Reddit mentions of Black & Decker RO100 5-Inch Palm Grip Random Orbit Sander

Looks pretty easy. The basic steps are Sand, Seal, Stain, Finish

1. Sand - Get a Random Orbit Sander and some 100 and 220 grit pads for it. Use the 100 grit to sand everything down until it looks like new again, then use the 220 to sand it all nice and smooth. Do a good job here, because poor sanding will show up in the finished product. You don't need the random orbit sander for this and could do it by hand with a sanding block, but the machine will do a better job of sanding and do it in about 1/20 of the time.
   
   
2. Seal - I've used Minwax pre-stain conditioner. There are instructions for how to use it at the link
   
   
3. Stain - Get a nice oil based stain and apply it. I use a foam brush to apply the stain, wait about 30 seconds, then wipe it off with a cotton rag (old t-shirts work great). Wait a couple of days after staining before proceeding to step 4
   
   
4. Finish - This is always the hardest part, because it's the part that will show/bring out any imperfections that were left in the previous steps. You'll need to find a dust free room (floating dust in the air will land on the finish as its drying and become embedded in it). My favorite finish is wipe on poly because it applies easily with a rag (another old t-shirt, cut into strips), and doesn't leave runs or brush marks. I typically wipe on one coat a day, applying each coat on top of the previous one. I'll normally do three or four coats. Some people say you need to sand between coats but from my experience I don't see any difference between sanding and not sanding, except that sanding takes off some of the finish, requiring more coats and also requires cleaning the piece between coats.

It completely depends on your financial situation, but I would recommend just buying your own tools. You will get more than your moneys worth if you hang on to them for 5-10 years. Which is very easy with proper care.

Here are some cheaper yet not terrible options on Amazon. These should get most jobs done around the house.

• Orbit Sander $28
  
• Assorted Sanding Disks $20
  
  
  Total of $48
  
  
  
  If you want to go with another method outlined here you can use a regular drill. Tons of uses for a drill other than sanding down your skillet.
  
  
• Drill $30
  
• Coarse Wire Brush attatchment $9
  
• Fine Wire Brush attatchment $6
  
  Total of $45
  

Yes, owned the sander ahead of time, but seriously, it is so so much better than the little ones that look like this. By better, I mean 'faster' and more efficient.

I'm the kind of person who doesn't want to spend tons of time on a project. I apply that to everything, like buying a mower with a wider cutting surface, a bigger washer/dryer, etc.

IMHO people underestimate how much time they lose by trying to save $20 here and there.

We got the white goods on sale at a big box store that was moving older inventory, so only paid $110. The cabinet was only about $40 on Overstock, and the floor tile was also in the sale section at the big box store, and only ran about $30...add a can of latex paint, spackle, grout and caulking for another $30...I guess it was about $210. We were just lucky with the sale, I guess...it is probably still do-able for $300 if you don't need to have the newest/latest and are happy to buy odd lots.

I've heard good things about Habitat for Humanity stores as well for finding bargains, but I've never been to one...perhaps someone can share?

Prices aren't shown on the Home Depot site, but on amazon it is more than twice the price of the 5in B&D.

Though, the B&D doesn't say it's variable speed. Maybe that's the difference? Is it important?


http://www.amazon.com/Black-Decker-RO100-5-Inch-Random/dp/B0000302V3/ref=sr_1_2/175-1871714-6992552?ie=UTF8&qid=1427466816&sr=8-2&keywords=Random+orbit+sander