Rated 2 out of 5 by HHHALL from The product is fair This sander was received as a gift. It came with two hook and loop sanding disks which were used soon after opening the box. I was also given several packs of various grit sanding disks...but they are the pressure sensitive adhesive (PSA) kind. So I went to my local Home Depot and asked for a PSA backing pad. The guy looked at me and said, "just use the hook and loop". I thanked him for his input but again asked for the PSA backing pad. This time he said, "you have to order it" and walked away to help another. Since my lunch was almost over I had to leave. BUT I STILL NEED A PSA BACKING PAD !!
Rated 1 out of 5 by jlove from Great... if it lasted longer This is a excellent sander, if it had a better warranty and lasted longer. I have barely used it, and for quite light duty, luthier work... and it is done... just out of it's warranty.
Rated 5 out of 5 by SeanTheHandyman from My Favorite Sander I have owned two of these, and they are excellent. I like the adjustable speed and the random orbit makes a nice sand job with little or no swirls. I used one in a refinishing business for over 10 years and later as a handyman and bldg superintendent for another 10 years. This is my favorite sander by far.
Rated 4 out of 5 by toolbet from Lots of power Anybody experiencing runaway spinning/lack of orbiting can easily be rectified. The single seal bearing (6002-RS) can be replaced by removing the pad from the bearing housing (4 screws), then removing the bearing housing from the motor shaft using a T20 screwdriver (1 screw). Gently/evenly pry up the bearing housing then press the bearing out of it or tap it out using proper sized punch). Replace it with a 6002-RS (double sealed) bearing, by pressing it in with a vice and suitable sized socket head. Because this bearing is exposed to dust whenever operating, it should have been double sealed when manufactured. A good quality bearing replacement is about $10, but cheap imported bearings are available for as low as $2.50, but why skimp?
Rated 1 out of 5 by F1X1T from Good Sander...while it lasts. Poor Warranty. After my old Ryobi 5" palm sander died on me (it was about 3 years old with more than occasional use), I decided to "upgrade" to the Ridgid version. I bought it refurbished at a local Direct Tools outlet who told me the warranty was 1 year instead of three. Fine by me, I thought, if it lasted as long as the budget version then I needn't worry about that. I brought it home and started sanding at various grits and speed in open areas (less dust) and within about 4 uses the button started sticking. "Well that's odd..." I thought, but went with it. I got it refurbished, so I expect to deal with these sort of issues. Then, after 8 months of use, the sander lost all torque. It'll spin, but as soon as it touches a surface, it stops. 8 months! If the fact that the tool didn't last a year wasn't enough, Direct Tools, Ridgid, and Home Depot sent me through the gambit of customer service. (Let me start with I need this tool to work, now.) Direct Tools tells me they only replace tools for 30 days, and they give me the Ridgid number. So I call Ridgid, and after navigating perhaps the worlds most ridiculous automated phone system (I think I had to press about a dozen numbers to get here) the nearest Repair center is 1.5 hours away....NOPE. So I call again, navigate the system again, and finally get to a real person. They correct the automated answer to the nearest HD with a tool rental section. Cool. So I go there. There I'm told I have to pay $18 for them to "check" if it's under warranty. It's 8 months old and it has a year warranty, what's to check? I had the receipt. Even then, there was a 2 month backlog. WHAT?! If your tool dies in 8 months, I'm not sure I want someone to fix it anyways, I want them to replace it. Otherwise, it'll just die in 8 months again. The end result, I had to buy a cheap sander to get the job I needed done and I ended up taking this one out of the store, frustrated that I wasted so much time. Not completely sure I want to gamble $18 on a warranty that I know should exist, but HD's system might say otherwise... Bottom line: If you have a warranty, honor it. Ridgid does everything it can not to.
Rated 5 out of 5 by Short from Great Sander This is the second-smoothest running sander I've ever used next to my Festool, which cost me $200. I can't speak to the longevity as I just purchased it but it blows my old PC out of the water. I've read some negative comments about the power switch and vacuum hose hitting the work surface. Honestly, one shouldn't use a 2 1/2" vacuum hose in the first place. Too much vacuum actually makes the sander fight you. The smaller hoses clear the work surface easily, and I've never had a single problem with the power switch. So far it has been a great sander for me.
Rated 4 out of 5 by HBPhillie from Has done the job for 5+ years and counting I was looking to buy a 6 inch Rigid Sander and was discouraged by the bad reviews that it received... and a little confused. I have owned the 5 inch sander for almost 6 years and I thought I would look at it's reviews for comparison. This sander gets bad reviews so now I'm really confused because I already own this one and I know it's a good sander, it's my go-to sander. I've been woodworking for 30 years and bought this one to replace a Craftsman PSA sander and I have nothing but good things to say about it. It does everything that I expect it do and I've only replaced the pad once... I bought a new one and used the old one for cleaning rust w a piece of Scotch-Brite. The pads get kind of grimy w WD-40 when you do this and you don't want to sand a nice piece of wood with it. I would give this sander 5-stars if it fetched me a Beer but it only gets 4 stars because it does what I bought it for. I don't believe in giving a tool 5 stars for doing what it's supposed to do. Bottom line.... this guy has been a very good shop tool and I expect it to keep chugging along.
Rated 4 out of 5 by Bowdude66 from Excellent tool But Ridgid is starting to slack off on features. This sander is everything I wanted and operated without a flaw. I'm starting to wonder though if Ridgid is starting to slack off on quality. The other electric Ridgid tools have nice long rubber coated cordes and lighted plugs with Velcro cord wraps, not this one. Whats going on guys? you are starting to worry me !
unable to detach the old backing pad. The screws are plastic and have an hexagonal hole, I think. I have not been able to unscrew them. There are four screws, set below the flat surface of the pad, Are those the correct screws to turn to remove the old backing pad? Is there a special tool to unscrew the screws?
Mine has little metal screws and I used a flat head screwdriver, it seems to be a combination head screw but I could not tell if it was meant to take a torx or allen head wrench, I just stuck the screwdriver in the slot going across the entire head.