My DA sander grenaded mid panel last Friday and I had to improvise a fix

I was blocking out a quarter panel on a 2018 Civic and my 6 inch DA sander just locked up solid. The backing pad seized right in the middle of a pass. I popped it apart and found the bearing had basically turned into gravel inside the housing. It was 3pm on a Friday and I couldn't get a replacement till Monday. So I pulled the old bearing out with a pick set, packed the cavity with lithium grease as a temp fix, and got through the rest of the panel by the skin of my teeth. Has anyone else had a tool die on them mid job and had to MacGyver something just to finish?

2 comments

2 Comments

jenny_jackson2d ago

Mixed some quick epoxy and rednecked a coat hanger through the pivot point on my old compressor once just to get through a Saturday. Sometimes you just gotta make it work and worry about the proper fix later.

jakem982d agoOG Member

That bearing turning to gravel is a rough sound to hear, I still remember the grinding noise from my old Dewalt orbital that locked up on a Mustang hood last year. I had to pull the whole housing apart on the tailgate of my truck just like you did, using a screwdriver to scrape out the metal chunks. @jenny_jackson your coat hanger compressor fix is exactly the kind of gritty thing we all do when the clock is ticking on a job. It's frustrating when a tool gives out on a Friday afternoon and you either find a hack or you're stuck cleaning up and going home early. Sometimes the temp fix is the only way to keep moving, even if you know you're buying a proper replacement first thing Monday.