Sanders are one of the most common types of woodworking tools that you can find in every woodworking shop. Some sander types are very common. You'll nearly always find a random orbital sander, for example, in a woodworking studio. Other sanders are not as common. One of these is the spindle sander.
There is a number of reasons one might want to use a spindle sander in their work. It is a tool that is good at certain tasks other types of sanding machines are not so good at or simply cannot perform at all. One of its particular strengths is its ability to smooth out and polish curved edges, even concave edges that other types of sanders simply cannot reach. Sanding such edges by hand can also be highly ineffective.
When using the spindle sander, what you want to do is make sure that you use smooth and gradual motions rather than pressing hard in order to remove material. If you press too hard on one point, the result will be that you will remove too much wood in that particular point and as you move on along the curve this way, you'll end up with a very zigzaggy and bumpy edge that is difficult to fix. But if you make sure to make numerous passes while sanding, you will remove the material much more evenly. This will result in a smooth curved edge that you are trying to achieve.
Spindle sanders come in different sizes. There are small table top machines which are good at sanding small objects and which do not take up much space, and cost considerably less. And then there are floor standing machines which are much more powerful, but also more expensive, and may not be as good at polishing tiny details as a small sander would.
Before buying such a device, make sure to do some online research on the best possible model to pick. There are comparison sites and blogs with spindle sander reviews that will introduce several models and suggest you the best one. There are also many good YouTube videos which cover this topic in detail, so you can check that out as well. Lastly, you may want to ask for some advice on woodworking forums, because there are many good people who will recommend you the best type of sander that you need.
