I really like black and decker for overall value. Works well. I bought other off brand attachments and they work well. In terms of power, it's decent for it's size. Better than I expected.

It works well and I use it frequently refinishing furniture. It is light weight and easy to change papers.

UPDATE 1 YEAR: still great! After the table I used it for tens of jobs but the most important ones: car roof stripping and repainting, fence sanding, two doors and an uneven drywall. No problem so far whatsoever :)

I bought this sander specifically for a project that involved refinishing a 1910 table and this little guy was the key to the whole project.

In the video I was using 60 grit sandpaper, as the table had some bad stains but the sander is so efficient that it literally takes minutes to strip the finish off a table (with 40 or 60 grit sandpaper). I had to be careful as you can easily get carried away and sand too much.

Pros:

- a lot quieter than I expected (compared to my father in law's older one)

- I used it a lot during a day and it didn't heat up almost at all

- very comfortable to work with

- the dust extraction is very efficient

- I was able to do corners, although I thought I would have to do them manually (you just have to find the right angle to hold it)

- the price is really amazing :)

Cons:

- none so far

Why did I get this? Did I need it?

My wife wanted to refinish the kitchen breakfast table and corresponding chairs. I have zero experience with refinishing anything. In fact, I am not generally a very handy person. No one would mistake me for a DIYer. I looked up online how to refinish a table and realized I probably needed an electric sander.

After hours of research, I considered a belt sander (too big for my job), an orbital finishing sander (not heavy-duty enough), and an random-orbit sander (happy medium!). I’m really glad with my purchase and would recommend this to any of my friends wanting to refinish something.

How does it work?

As a novice DIYer with VERY limited experience with any kind of sanding, this sander works intuitively. Stick a sanding pad onto the velcro-ey surface of the sander and then press the ‘on’ button. I think the sander works better for higher grit jobs, but it worked good enough at getting too many coats of polyurethane off of our kitchen breakfast table.

Is there anything I really love about this product?

When I first thought I needed a sander, I was wary of the idea because I thought these kinds of tools are usually expensive (remember, I’m not a natural DIYer). I was pleasantly surprised by the value of the tool!

Is there anything I didn’t like about this product?

Like a lot of the other reviewers said, the bag isn’t the best at catching the saw dust. But my project was mostly completed outside and I didn’t really notice the saw dust.

I am traveling and have left all of my 5 sanders at home. I should know better, because I have family (kids) that always need things done around their house. I needed an orbital without breaking the bank and this one seemed to fit the bill, based on other reviews.

I am more than mildly impressed with this sander. Inexpensive does not mean cheap. Sure, there's only one speed and no handles, but it is decidedly orbital and has a very reasonable dust collection bag. It feels solid in my palm; I have no issues handling the unit and it does the job very well.

The Velcro face pad is rugged and firm and the sanding discs attach and remove easily. The unit is also small enough to fit in your hand without losing control of it. I started using it within 15 minutes of delivery and have already burnt through a half dozen discs; I got a box of them that range from 40 grit to 340. Using that super-fine 340 left me with a glossy surface on the piece I was working on. Almost hated to stain it.

Excellent purchase, extremely satisfied with this sander.

3 year Update: Buy this now, don't waste your time looking elsewhere. This is the best bang for my buck, ever. I abuse this sander and only now am I beginning to see the foam pad wear a little. Motor and aesthetics are still great, and I think I can actually replace the foam pad.

Update: 2 years later and a ton of heavy duty use later, this thing is still kicking. I use this on average 2 hours a week of sanding fiberglass and carbon fiber. That stuff is not nice to motors. But this is still doing fine and the Velcro pad is even on great condition. I would have spend $100 on this product, but happily only paid $30. I also beat the heck out of this. It is not babied or well cared for. I chuck it in my tool box at the end of the day and it takes all the abuse.

For the price, I’m amazed this thing is still running. I purchased this 8 months ago and used it for a fiberglass rowing boat restoration. Sanding down paint and old fiberglass, sanding new fiberglass repairs down, prepping the whole shell for paint, and I just started another fiberglass/carbon fiber repair and it’s STILL working great. On a prior project, my much more expensive craftsman orbital’s motor died and couldn’t take the carbon fiber. This sander has now made it through two glass projects. I’m stoked.

My rather ancient B+D orbital sander decide to shed its glued-on hook-and-loop disc. No amount of Gorilla Glue could permanently change its mind. Okay, I'll get a sander. And I did. This new B+D version seems to have a more solid and robust hook-and-loop disc, which bodes well for heavy use, should I need it. I already applied it to two guitar bodies prior to finishing, and it did an outstanding job. Only one dust bag in the package, so I ordered a spare. (Alas, the dust bag from my old sander doesn't fit.)

It performs. I never had an orbital sander before but got this for a DIY deck railing restoration project as part of my entire deck restoration. I used it to sand and smooth all the mahogany railings after I either filled them with filler, sawdust glue mix or specialized wood epoxy filler. I used 80 to 120 t0 220 grit to finish the surface. And man did it come out smooth and leveled.

It feels good in the hands (for an orbital sander that is basically trying to squirm away - but don't worry- it's easy to control; it won't just jump out of your grasp! Seems durable and well made. The plastic body is thick and a good plastic. It's a classic design. The only weak part that I can see is the bag coupling, but it works great- just don't fuss with it and make sure you put it on and take off the right way and you will be totally fine. As far as the dust collection WORKS: it works great.

The Black + Decker Orbital Sander worked very well, no undue vibration to make my hand ache or feel strange even after using for long periods. The power was great- if I used too coarse a grade then it quickly removed too much material. I also have a Porter Cable Belt Sander which is a Godzilla in taking off material. The orbital sander is a more gentle beast but you still need to mind the grit or it will take too much off too fast.

Brush it off with a work bench brush or paint brush. I also vacuum it all over after use before I put it away. The B+D Orbital was easy to clean and empty the dust. Carefully twist off the back being aware of the orientation of the connector sleeve; it's plastic so be careful and it should last the life of the device. Tap out the dust. I save the "dust" to use as filler when mixed with wood glues.

I even used the sander on parts of the deck steps that I didn't have to replace before staining. And I used it on all of the flat-sided railing spindles that were facing in or out. Makes staining go so much easier and smoother.

So far this little monster has done a great job for a great price and was by all means worth it.

Always wear a mask and goggles when you do the sanding because the dust is fine and you don't want it in your eyes or lungs. No bueno.

Excelente calidad, funciona perfecto.

Good product.

DO NOT BUY THIS ITEM IF YOU LIVE IN THE UK!!! Despite being sold on Amazon's UK site for pounds sterling, it comes with an American "Type A" plug (I changed it to a UK plug), and it runs on 120 volts while the UK supplies 230 volts. I did not know this and there was a very strong burning smell within less than a minute of me starting to use it, and a very bright light inside. Google AI says, "Plugging a 120V appliance directly into a UK socket using only a physical plug adaptor will instantly destroy the device, cause it to smoke or burn out, and create a serious fire hazard." I was lucky that no fire occurred!

so far so good, started sending the deck with 60 pts, small and powerful so far

Originalmente compré la lijadora para lijar una superficies de concreto que reparé. Funcionó de maravilla, es muy fácil de agarrar y controlar sus movimientos. Ahora estoy trabajando en un corte de tronco de madera bastante dura que estoy convirtiendo en una mesita. Igual no tengo ningún problema con la máquina, deja la superficie muy lisa y efectivamente son marcas de luna. El único comentario es que el filtro realmente no sirve para nada. De todas maneras todo en tu alrededor se va a llevar de un polvo muy fino, así que es mejor o trabajar afuera o adentro con una muy buena extracción de aire. Sin embargo es algo muy normal en los trabajos de madera, así que no culpo la lijadora. En resumen para ser una maquinita tan barata funciona muy bien, la recomiendo