Customer Reviews

Grizzly G0547 Combo Sander 4" x 36" Belt 6" Disc

5 star:		(3)
4 star:		(0)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(4)

 

 

I had always wanted a combination belt/disc sander for its versatility and convenience, yet never seemed to want to spend the money to get one. When I saw this little machine come on the market, at this price, I thought it was the perfect solution for my small home shop. Besides price, this unit has a lot going for it. It is compact yet sturdy (the base is cast iron)
and for its size, it is powerful enough to do anything I would ask of it. As an added bonus, the manual provided by Grizzly was absolutely excellent! All of the set-up instructions were clear and accurate. Now for the downside... I realize that you get what you pay for, but there are several things which bother me about this tool. First, the "miter gauge" included for use with the disc sanding table is a joke. It is cheaply made and mine is not square. Second, the motor turns the sanding surfaces at 3450 rpms. This is way too fast for a lot of the sanding you may want to do with this machine. If you research it a bit you will find that most of the better quality belt/disc combo machines have motors that turn at 1725 rpms.

All in all, this little machine is worth the price but I can't help thinking that with a little more time in the design phase, this tool could have been great. If you are on a very tight budget and find yourself in need of this type of sander then don't hesitate. Otherwise, spend a little more and get some high end features.

I had high expectations on buying my first Grizzly shop tool. I had heard that they made good tools sold at a fair price. Man, was I ever wrong! When my sander arrived, I was very disappointed. It is definitely not worth the $100 price I paid; perhaps half that.

First, the tool itself:

1. As another reviewer has noted, the miter is cheap, flimsy plastic and totally useless. Unlike the other reviewer, I would have used mine if it were robust; it is not, and probably unsafe to use.

2. The "safety switch" is also very flimsy, made of even cheesier plastic than the miter. The yellow safety "key", which must be inserted into the switch assembly to start the machine, sometimes would not stay put. How would one turn the sander on without it? You CAN'T! A Ryobi combo sander I saw at Home Depot (unfortunately not till AFTER I bought the Grizzly sander) which sells for the same price has a beefy switch which doesn't have a loose "key" which can fall off.

3. The disk sander table has a sticker showing the angle of degree; this sticker is not even attached the sander, and must be applied by the assembler (you). The similar Ryobi has etched and painted degree markings which can't come unglued.

4. The stop for the belt sander is made of extremely light gauge sheet metal, and flexes when the workpiece is laid against it while sanding. The similar Ryobi's stop is at least 4 times thicker and very robust.

5. The castings used to make up the sander are somewhat rough and have sharp edges in places. Another sign of a low-quality tool.

6. Lots of plastic used, even in the belt sander table.

7. Flimsy, poorly-cast disc sander table.

The moment I saw the tool, I knew I had been taken. I felt like the sucker at a 3-card-monte game. Now for the Customer Service issues:

I called Grizzly the day after I received this tool, telling them that it was of poor quality and requesting a refund. The answer I received from all levels of Customer Service, including the supposed head of Customer Service, Bruce, was that I would not be reimbursed for the shipping out to me, that I must ship it back out to them on my own dime, that they would charge me a 10% "restocking" fee UNLESS their experts decide that the tool was defective. As if that was not enough, they kept on repeating to me that they would go over the tool with a fine-tooth comb to make sure that it was in exactly the same condition (plastic bags in correct place, all packing foam intact, etc.) and if it did not meet their criteria, they would NOT issue me a refund of any kind. So then I would have to pay a THIRD shipping charge returning this hunk of Chinese scrap metal back to me. Even though at the time the tool was unassembled and unused, it was apparent that Grizzly would do nothing to help their customers, does not stand behind their products and would do everything they could to be sure that no refund of any kind would be coming my way. As if all that was not insult enough, Grizzly will not discuss Customer Service issues on their toll-free 800 number; you must call Washington State long-distance and endure long waits on hold. That sure puts a damper on things! While their Customer Dis-Service staff was polite enough, each one I spoke to (3 different people) kept repeating the mantra about "...no return will be accepted unless tool is in resalable condition, etc., etc.) This motto must be painted on the walls of their Customer Dis-Service department, and feels like customer brain-washing; it seems to be designed to make the customer feel very uncomfortable about whether to risk sending a tool back only to have Grizzly find some tiny little item not to their liking and rejecting the return. This is probably the worst Customer Service policy I have ever encountered anywhere (except maybe J&R Music World in NYC where you need your dead grandmother's signature for returns).

Grizzly's website says "Our goal is simple - provide the best equipment at the lowest possible price and treat customers like we would want to be treated!" Well, I guess they actually LIKE being treated like second-class ctizens!

This tool is of less than mediocre quality, and possibly unsafe. Grizzly's Customer Dis-Service policy strongly discourages returns of any kind. If I could give this tool and the manufacturer ZERO stars, I would. I have learned that several other vendors, including that wasteland of junky tools, Harbor Freight (which used to be more appropriately named "Harbor Freight Salvage"), sells the identical sander under the Central Machinery name.

The equivelant Ryobi sander, the model BD4600, is much better made and is backed by Home Depot's fair return policy. Unfortunately for me, thanks to Grizzly's anti-customer policies,I am stuck with the Grizzly.

Grizzly's motto is "Purveyors of Fine Tools". I would change that to "Purveyors of Overpriced Junk". Don't get ripped off- look elsewhere for decent tools and honest vendors. You won't find these at Grizzly!

I've had this one for about a year. The 1/3 hp induction motor is underpowered for the type of load a 4" belt puts on it. The idler pulley has bronze bushings rather than ball bearings found on higher quality machines. The idler wheel seized on mine, and when I took it apart to check the bearings I found that the bushings were not replaceable, and not listed on the parts list. I was using just the disc wheel for a bit after removing the belt drive, and the capacitor that starts/runs the motor exploded. This is not unusual for cheap electrolytic capacitors, so replacing it should remedy that. But Grizzly tech support says that there is no capacitor! It is omitted from the parts diagram as well. Since this tool is made in China by who knows what company, Grizzly doesn't seem to have any idea of how to service or maintain it. You get what you pay for.

i've had this for about a year and would recommend it for small jobs.

I sand wood, fiberglass, and small concrete pieces with this. Its a great buy and a solid machine. as th olther reviewer said, the mitre is junk. waste of plastic. i'd never use it andway though, as a mitrer doesnt suit my needs.

blets are easy to change, and its very easy to adjust.

This is a sanding MACHINE I mean it really takes a beating from me, I make turkey calls and I have to do allot of sanding like on the paddle and it ran great even on the Brazialian cherry wood..Had a problem with it when shipped, called Grizzly got a tech and he sent me a new tower and its ok now..great service too.....

Bought one of these directly from Grizzly just under 2 years ago. I used it intermittantly to sand the edges off bases of polyurethane plastic model kits. Other than being very noisy when turned on, it seemed to work quite well. Fast-forward to a week ago, went to turn it on & the motor barely turned the belt/disc & then it started to smoke. Called Grizzly customer service & told them the situation. They said it sounds like the motor burned out & they could send me a replacement motor for the unit, at my expense ($81 + shipping - another $20). An entire new combo sander is $125, so I pitched the unit in the garbage & ordered a Wen combo sander through Amazon, couldn't be much worse than the Grizzly I had. Bottom line: my first & last Grizzly purchase. I realize I didn't purchase a top-of-the-line sander, but I did expect it would last a little longer than it did.

I'm sure that you might already know many companies sell just about the same product for about the same price. In fact most of the parts in these products are the same. Well, this sander is no different. In fact, yes, Ryobi does in fact make this sander, as do some other brands. The difference is going to be weight. Grizzly has replaced what is normally a plastic base with a cast iron base. Most everything else is identical to other brands. If it costs the same amount but is a heavier woodworking tool I would buy this machine from Grizzly first.

As for the machine itself, yes, you get what you pay for. Your going to get a machine that's not made for industrial use. If you think your going to be able to use this sander 8 hrs a day every day then your not going to like this sander. If you want to put it in your shop to use whenever you might need it for a few minutes or more you'll do just fine.

I've used it to sand cabinet door edges when I build kitchens and it has never let me down. I need to get a floor model but I plan on spending five times as much as I did on this sander so I'll expect more when I get it. I recommend this sander to anyone that needs a bench sander that they plan on using once in a while. For the money you can't beat it.

I originally bought these for my company for an industrial purpose. after a short time of use (approx. 1-2 months) the brass bushings in the front idler pulley wore out. The company discarded the machine to me. I got replacement parts still under warranted and put it back together. I used it in my home shop for approximately 30 -40 machine hours and the bushings wore out. what a disappointment. I am looking at another unit, the Grizzly H7761 Combo 2" Belt Sander 6" Disc Sander. This has ball bearings in all the moving parts. Grizzly tools can be of good value if you get the right unit.