Can a Cimex be set up and used to sand wood floors?

Hi Mark

Yes the Cimex can be used for sanding wood, and it works very well. You can use either the 400 rpm unit or the 880. The trick is finding paper. We were able to locate a very limited amount for doing some testing and it worked outstandingly well. If you have ever had the misfortune of sanding wood floors you know it’s a lot of work. I have a friend here in town that sells and installs wood floors. He laid a new floor in his showroom and I tested the Cimex on it. He could not believe ho much faster the Cimex was over his normal drum or belt sanders. The other thing he said is how much better the Cimex collected dust. The other thing is if you have ever done wood floors before you know how incredibly easy it is to mess up the floor by gouging it with a drum or belt sander; its not possible with the Cimex. Now here is one for you; I used a 36 grit paper on his floor where we did the test – it left the wood shiny. Yes, 36 grit paper left the wood with a shine on it. I am currently developing something to “fix” the paper availability issues and it will be vary affordable to use. Once I’m finished at my end I’ll let you know if you want. Another advantage to sanding with a Cimex is the scratch pattern. Because it’s elliptical you can run across the grain and it won’t cause any problems. You can also easily sand floors with contrasting inlays as well as parquet floors.

Just one more use for a very versatile machine.

David Gelinas
Marbleguy

That's good to hear, that it is do-able. Keep me posted on the sandpaper attachment issue, keeping in mind that my Cimex is the 24" model. I was concerned that the Cimex might leave swirl marks, as it does on carpet. Apparently it does not. I would guess that an edger tool would still be needed, at baseboards and in corner areas. I would also guess that when fitted with maroon pads, the Cimex could replace the need for a buffer, to abraid the surface between coats of finish. I'm curious, though, as to how a Cimex, with no attached dust collecting bag, could be good at dust control.