While contemplating new ways to use the roll sandpaper we keep on hand for lathe work, we hit on the idea of making our own flap sanding wheels. In Part 1 of this series, we showed you how to layout and make the disk. In this post, we can finish it up.

With the disk cut out, holes drilled and slots cut, the next step was to figure out how to hold the sanding strips securely while allowing for reasonably easy paper changes. Step one was to bevel all of the hole edges top and bottom with a countersink.

Really, the most difficult part of the design was to find the right method for holding the sandpaper. Since the holes are 3/8" and the roll sandpaper takes up space in the hole, 3/8" plugs were out, but 1/4" plugs were too small. 5/16" plugs might have been ideal, but a 5/16" plug cutter is not found in most shops. After much trial and error, the simplest solution was the best: Square pegs in the round holes!

5/16" strips of scrap wood fit snugly enough to hold the sanding strips during use, but were fast and east to insert and remove! The square stock was ripped on the table saw then cross cut with a handsaw to about 3/4". I cut 4 inch long strips from the roll sandpaper, folded each in half around one of the square "pegs", and slipped this into one of the holes on the flap sanding disk. Look closely at the photo here and you can see that the square is positioned so that one of the corner points is aligned with the slot in the outer rim of the disk. This keeps things from rotating and provides the right amount of friction. You may need to make your square strips a little smaller or larger depending on the drill used, backer on the paper and such.

All in all, you should find this a fun and very useful idea for around the shop. In the next post, we will explore some of that! We have even already gotten suggestions for uses we did not have in mind when we designed it!

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