Craftsman sander

[Vic Eirschele]

I have a 20 year old Craftsman sander that is stand mounted. It has the 48 inch belt on a table that can be run in the vertical
and horizontal position. I think this is pretty typical. It also
has the 9" round disk on the side. It will NOT keep the adjustment after setting the tracking. Nothing comes loose, but if I loosen the setting bolt and readjust, the next thing you know there it goes off to one side or the other again. I took out
the bearings thinking that one was freezing up and found nothing. I got new ones anyhow and put them in and still have the
same problem. I have tried different kinds of belts and that did
not help either. This thing worked great for YEARS and now can't
figure it out. Any suggestions or have you had a similar problem?

[karl in pa]

Is the platen under the belt in good condition? If not you should replace it with something other than cork. Rockler (I think) has generic replacement platens that are made with graphite. This keeps the belt cooler by reducing the friction between the belt and the bottom of the sander. My Sears belt sander is acting the same way and I know my platen is shot.

[Richard]

I bought a sander like yours new in about 1982. I never could get the belt to stay on it. I finally gave it to the boy scouts to auction off at a meeting. I think though if you will check the idler roller for the belt and see if it is flat or crowned in the middle. If it is flat take some electrical tape and wrap it around the middle of it to give it a slight crown and I think you will find the belt will stay on it. I got a 3x21 hand held Craftsman at a garage sale a few years ago and the guy that sold it to me told me it was junk because it wouldn't hold a belt. I used that remedy and it has turned out to be the best $5.00 I ever spent on a tool.....
Richard

[Vic Eirschele]

The idler roller has a definite arch to it and shows the original
grooves machined into it. I just found someone talking about
poishing their table saw with wax and someone else used Slip-it.
I wonder if I should try to coat the surface under the belt? I
have never tried to do anything like that on it. I do wax the
table saw and know that sure is a good idea.