacy