frontpage Posted by Rokket | Staff • Yesterday
Jul 5, 2025 7:06 AM
Item 1 of 2
Item 1 of 2
frontpage Posted by Rokket | Staff • Yesterday
Jul 5, 2025 7:06 AM
Milwaukee M18 18V 5" Random Orbit Sander w/ 5.0 Ah + 2.0 Ah Battery & Charger
+ Free Shipping$149
$359
58% offHome Depot
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I have one of these. With the 5.0 battery it should perform well and last through most projects. I question using a 2.0 battery in this. Perhaps for light touch up only.
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hopefully you're not sanding floors with this little guy
However I came up with this solution which not even Milwaukee knows how to properly address. ( Milwaukee only replaces the parts and hopes for the best), it's literally a matter of luck this tool spins properly for you. Having it RMA'd reportedly fixes nothing.
There's 2 mods that you need to do-
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1 you remove the sanding disc by unscrewing the four screws and then unscrew the inner spinning ball bearing plate, then use a very thin washer with an inner diameter of the size of a penny, if you have one, OR use aluminum foil which is what I had to do, you can you wrap it around the metal post that the spinning bearing plate goes down onto, this spaces the sanding disc away from the plastic guide points beneath, allowing the freedom of spin without the disc getting friction. You want the aluminum ring stack to be a bit thinner than a dime once it's hammered into position, use a hammer and carefully tap the smaller spinning disc to crush the aluminum solid, and then tighten the starbolt that holds it in place about as tight as you can.
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2 remove the black bearing casing of the smaller spinning plate and pack it with a grease or wax along with a lot of gritty dust, I used sawdust and some dirt that was on my basement floor and packed it in underneath the black bearing then packedit tight with some old hoof grease wax. The bearing as it comes is much too free spinning and there's no actual snag to hold spin from the oscillating disc underneath, the part that actually receives the spin power, that transmits to the smaller top spinning plate. The spinning top metal plate ball bearings NEED TO BE STICKY but still passive, NOT extremely passive the way it comes out-of-the-box. At full speed spin it would full stop with the touch of a finger..
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Anyway these mods are very easy to do. You will understand these instructions perfectly when you're looking at the parts. This is now my favorite Sander I've ever had, it is awesome, comes with standard shopvac attachment (also get your self a 15ft shop vac extension, more movement freedom and further distance from the sound 👍)
(with this guide) $150 this is a great deal!
-find a deal on another 5.0 battery and you'll be sanding without interuption, the 2.0 is a joke aside from using a drill.
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-The fuel version is seems balanced with a larger battery and not worth such a large price hike for the smoothness and power efficiency, (this sander here already had the lowest vibration ever which is great). You'll want two of the new version 3.0 batteries for the fuel. ~$400 total)
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