DEWALT Sander Review: This Cordless Orbital Sander is Worth Its Weight in Gold [Updated for 2024]
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I rocked a Porter Cable corded palm sander for about three years before finally upgrading to the DEWALT DCW210B random orbit sander. I still have that old Porter Cable rig. It’s a great little tool that does its job well - apart from the whole cord thing.
I’ve had my DEWALT sander for about eight months now, and it’s proven to be a fantastic addition to my shop. The DEWALT DCW210B has pros and cons, just like any product. On the one hand, it offers excellent performance and reliability and is superbly balanced if you use a slim DEWALT battery. On the other hand, a slim battery doesn’t give you long-lasting power like bigger batteries do.
So, is the DEWALT cordless orbital sander the right tool for your needs? Let’s find out!
Table of Contents
DEWALT Sander Basic Specs
DEWALT Cordless Orbital Sander Features
Using the DEWALT Sander
DEWALT Cordless Orbital Sander Pros & Cons
DEWALT Sander Basic Specs
Size: 8.8 x 5.7 x 6.3 inches
Weight: 3.13 ounces (excluding a battery)
Motor type: Brushless
Recommended battery type: DEWALT DCB230C
Voltage & Amperage: 20V & 5 amps
Runtime: About 20 or so minutes with a 1.5Ah battery; 90+ minutes with a 5Ah battery
This particular unit is just the tool. I already have a million chargers and 20V batteries in the shop. I didn’t need additional chargers and batteries cluttering up my space even more.
I paid $100 for the tool only. A quick look at Amazon shows that this DEWALT sander is still priced at around $100.
DEWALT Cordless Orbital Sander Features
As I noted in my post on my DEWALT 20V MAX XR leaf blower, I’m a huge fan of the DEWALT grip. The grip is ideal for long sanding jobs, and the texturized finish helps you keep a solid grip on the tool. Even if I’m using the sander for an extended period of time, I don’t feel like my hand gets fatigued.
On top of that, the grip feels familiar, for what that’s worth. The consistency of DEWALT’s grip sizes from one tool to the next helps you know what to expect in terms of the tool’s operation and performance while it’s in your hand.
As with all of DEWALT’s brushless cordless tools, the motor offers excellent durability, performance, and efficiency.
At the base of the grip is a variable speed control (numbered 1-7) that allows you to adjust the speed of the sander from 8,000-12,000 OPM. This range of OPMs gives you the freedom to work on any manner of woodworking projects. And since it’s cordless, you can work anywhere in your shop (or outside of it, too).
The DEWALT orbital sander has many other features that make it a functional addition to your woodworking tool bench. There’s a dust-sealed on/off switch, an eight-hole hook and loop pad (which is replaceable), and a cloth dust-collection bag. Unlike most dust-collection bags, this one is actually pretty useful. Part of the reason is that the sander sucks up dust from below (through the holes in the hook-and-loop pad) and from the sides, just above the sanding surface. I also appreciate DEWALT's twist-lock mechanism to connect the bag to the sander.
Likewise, I appreciate the fact that you can connect the DEWALT cordless orbital sander to a vacuum to minimize dust output in the shop. You can opt for a DEWALT dust collection system, which attaches seamlessly to the sander, or you can purchase the DWV9000 universal vacuum attachment for vacuums with 1-1/4-inch hoses if you already have a Shop Vac. Either of these options will work far better in terms of keeping dust down than if you rely on this sander’s cloth dust bag.
Using the DEWALT Sander
I use this DEWALT sander on every single project I create in my shop. Whether I need to knock down a rough piece of western red cedar with some 60-grit paper or do some fine sanding work on a finished trim piece with 200-grit sandpaper, this little guy is my go-to tool.
When I’m working on a particularly rough piece of wood, I can lean into the sander pretty well without it overheating or stalling. I wouldn’t recommend laying into it hard or for an extended period of time, but if you have a difficult patch that needs worked over, you can give this DEWALT cordless sander a little bit of hell, and it’ll keep on chugging.
As I mentioned earlier, this DEWALT sander feels great in your hand. It’s extremely well-balanced, especially if you use a smaller battery. I typically use a 1.5Ah or 1.3Ah battery with this sander, and as long as I have another one fully charged, I can easily swap out batteries and charge the dead one before I run the second battery down to dead. Doing this enables me to retain a smaller footprint with the tool - larger batteries make it feel far less balanced and back-heavy, which obviously isn’t as good of a working experience.
Another feature I appreciate about this DEWALT cordless orbital sander is its quietness. I typically have ear protection on, but when I forget to put my earplugs in, I don’t feel as though my eardrums will burst because of the noise.
Something else I tend to forget is to let my sanders spool down before I set them on my workbench. Fortunately, the DEWALT DCW210B stops almost immediately, so I don’t have to worry about scarring or damaging whatever surface I set the sander on once I’m done with it.
DEWALT Cordless Orbital Sander Pros & Cons
Pros of This DEWALT Sander
Very well balanced
Quiet operation
Good dust collection
Lightweight
Great runtime, even with smaller batteries
Of course, another major benefit of this DEWALT cordless orbital sander is that it’s, well, cordless! I cannot stress enough how liberating it is to have cordless tools after using corded tools for so many years. While cordless tools are more expensive, they pay for themselves with improved functionality and a better workflow in your shop. It’s also safer not to have a million cords dangling over your workspace!
Cons of This DEWALT Sander
Bigger batteries make this an unbalanced tool
Dust port only works with specific DEWALT dust management tools unless you buy an adapter
Really, I have no complaints about the DEWALT orbital sander itself. The drawbacks only stem from the accessories you might use with it. A bigger battery doesn’t make this sander impossible to use by any means, and the adapter you need to fit this sander to a Shop Vac is about $21.00, so it’s not like a huge output of money to vastly reduce the dust in your shop.
If you’re on the fence about buying a cordless sander or another cordless tool for your shop, I say go for the sander first. So much of what you do in a wood shop requires sanding, so having a reliable and durable tool like this DEWALT cordless sander will make your work so much easier. Even if you aren’t in the DEWALT ecosystem, this is a fine tool to have on your workbench - and one that very likely might get you investing in DEWALT tools in the future, too!
If you need some inspiration for your home DIY projects, check out my favorite home improvement YouTube channels!
