I have the Laguna/SuperMax 1938. I cannot compare it with the Jet, or with a wide-belt sander as I have not used either of those.
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I¡¯ve been satisfied with my Laguna. I use it primarily for light machining, for parts that I cannot run through my thicknesser. These include very thin pieces, very short pieces, and glued-up rings when making segmented bowls. The Laguna works very well for that. I think I ran a small wooden box through it once to straighten up the top. I¡¯ll run very dirty boards through the sander also instead of exposing the jointer or thicknesser cutters to the grit.
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Mine came with an enclosed cabinet and wheels. I added a Wixey DRO made specifically for the Laguna. Thickness control and thickness consistency is very good.
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Dust control is excellent.
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The Klingspor ¡°cut-to-fit¡± rolls fit and perform just as well as the one that came with the machine. It does take some care to install a roll, but it does not take long. The roll must be snug on the drum, or you¡¯ll wreck the sandpaper and gouge the workpiece. I often turn the machine on for a moment, then off and check the sandpaper to be sure it is still snug.
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You will want to get one of the rubber sandpaper cleaner blocks.
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I¡¯ve tried running a very wide panel through the machine only once, where the piece is wider than the 19¡± capacity. I seem to recall that the thickness transition between passes was not bad but not perfect either.
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The machine does not produce a surface ready to finish, even with 220 grit rolls. It will be flat, with no snipe, but not quite ready to finish.
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John Hinman
Boise ID USA
K700S and A941
