The $40 belt sander that changed our workshop in one weekend

Our tool library had a beat-up belt sander nobody touched for 6 months. Last month I donated my old one that I barely used, and suddenly three people signed up to borrow it that same week. Turns out the old one had a torn belt and no dust bag, so everyone thought it was junk. I spent a Saturday cleaning it, bought a new belt for $12, and rigged a shop vac attachment. In one weekend, the sign-up list went from zero uses to 8 reservations. Has anyone else fixed a neglected tool and seen the demand jump like that?

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1 Comment

the_hannah15d ago

Understand exactly what you mean. It’s amazing how one busted part can make people write off a good tool completely. We had a bench grinder like that at our place, sat there for ages with a cracked wheel guard. I just swapped the guard and cleaned the rust off the base, and suddenly folks were lining up to sharpen their chisels and mower blades. It just goes to show how a little bit of care and a few bucks can bring something back to life. Good on you for taking the time to fix it up, that’s the kind of thing that keeps a shared workshop working for everyone.