Item : B00004YOKT Customer Reviews A must have tool for prep work for any exterior painter by .. Robert H. Haberkorn (Sothern California) This is the least expensive, best designed tool for prep work available. It's very tough, light weight so it's easy to use, and best of all it takes 5" center hole sanding disks. They are cheep, come in a very wide varity of grits and can be found at any big box store, hardware store, paint store, ect. That was true up until August of "06. Now 3M, Norton and others appear to have discontinued the product, rendering to tool useless. 3M, Makita and others are you listning? We need out paper back. A well built and useful tool by .. () I have used this tool for sanding down paint on houses, a job it is particularly well suited for. The features I appreciated most were: - Light weight (much lighter than a disc grinder - but it still feels well built) - Great balance (making it much easier to use one-handed than a grinder) - Durability and suitable power Overall, this is a great tool for painters, which is why it seems to be standard issue with many pros. If I were using it for anything else (sanding or grinding fiberglass, for instance), I would personally prefer a sander that has speed control (such as the 7" sander/polishers from Makita or Milwaukee) so that I could have better control of the amount of material being removed. But for painting houses, I consider it a must-have. The only thing I have come across that could use improvement (and it is a bit nit-picky) is that the trigger lock is difficult to operate with the left hand - I am right handed, but sometimes need to use the tool with the left when up on a ladder, etc. I have also seen it cheaper than Amazon's current price ($99) at a local home superstore... Great little labor saver by .. Jon M. Hager (Grand Prairie, Texas United States) If you need to remove paint from a house, barn or old garage, buy this thing before you start. It does an excellent job without marring the work surface. Considering the amount of effort it saves (esp. over using a scraper), it's dirt cheap. It's also very durable (I've had mine 7+ years). I only wish their orbital sanders held up this well. With a coarse grit sanding disk you can quickly and easily take an old painted surface down to bare wood. I learned about the tool from a house painter who told me it was invaluable. One warning though, be sure to use the side handle that comes with it. It runs at high speed and if you're using it in only one hand, it can get away from you if the disk gets wedged in a crack or caught between two boards. The bottom line is, unless you really enjoy scraping paint (in which case you're a little weird), you'll want this tool - it's a MAJOR labor saver. Superb Grinder/Sander especially with fiberglass by .. () Borrowed one of these (then bought one) and used to grind out an old floor that was glassed into a '65 fiberglass runabout. Was super fast and the control was amazing. Loved how light and powerful this little dynamo is. A handy,versatile tool. by .. () I do alot of metal fabrication and welding,and I recently purchased one of these sanders. It is one of the best purchases I have made.I find myself reching for it more and more in place of my usual grinder.It leaves a much nicer finish than a disc grinder,and it is perfect for dressing welds without having them look like they have been hit with a grinder. It removes material rapidly,and is very good for removing paint prior to welding. I use either 36 or 50 grit discs,and they seem to last very well.This tool is highly recommended.