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Perhaps the least - like phase of a woodworking project is sandpaper , but today ’s big businessman sanders make quick study of what formerly took tiresome hours to do by hired hand . While belt drum sander , disk smoother , and swot up smoother work well for smoothing magnanimous boards and panels , they ’re too cumbersome — and often too aggressive — for the hunky-dory sanding required to make a flawless finish and sleek feel .
Enter Ryobi ’s cordless detail sander . I tested a smattering of compact electric sander to ascertain which models qualified as today’sbest detail sanders , and theRyobi Corner Cat Sanderearned its situation on the card . Ryobi is a flagship brand of The Home Depot , and over the year , I ’ve find more than a few Ryobi power tools that performed at a gamy grade . The Corner Cat smoother is one of them . I test its sanding ability and noted its tone and overall ease of usage . Read on to recover out how this detail sander perform in my hand - on testing before deciding whether it deserve a spot in your woodworking shop .
Photo: Glenda Taylor
Ryobi 18V Corner Cat Sander: At a Glance
Rating:8.5/10
PROS
CONS
Photo: Glenda Taylor
Get the Ryobi Corner Cat detail sander at The Home Depot for $ 109 .
What is the Corner Cat Ryobi sander?
TheRyobi Corner Cat sanderis a compact detail sander explicitly made for sand woods in corners and tight spots , which are common on handcraft furniture or cosmetic console doorway . The Corner Cat features a lightly rounded triangular base — called a mouse base — that features a hook shot - and - loop sanding pad of paper attachment . retrieve Velcro : The mouse - shaped sandpaper pads adhere to the bottom of the tool ’s plate and stay put during use . I did n’t have any worry with a pad coming loose , and it stayed firmly attached until I purposefully pulled it off .
The Corner Cat is battery operated , and it comes with a 4Ah rechargeable lithium - ion battery and a charger . I was impressed with the battery — oftentimes , a power tool will include a lower - capacity battery , but 4Ah is a good capacitance and it did n’t run down during my mental testing , which hold out about 2.5 hours .
How well does the Ryobi sander perform?
apart from the pointed pourboire that ’s designed for sanding in tight smear , the primary feature of this Ryobi sander is its powerful motor that produces 11,000 OPM . As an orbital sander , the sandpaper plate on the Ryobi moves in tiny circles ( i.e. , orbits ) , which subjugate the risk of crabbed - grain sanding marks . While some grade can occur with any mogul sander , after using the Ryobi 18V on both hardwood and softer pine card , I only found a few superficial chicken feed mark . I was able-bodied to buff those off quickly by paw with a few swipe of micro - grit emery paper .
Whether you ’re using the Corner Cat , a different finishing smoother , or sanding by hand , succeed good sanding techniques to get the best event . These include :
The Corner Cat is scant , weighing just 1.54 Ezra Loomis Pound without the shelling and less than 3 pound with the electric battery attached . The sander do well when I took my time and let it do all the study .
Photo: Glenda Taylor
Is this compact Ryobi sander easy to use?
This is one of the loose detail sanders I ’ve ever used , and that ’s primarily because it did n’t come with a bunch of bells and whistles I had to read before I could start testing .
The 4Ah assault and battery bust into the battery charger , and it had an indicant that allowed me to supervise the agitate progress . It took less than 2 hr to charge the battery completely . Installing the battery on the electric sander was just as bare — it flick right into place on the back side . Removing it need depressing two push on either side of the battery while pulling it out . This postulate a fairly strong clutches , but most users will likely have no job removing the battery .
TheRyobi detail sanderhas an on / off cradle button on the front of the dick , which I found easy to operate by flavour . advertize properly , it turns on ; push left , it turns off . The tool came with two sample sandpaper pads , but woodworkers canorder moreto keep on hand for project . It ’s simple to run along up the precut sand pads with the sanding photographic plate and then smooth them on . They stick by well , but they are not hard to peel off .
Photo: Glenda Taylor
How does this Ryobi detail sander compare to other detail sanders?
public presentation - wise , the Ryobi Corner Cat sander holds its own against the otherdetail sandersI examine , except for two drawbacks . First , the Ryobi lacks an onboard rubble - collection scheme . The other detail sanders I tested had small bags or canister shot for capturing sand dust . The Corner Cat does offer a method for accumulate dust via an accessory that attach to a store - type vacuum , but it’ssold separately , so I could n’t test that characteristic .
The other difference is the lack of sanding - plate options . The other item sander I tested came with exchangeable plates , let in satisfying , rectangular , circular , and/or thin narrow plateful called fingerbreadth sanders for smoothing between president rail and other limited smirch .
That said , most woodworkers would probably concord that the black eye shell is the most functional sanding - home base shape for a point sander . Plus , I ’m one of those citizenry who care designated tools in my workshop that I can grab as needed , rather than spending clip detach one plate and impound another with a screwdriver . So for me — and perhaps other woodworkers — a single plateful is a benefit , not a hurt .
Photo: Glenda Taylor
to boot , the ergonomic grip on the Ryobi electric sander is quite nice . It ’s place directly over the sanding plate , which declare oneself maximal control , and it features padding that reduces vibration . All in all , it ’s a nice little detail sander .
Is this compact Ryobi woodworking sander a good value for the price?
At the meter of piece of writing , the Corner Cat drum sander sells for $ 109 atThe Home Depot . This is a sane price for a midrange cordless particular smoother . Compared to the other particular smoother I examine for our comprehensive lineup , the Ryobi was more expensive than the cord models but less expensive ( by about $ 200 ! ) than our Best Overall pick .
To pile up detritus , call back that you ’ll need topurchase the accessorythat attaches the Corner Cat to a shop - vacuum hose , and that will add another $ 14 to the total cost . The cost to buy additional sanding launching pad melt down about $ 5 for a nine - musical composition set .
I consider the Corner Cat sander to be worth the price principally because it ’s a cordless sander , and the included barrage fire is relatively eminent capacity ( 4Ah ) . While I typically utilise detail drum sander in my woodworking shop — where I can get at wall plug — I’m not lovesome of cords . I ’ll receive the need to charge and recharge a barrage to keep from being limited by the length of a tool ’s cord . It ’s so much more convenient to practice a cordless power tool , so I feel this Ryobi sander is well worth the monetary value .
Where to Buy the Ryobi Corner Cat Detail Sander
Meet the Tester
Glenda Taylor is a merchandise tester and writer specializing in construction , remodeling , and real estate of the realm . She and her married man own a general contracting company , and she is experienced in both residential and commercial building applications . Taylor screen a blanket range of power tools as well as other home improvement , family , and lawn - and - garden products .
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