Customer Reviews

Black & Decker BR300 5.2 Amp 3-Inch by 18-Inch Belt Sander with Cloth Dust Bag

5 star:		(2)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

Most of the time, I buy the tools that get the best reviews... and when it comes to a router, planer or table saw, that's not a bad idea. In my world, it's unnecessary to apply the same scrutiny to a belt sander - after all, this is not a tool for finish sanding. This is for fast, aggressive removal of material.

To be fair, I am an amateur woodworker restoring a 100-year old house and a belt sander is something I use infrequently at best. For the occasions that I do need one, this does the job more than adequately.

I bought this sander at Lowes because it was inexpensive,
about $50, and I also thought that Black and Decker was
still a good name. Used the sander to sand old floor
adhesive off of plywood. The floor was approximately 4'X 6'.
For a brief moment I thought this tool purchase was going
to be worth the price. This is the first belt sander I have
ever used. I went through 4 belts in about 1 hour.
The belts would track true and sand good for a short time.
Then the belts would go off track and cut into the plastic
housing. I could turn it off and manually adjust the belt
back into the proper position but they would just go off track
even quicker after the first time. One of B&D's big selling
points is automtic belt tracking, no adjustment neccesary. It
did not work for me. I returned it to Lowes the next day no
problem.

I was going to buy the variable speed Dewalt until I read the
reviews about it on this site. I was cheap before so I thought
if I spent $200 on a sander I could pretty much expect to get a
good machine but now I am not so sure. I really like the idea
of being able to mount the Dewalt on it's stand and use it as
a fixed sander. Not sure what I am going to do now.

I got this sander as a youth beginner and at that time I was unimpressed. If you use this type of sander very infrequently or you are buying this for a person that has a BEGINNING interest in woodworking this is the tool for you to buy. If you plan on going in any way beyond that plan on being disappointed and plan on buying a higher quality sander. I was told this same thing and didn't listen at a younger age. Oh well small price mistake I guess.

I've had mine for a few years. I sanded paint off my 16' boat, sanded down all the corners and edges of another wooden boat I was building, and have done a lot of smaller projects and never had any trouble. I have also clamped it to a table and treated it like a bench sander. may not be safe, but the sander worked like this.
This is the only belt sander I have ever owned.

I bought this sander for a particular job I was going to do at my house and selected this particular model primarily because of the price since I don't require use of a belt sander very often. It was selling for about half of list price at the time.

After several jobs, including sanding down a very weathered outdoor bar top, it is still running as good as it ever did. I was able to complete all the work I intended to use it for without any problems, and I have no reason to expect it won't perform as well in the future. Having said that however, it isn't a very powerful sander and with only a 3"x18" belt, there isn't much surface area making contact with the wood. Be prepared for bigger jobs to take some time. It is still faster than an orbital sander and does what it is supposed to, but if you intend on using a belt sander on a regular basis and expect top performance, than you should probably look for something along the lines of a professional quality 4"x24" with a more powerful motor. If you are like me and only expect to use it a couple times a year around the house and you want to save a few bucks, then this one should do fine.

This is a very efficient sander for home use. Much more effective than a disc sander. Light weight. Handle for two hand use. It saved me a lot of time doing boat decks.

I purchased this unit at Lowes about 6 months ago. Performed well at first. Belts started tracking to the out side of the unit if any pressure was applied to work. Then motor burned up on unit. also very loud when in use.

Can anyone help me? I need information on a 3" X 24"Black & Decker Sander, a B-245, TYPE AB. Specificaly the size and description if the Drive Gears. Thanks.