Skil 7500 6 Amp 3 inch by 18 inch Belt Sander w/ Micro Filter Dust Collection

Customer Reviews

Solid construction but eats belts

2007-06-17
I bought this sander yesterday from my local True Value hardware store to replace an ancient Black and Decker with a burned out motor. I needed to use it to sand down a 16'x16' plywood dance floor.

Upon opening I noticed that the rubberized plastic construction felt solid and well made. I read the directions (a rarity for me), popped on a new belt and started sanding. As per the directions I let the weight of the tool do the pressing while making nice smooth strokes. Five strokes later the belt had a quarter-inch shredded off the inside edge. I replaced the belt with a new one, was careful to adjust the belt properly, and 15 strokes later I had another shredded belt. It seems that the problem is that every once and a while the belt will shift toward the interior of the tool and catch on something sharp, shredding it.

By the time I finished sanding my floor I had gone through 5 belts. After the belts had about 3/4" shredded off of them they were narrow enough to stay on the sander without jamming, but then they are so narrow to be pretty much useless.

I returned the sander the next day with no hassle and will get a Makita instead. I'll give this sander 2 stars since it is solidly constructed and comfortable to hold.

Pleased with performance

2008-05-10
I bought this to replace an old craftsman. I needed to sand down an old door and started with #50 belts thinking I would go over it again with #`120 later.
I went thru the first belt (a #80 I think) that came with the sander in about 20 minutes (It broke at the splice).
The first #50 lasted thru the rest of the job. It did start to unravel a bit (strings of belt coming off the edge) but to be fair I was sanding the heads off tiny nails I found out later.
I put on a new #50 belt and finished the job with a quick going over and quit while I was ahead.
The sander itself stayed cool at the handles and the auto track seems to work flawlessly.

It paid for itself with this job so I can't quibble about anything. Now I have to find a box to store it in.

I take my good review back

2008-04-04
The belt that came with the sander worked good for a long time. After it lost the roughness I bought 3x18 belts from Walmart. The belt didn's last long at all. Worse than that every 10 secs or so I had to put the belt back . It keeps coming off. I would NOT buy this item again.

Not like they used to be

2007-11-01
This Skill sander replaced a 15 year old Skill sander with the same spec.s. This sander does not have the same power like the older one. The filter box gets clocked to frequent. I had to unclog the filter after sanding approx. 3 mins. Over all it does get the job done for the price. I think I paid the same price for the older sander 15 years ago so this is a good value .

Shreds belts. Not usefull.

2007-10-25
I bought this sander @ Lowe's since I needed it imediatly to replase a 40 year Wen sander whos motor finally burned up in the middle of a prodject. The first belt shreded 3/4" off the inside edge & bound up inside. I cleaned up the mess & replaced the belt. I then rered the manual & verified that it was being ooperated properly & was tracking corectly. I made sure I was keeping it level on the work piece, & only the weight of the sander doing the work. The second belt shreded in about 2 min. of sanding. I then gave up & returned it to Lowe's for a refund. I didn't want another Skill, & they didn't have another brand in stock, so my prodject is on hold while I shop Amazon for a replacment.

Works for me!

2007-09-02
I purchased this sander for a few projects I needed to do around the house. I looked at the Makita and Dewalt but didn't want to spend that much money. I took a chance on the Skill despite the other reviewers bad experience and I'm glad I did. I haven't had any belt shredding problems and this sander really gives a good bang for the buck. It was powerful enough to the job on PT wood. I couldn't be happier, I spent less than $40 here at Amazon.