In the last column we saw that one of the big advantages of the WASP sander is that you can choose different diameter drums to suit your work - all using the same standard belts that you can buy in any hardware shop. You can purchase an Accessories Kit for the WASP that contains 3 extra drums but workshop enthusiasts often prefer to make their own. In the last column we saw how to do this.

Now we will look at another useful drum used for soft finishing sanding.

This drum, shaped like an hourglass, used with a smooth grade belt (say a 180 grit, or 240 grit) makes an ideal finishing sander.



The hollowed out shape means that there is an air pocket behind the belt so when a job is being sanded the belt conforms to the shape of the job following curves in any direction.

The drum is made using scrap wood and bright mild steel rod, as was described in the previous session.
Remember to keep the turned drum parallel otherwise the belt won't track true.

The next step is to hollow out the middle part to create the air gap behind the belt.


It is useful to make a range of drums of different diameters. This provides different degrees of stiffness to the belt - the tighter the radius, the stiffer the belt. 25 mm, 45 mm, and 60 mm would be a good collection.