Makita DBO180Z 18V Li-Ion LXT Sander - Batteries and Charger Not Included

Product Information

Finishing sander: A finishing sander, as you might expect, is the one you need to put the finishing touches on a job. They come in different shapes and sizes which means you will sometimes see them described as palm sanders, and are ideal for working on flat areas before adding products like oil, wax and paint. The Makita DBO180Z has been developed as Makita's first cordless random orbit sander powered by 18V Li-ion batteries. It has a compact design with short height and lower center of gravity for better maneuverability. Ergonomically best possible grip design for comfortable handling. Excellent performance as powerful AC model gives high productivity. MAKITA DBO180Z FEATURES On the downside, the cable isn’t very long and if you want to save yourself some bother make sure to buy pre-pierced sanding sheets as the provided punch plate isn’t great.

The WX820 comes with a microfilter dust box and gives you plenty of control thanks to six different speed options. It’s not as powerful as a corded sander, but the battery means you can use it anywhere and is interchangeable with other Worx Powershare tools. Sanding creates a lot of dust so it’s a good idea to look for a sander with good dust collection as not all sanders come with this feature. Typically it will come in the form of a built-in dust compartment but some can even be attached to a vacuum cleaner tube for better extraction.Battery life was also surprisingly good. The kit is supplied with two 5.0ah Makita BL1850B Li-Ion LXT Batteries and a DC18RC 14.4V to 18V Li-Ion Charger. As the charger is capable of charging a BL1850B battery in 45 minutes, it’s extremely unlikely that you’ll run out of battery power assuming you have mains electricity for the charger to operate. Disc sander: A disc sander is probably what most people think a random orbital sander is. The key difference is that they do spin in a fixed motion, much like the wheel on a car. They typically require two-handed operation and, like belt sanders, are better for tougher jobs where lots of material needs removing. The fixed motion means you need to be careful not to leave visible circle marks behind. Speaking of the dust bag, it performed well which surprised me. I expected there to be much more dust in the air and around the tool when using the bag but it was actually not substantially different when attached to an extractor.

As mentioned above, there are typically four kinds of sander. Some are more versatile and can be used for multiple jobs, while others are more specialist. Below is a short summary of the main types and how they differ from each other. Random orbital sander: If you can only afford one sander, a random orbital is the most versatile. They are typically circular, but not exclusively, and although it might look like they simply rotate the sanding disc, they actually move it around in an unpredictable pattern to avoid scratch marks. Their size and ease-of-use make them suitable for a wide range of sanding tasks. Although this is a tool aimed at experienced DIYers and professionals, its simple operation means it can also be used successfully by beginners. Like any other cordless tool using a common battery platform, use of the BL series batteries in this kit opens up a huge range of other tools available as “bare” units without batteries and chargers for those who already have them. Equally, this sander as a “bare” unit could be the ideal addition for someone that has already invested in another tool as a kit version. The design is taller than corded sanders and you have to factor in the weight of the battery, which also gets in the way of the grip a fair bit, but it’s easy to use and offers three different speed settings giving you good control. A maximum speed of 11,000opm (orbits per minute) isn’t particularly high but the DBO180Z makes up for it somewhat with a large 2.8mm orbit diameter. Dust extraction is above average and the machine is quiet in operation.We used the sanders on a range of different types of wood, including some with large surface areas, and others with hard-to-reach sections. We also used them with different sandpaper grades to evaluate how each one performs. All of the sanders were used for long enough to be able to assess their ergonomics, including weight and dimensions. The Makita DBO180 cordless 125mm random orbit sander is ideal for fine finish sanding (Image credit: Garry Martin) Good build quality and good dust bag performance If there is power available then a corded sander makes life simpler in many ways as you don’t need to worry about charging batteries or replacing them when they are old. You just need to deal with a cable potentially getting in the way. How much do I need to spend?