Bosch 3727DEVS 3.3 Amp 6-Inch Hook and Loop Random Orbit Variable Speed Sander/Polisher with Dust Canister

I bought it mainly to sand down the inner skin of a cored floor deck in my fiberglass boat. Because I am sanding fiberglass, I am afraid that fiberglass particles may get onto my skin and make me feeling itchy. Therefore, I am trying this sander to see if its dust collection function can do the job in catching most of the dusts. I am not disappointed. After using it for half a day, I only see very few dust in the air (probably coming from two instances when I pulled the extension hose too hard and the hose came off from the sander). And the exposed area of my skin didn't feel itchy either (the rest was covered with protective suit). I rate its dust collection function as very good.

As for its sanding capability, it sands quite fast. This is really not a surprise to me, and is totally expected. The reason is that I uses 60-grit sand paper, and its large 6" diameter sanding surface also helped.

I am very satisfied with this sander. I previously bought a Porter Cable 6" random orbital sander that I intended to use it to sand the deck of the boat. Honestly, I have never used it to do any sanding. Now, I use the Porter Cable sander strictly as a polisher for polishing and waxing my car, and it does a very good job. Now, this Bosch sander does all the heavy duty sander. I love both.

Of course, for removing a lot of material in a hurry (like creating a tapered edge along a fiberglass skin), I think using an angle-grinder is MUCH faster than any sander. The problem is that angle-grinder can kick up a ton of dusts (and itchy fiberglass particles), and I cannot find a way to collect the dust effectively. From now on, I will give this Bosch 6" sander a try before taking out the angle-grinder.

Thanks for listening.

I have used this sander for at least 30 hours a month for a year hooked to a festool tool vac. I had no problems with it in all that time. The sander was also 2 years old before I started using it. Other than just wearing out the hook and loop pad a few times it is a solid sander. Most of the sanding I do is making solid wood flush to plywood without sanding through the veneer for mantels, lids to desks and the like. The sander has good control and is very stable dust control is very good with the use of a tool vac. I will never sand without a vac saves the tools motor and your lungs.

This particular sander is mediocre at best, and I, like another reviewer, feel it's way overpriced for what you get. The one reviewer mentions how difficult to control this sander is and this is not an admirable quality in a power tool. But heck, one of their larger "sawsall" doesn't need a blade to take your arm off, it will just SHAKE it lose!

This is typical Bosch, some of their tools, regardless of origin are just designed too poorly no degree of production could help or hinder the result. However, like their jig saws, while the earlier designs were horrific, the most recent series is considered by many to be the best there is.

Another Bosch contradiction: Thier SDS hammers, while one model will literally fall apart while under use, another model is a dream come true. And so it goes. Many times it appears the most challenging element for Bosch engineers is COUNTER-BALANCING, considering how poorly some of their designs fair[as in the worst in the industry], while others inspire sonnets! It's almost as if two different companies were involved. In actually, it's almost certain two entirely different design teams are the answer, and in this case, a bad answer.

The country of manufacture has less to do with the success or failure of a trademan tool as the key elements will always start with a well-executed DESIGN, in ANY language!

AX~

Before purchasing this sander, I had a Porter-Cable single speed random orbit sander--and I had very little control. Once that thing got revving, the only way to slow it down was to flick the on-off button. I wore out two of those buttons on the P-C. A single speed is just not adequate for light touch-ups.

With variable speed, you can slow the Bosch way down just to do touch-ups without eating a hole in your wood. When you are really ready to eat wood, put it on high speed with some coarse grit, and for most applications you can say goodbye to your belt sander. I haven't used my belt sander since getting this beauty over 2 years ago. Why should I? This thing is very fast, easier to handle, and gives better results.

If you are going to run it on high speed for extended time periods, put on some anti-vibration gloves. During one project (10 tables over 4 weeks) I ended up with a bad tingling sensation in my hands that didn't lay off for about 3 weeks. Then I bought some anti-vibration gloves. These help a lot.

Some other positives: this sander REALLY holds the sandpaper. The hook-and-loop is so tight that I really wrestled pulling the paper off at first. With the P-C, I ended up replacing my hook-and-loop pad annually. In a couple of years, it would have made up the difference I should have paid in the first place for the Bosch. And the dust canister--quite an improvement over the paper bags that the previous version of this sander used (and I owned), which would tear after a while. They get more of the dust, and open up and clean rapidly. Be sure you snap them closed well after cleaning, as it is easy to think they are closed when they are not.

One should not forget the difference that the larger sanding surface makes. While the sandpaper is more expensive, it is larger. It lasts a long, long time--partly due to its size, partly due to efficient dust removal.

The extra support handle on the front of the unit makes the sander easy to handle and greatly reduces fatigue. And it can be removed when you want to get into tight spaces.

I hope I finally learn this lesson--buy a quality tool the first time, and save time, money, and fatigue in the long run. The Bosch 3727DVS is top rate.

I replaced a 5 inch sander (another brand) with this Bosch and I am very happy with the quality of the sanding. The sander is very agressive and needs a steady hand to steer it across the surface and assure even sanding. I finish most sanding jobs in half the time as before. The only drawback to this sander is that most big box stores do not stock hook and loop 6 inch sanding pads. This is only an issue when you run out suddenly and have to wait to order more.