Corner Orbital Sanders

• Smooth tight spots such as corners and rabbets using the corner sander. It operates like other orbital sanders, but has a 3-inch-wide triangle-shaped sanding pad instead of a rectangular one. The sanding pad rotates to any position relative to the body of the sander. Specially designed triangle sandpaper, from 40-grit to 120-grit, is available for the sander.
  
  

Making a Polishing Pad

• Most orbital sanders can be fitted with various polishing and buffing pads. You can make your own polishing pad by folding sheets of cheesecloth into a pad several layers thick. Install the cheesecloth on the sander as you would a sheet of sandpaper, making sure the pad is taut and covers the pad surface completely.
  
  

Wood Surface Sanding

• Clamp your wood to a workbench; hold the sander above the wood, and power up the orbital sander. Lower the sander gently onto the work surface parallel to the grain at one end of the wood project. Move the sander forward, applying light downward pressure. At the end of the wood surface, pull the sander back toward you, overlapping your forward stroke. To avoid rounding the edges of the wood project, do not let more than half of the sanding pad extend off the wood surface.
  
  

Interior Orbital Sanding

• Smooth interior wood surfaces of a box the same way you would sand a board. To avoid marring adjoining panels with protruding parts of the sander, such as the sandpaper clamp handles, place a sheet of cardboard up against the vertical surfaces.
  
  

Rounding Edges and Ends

• Holding your wood stock securely on the workbench, use an orbital palm sander, and grip it firmly as you turn it on. Set the sander on the end of the wood at a 45-degree angle and move the sander back and forth to create a rounded edge. For best results, make a series of passes progressively using finer-grit sandpaper throughout the process.
  
  

Sanding Inside a Drawer

• Hold the drawer steady on a workbench and turn on your orbital palm sander. Move the sander along the drawer surface in overlapping, parallel strokes until the surface is smooth. Ride the edges of the sander along the drawer sides. The design of the palm sander will enable you to sand right up to the adjoining wood surfaces.