This article focuses specifically on edge sanders. Devomat sells two sorts of edge sanders under the Devo name (Speed and Sprinter). We spoke to managing director Joeri Vervoort about the qualities of the machines and made some surprising discoveries. One of them is that the so called ‘little brother’ Speed is also used by lots of parquet fitters for much heavier jobs than for which it is designed.

Speed of Sprinter
Joeri Vervoort says: ‘Actually, what it comes down to is that professionals always have to make their own choice. Everyone has his or her preferences and decides what’s best on that basis. For instance, some prefer a long lip for sanding obstacles, whilst others opt for a short lip because it is handier and compacter. This is purely a personal choice; in terms of operation and quality there’s no difference between the lengths and you don’t compromise at all in areas such as quality or maintenance; it’s just a matter of reachability. The length of the nose does have an effect on stability; the longer the nose, the greater the force exerted on the place of pressure and the more motion on the handles.’
‘With heavier renovation works you opt more easily for the Sprinter, whilst the Speed is designed more for lighter jobs. Nevertheless, some professionals opt to use only the Speed. You have to realise here that renovation nowadays seldom includes heavy sanding. This makes a light machine attractive as you work faster. What we find is that it’s mainly bigger parquet firms which use both machines.’

Adaptability
Mr Vervoort adds another point, namely the fact that edge sanding is physically demanding work.
‘All parquet floor fitters develop their own preferences for methods which are less of a physical strain to them. For instance, it can be a good choice to opt for a highly adaptable and light edge sander with various options for adjusting handles. We have to be quite clear at this point: In terms of adaptability the Sprinter is just stronger, both literally and figuratively. There are, for instance, lots more options with the handles. Amongst other things, I’m thinking of a button on the scoop in order to grasp the frame or a lever at the top which you can rotate 360 degrees, and a shaft which is adjustable in height whereby you can always adjust the tool as required by the user. The Speed has none of this.’
‘The Sprinter also has benefits for the work itself. It has a powerful motor and an adjustable rotation speed. That’s a big asset when you realise that at higher speeds you can grind more material more easily, whilst at lower speeds you can sand with fewer scratches and no ugly black marks or burns.’

Facts and figures
Some other facts and figures: There is a difference in diameter between the Speed (150mm) and the Sprinter (178mm) and both machines have two ways of holding sandpaper. This is done either with the use of Velcro or by means of a screw in the middle. With the Sprinter there is also the option of a lamp, both machines are equipped with dust suction as standard, and both machines can be connected to all vacuum cleaners from its own range. What other novelties can we expect?
‘Actually very few, I suspect, as the technology is advanced,’ Mr Vervoort surprises us. ‘What we’re mainly working on now is the positioning of the lamp, which might be a compact LED lamp in the future. Such a lamp is especially helpful to users because when you sand edges, you’re always facing
the wall and working in your own shadow. Optimal lighting gives users much better sanding visibility.’