The TSPS450 from Triton Tools is an oscillating spindle sander with a large 370 x 295 mm cast-iron table and a powerful 450-watt motor. Spindle sanders, sometimes known as bobbin sanders due to their cylindrical sanding drums are great for sanding curved surfaces. I purchased this one for sanding guitars as its accommodation of multiple drum sizes allows it to sand the intricate curves of a body and quickly shape a headstock.
The plastic body includes onboard storage for the supplied sanding drums of solid rubber and the matching table inserts. The sander is supplied with 6 80-grit sanding sleeves of 13, 19, 26, 38, 51 and 76 mm, with rubber drums for the latter five. The sleeves are all 115 mm high. These are all standard sizes and sleeves in 60-grit, 120-grit, 150-grit, 180-grit, and 240-grit are available from many suppliers. The 13 mm sanding sleeve requires no drum and instead mounts directly to the machine shaft.
Three top spindle washers (15, 21 and 46 mm) are provided along with a single nut and metal support base. The spindle support base has finger holes to lift it from the hole in the table. The sander includes an angled spanner to tighten the top nut, which applies pressure to the top of the rubber drum, causing it to bow outwards and grip the sanding sleeve.
The sander is belt-driven via a 450-watt motor, with a no-volt release safety switch. There is no speed control which is a bit of a shame, as at an unloaded speed of 2000RPM the sander can be too fast for delicate work. One also has to pay particular care when the workpiece first contacts the drum, as working with the rum’s rotation as opposed to against it can quickly take the piece from your hand or sand a deep curve where you hadn’t intended. The oscillating function has a stroke of 14 mm at 58 oscillations per minute. The oscillating action all but eliminates burning of the workpiece or sanding sleeve providing a quality sanding sleeve is used.
The sander is extremely well built and weighs just a shade over 12 KG. The cast-iron table is nicely ground; not to a polished finish, but that isn’t necessary here. I found absolutely no play in the spindle itself and I found the spindle to be absolutely square with the table right out of the box. I don’t see an obvious way to adjust the angle of the spindle, though I noted in reviews of Triton’s combination belt and spindle sander (TSPST450) that several users had reported the spindle sander being out of square with the table. Squareness was an essential requirement for me, and as I already had access to a belt sander this was the primary reason I opted for the standalone spindle sander.
The TSPS450 is not particularly noisy in operation. It produces a whirring sound much like a handheld orbital sander running at a low to medium speed. If you have a dust extractor connected, the large drum hole in the table and the finger cutouts in the bottom spindle support plate cause a kind of ‘whooshing’ sound as the spindle rotates, particularly with the smaller drums. This isn’t an issue and in fact the dust extraction facility is impeccable, with almost no dust escaping when it is used. The insert plates help immeasurably with this I”m sure, but it was a welcome surprise. The TSPS450 is supplied with an adapter which converts the rear sanding port to a 100 mm dust extraction outlet.
I have used the Triton TSPS450 for several sanding jobs, including its intended use in the finishing of guitar necks and body and in sanding templates and jigs with curved surfaces. It has performed flawlessly, with a nice finish even from the included course sanding sleeves and no burning. It would benefit immensely from a speed control, but apart from that omission it is an excellent machine and earns my recommendation.