Review for the new Rikon 50-114 belt/disc sander

[@unclemoe5733]

Thanks for this review. My old Craftsman finally bit more dust than it could handle and the motor fried today. Woodcraft sent out an email this morning that they were going on sale this Friday. I called and reserved one! I feel a lot better about this since watching your review. Thanks, well done and to the point! Reading some of the other comments just shows me how many people can find negativity anywhere!

[@adgieem1]

I about to purchase this exact sander from same seller. You provided good info. I wish you would use it for a month or more before you give a review. Walking us thru the knobs and buttons is not needed. Seeing it perform and knowing it’s holding up is a better video. Thank you.

[@nhchorin3371]

Thanks! Just got a sale flyer from woodcraft and the rikon 50-114 is on sale. After watching your review, I'm buying it. Want one, need one, getting one.

[@lancewarnick]

Thank you for the review.

[@lyric.kayden]

Great review, appreciate it!!! Mine arrives today via UPS and I ordered from Amazon. I ordered on May 16th and it’s just now getting here because of everything going on. I have Amazon Prime but Amazon considered it non essential so it was held off from shipping quickly as it usually would with Amazon Prime. At the time I ordered on May 16th it said inventory was low and only a couple left. Now it shows unavailable on Amazon and most online stores are out of stock of these. Glad I got my hands on one as quickly as I did and didn’t miss out. I originally seen the BuckTool model on Amazon but I’ve never heard much on BuckTool or know about them. I stumbled across the Rikon model by accident right before I almost purchased the BuckTool model. I’m sure without a doubt they are both made in the same factory possibly or BuckTool is possibly getting scratch/dent or return models and repainting then selling as their model. I’m not really sure. I just know Rikon has a bigger presence and been around for a long time so I chose to go with Rikon. I’m excited to get it today 🙂 Anyways thanks for the review, awesome job 👍

[@bkp100]

Thanks for the review... This seems to be another re-branded model of the Bucktool BD4801, as well as the Kastforce KF6004. Except, you mention it's a cast iron chassis (however, I believe it's cast aluminum, which is fine). Rikon seems to have added the disc guard, which is nice... might even add to dust collection efficiency. It's an excellent sander in its class, with the 3/4 hp direct drive motor... I just ordered the Kastforce version -- and you can find reviews of the Bucktool version all over. I've no doubt the Rikon (and other versions) will come up on price, when their superiority over others in its class is recognized...

[@Dragonuv2002]

Barry, you could very well be correct about the aluminum. It sounded and felt like cast iron when I tapped it with a wrench, but then again I’m certainly no expert, and am not familiar with the other brands. I’ve used it almost daily(with wood only) and have been extremely happy with it since the review was made.

[@karlgrabenstetter3719]

@@Dragonuv2002 Does a magnet stick to the casting?

[@kyril1]

What exactly did you mean by "Rikon superiority over others"? If you are looking for a "superior" model, that would be Porter Cable PCB420SA. That one does have a cast iron chassis and comes with aluminum rollers for the belt sander (it also weighs about 20 lb more to prove it). It also has a built-in blower fan that extracts the dust from disc and belt into a single outlet, which is easily accessible from the side. Furthermore, at the time of this reviewer's purchase of this Bucktool, the Porter-Cable was actually cheaper, $200 at Lowes (but went up in price since then, no doubt thanks to "superiority"). An inherent flaw with all of these sanders design, is that the left and right side of the chassis serve as the motor end-caps. In other words, if the motor goes out, you can't just swap it - you'd have to take the whole thing apart, pull the bearings out, order a replacement rotor or stator - your guess what went bad and put it together, hoping that you can keep the bearing still aligned with the shaft. Speaking of replacement parts... Rikon parts can be found and FWIW it is covered by a 5 year warranty. Bucktool has no web presence and no replacement parts, which makes me wonder what is that all these "reviewers" are aiming when they are peddling these tools to people's workshop. I didn't mean to unload here, by any means, just meant to say that I wouldn't trust a single thing on KZbin or anywhere else, where a person does not take time or effort to look in depth.

[@bkp100]

@@kyril1 Read it again. I didn't say "Rikon superiority over others." I clearly referred to Rikon and OTHER VERSIONS [using the same platform build]. The Rikon, the Bucktool, the Kastforce, and others are built on the *same* OEM platform (just a glance at the induction motor specs, tables, base, horsepower, etc. makes that abundantly clear). Porter Cable was NOT included in that list of OEM sanders, and w/ a cast iron base is NOT in the same class. At the time of my purchase, I looked at the Porter Cable, and didn't feel a 100% increase in price was worth the cast iron base (I have zero vibration in the Kastforce), and frankly, at ~$200, the five year rather than two year that I have held no additional appeal to me. Web presence is another factor that means nothing to me. We all have our buying criteria. You want to talk about Porter Cable that's fine, but it's not an apples to apples comparison at this price differential.

[@kyril1]

@@bkp100 In this case, your statement is even more dubious. All three, Rikon, Kastforce, and Bucktool are built on the same factory in China. Secondly, I was talking about objective, factual differences between the tools. Your personal buying criteria is completely irrelevant in this context - and is usually brought up to subvert the conversation. Just because you don't care whether you have access to spare parts and aftermarket support, or just because got you "lucky" with the unit that you received has no bearing on the objective, verifiable facts - like cast iron vs aluminum chassis, or aluminum rollers vs plastic rollers, or repairability vs tossing your tool into a garbage bin once it's broken. All this aside, I am actually not having any issues with your buying criteria, whatever works for you. All I am saying, is that this KZbin review does not go into enough depth to make a purchasing recommendation and your comment does not add anything to it either.

[@rw7532]

How well does the table for disc sander stay at 90 degrees? This looks a lot like the Porter Cable version and that was a constant complaint buyers had for that model. Thanks for the review.

[@Dragonuv2002]

R W, so far...so good. I’ve been using it to do more bulk shaping than actual sanding the last 1.5 months, and the table has held up well. I’m actually pretty impressed with the belt and disc that came with it. I figured I’d have had to replace them by now, but they’re still going strong after many resin, wood, and aluminum projects. Also, I did upgrade to a more powerful shop vacuum to catch the finer dust and that made a huge difference.

[@Jeremy_810]

This the same as the Porter Cable and Bucktool versions? I've been unable to get accurate weight descriptions on the other two. This says 32.4 lbs while the Porter Cable says 52 lbs item weight on Amazon. Description for the Rikon says die cast metal base. I just want to make sure they have the same cast iron base.

[@melgross]

You can easily hear the motor slowing down. I doubt it’s a 3/4 horse motor. One horse is 746 watts. 5 amps at 120 is 600 watts. But that’s input. If the motor is 75% efficient, a fair number, then output is 450 watts. That would be, at best, 0.6 Hp. Likely, it’s closer to 0.50, which seems closer to what it seems you were getting out of it. That’s ok, of course, but too many consumer brands take a little extra in their ratings.

[@Dragonuv2002]

Yes, it’s the 3/4hp model according to the label and manual. I don’t know about electrical conversions or anything like that. And yes, I was pushing down with a whole lot of pressure since nobody wants to see a review of someone babying a sander. I work almost exclusively with hard walnut, ash, hickory, and maple and it is awesome with removing large amounts of wood.

[@helios10261999]

Definitely similar to the buck tool.

[@joedance14]

Dust collection? How well does it work?

[@adventuristnw2321]

Hello Dragonuv2002, thanks for the great review. How is it holding up after a few months? Thinking about getting one for my small garage shop

[@Dragonuv2002]

Still going strong. If I had to get a second one, I’d have no hesitation on buying another.

[@1987gnXtreme]

Thanks for this review. I too was looking all over for a review on this model, finally found yours, thanks for making it. Have you used the dust collection at all? Just curious how well it works.

[@Dragonuv2002]

Yes, the dust collector gets the majority of it. I’m just using a shop vac for the dust collection, so it isn’t the perfect collection system, but it does well enough that there isn’t dust floating around and fine dust all over the table. Since the review, I’ve used the sander on resin, aluminum, and copper as well as wood, I’m beginning to wonder how I got by for so long without it. Now I don’t have to be so precise when parting tenons from my projects I turn on the lathe...I just sand them off in a matter of seconds. The only thing I would change on it would be the collector nozzle for the belt. If the belt is laying down, the unit has to be on the edge of the table to hook up the hose nozzle. If you don’t have a solid nozzle on the end of your hose, it’s not a problem.

[@318android3]

@@Dragonuv2002 how did it do on aluminum? Did the 80 grit that it came with work on aluminum?

[@Dragonuv2002]

@@318android3 yes, it works great on both aluminum and copper for getting to the final shape, but would need a much finer grit for finishing.

[@garyhinchey595]

Isn’t this the same sander as the Buck with a different paint job

[@Dragonuv2002]

I’m not sure. It’s been mentioned before, but I haven’t heard anything definitive either way.

[@joedance14]

Nice review. How do you like the Rikon 1218VS lathe?

[@Mahoganyfoxus]

I have the 1218vs and I ha e to say it's a wonderful piece of equipment. I have put things way bigger than I should have on it and it just doesn't stop.

[@Dragonuv2002]

I love it. I’ve had it for a few years now and haven’t had a single problem with it. I’m looking to move up to the 70-3040 in the next few months.

[@fierceflyer5]

How does the dust ports work?

[@Dragonuv2002]

Fierceflyer55, I just have a shop vac, but it does pretty well. With the power of a dedicated dust collection system, you shouldn’t have any issues. Each side has its own dust port and adapter.

[@MrSfrussell]

How long ago did you purchase that from woodcraft? The price now is $230

[@Dragonuv2002]

I purchased it on 17 December 2019.

[@MrSfrussell]

Dragonuv2002 thank you sir!

[@1987gnXtreme]

It's on sale right now for $169.99 from Wood Craft. . Guess where i'm headed.

[@micon9460]

Real good review bit man get a dust collector hooked up to that thing. You'll get lung cancer breathing in all the dust.

[@Dragonuv2002]

Mic On, I currently have a shop vac hooked up to it. I always wear a respirator and face shield, but for the purposes of being able to be heard, I didn’t wear them for the video. Once the daughter gets out of college, I’ll be able to install an actual shop dust collection system.

[@micon9460]

Good deal man.

[@colemahaney880]

good sander but way too much money