Like many others I purchased the Porter Cable profile sander on the reputation of the company. I owned it about two hours before I returned it.brThe tool is powerful enough though rather bulky. The problems with the sander stem from the poorly designed profile material and the pressure sensitive adhesive used to hold the paper to the profile.brThe profiles are made of the same rubber your mother hated for putting black marks all over her kitchen floor.brAt least she could remove the marks. Ever try to get a rubber mark off bare wood in a tight place?brWith profile sanding it is a given that the sandpaper is going to be fit to a small contour or a point and therefore will wear out or clog very quickly.brWith this sander quickly literally means seconds!brIt is an enormous waste of time and sandpaper to change paper after every 30 seconds of use.brMachines should be time savers,not trouble makers.brDremel makes a profile sander that is much easier to use. The profiles do not make black marks as the paper does not wear out so quickly.The paper is industrial quality cloth backed which helps greatly.brThe paper is in the form of a hollow sleeve attached only by the form of the profile.brYou simply pop the profile off the machine ,roll the sleeve a little and pop it back on. Ah fresh paper cuts so well!brLike the other reviewers I own other Porter-Cable machines which I like very much. PC circular saw,the router/plunge router combo,4" x 24" belt sander and a biscuit joiner.pPlease save yourself the trouble and frustration of the Porter Cable profile sander.brIf someone gives you one as a gift,smile,thank them, and as soon as you can sell it!

A while back following a major wallet-emptying experience buying new windows for my house I decided to save money by recycling the 60 year old case molding. Having admired from afar the Porter Cable 9444 I finally felt justified in purchasing one. It was the right thing to do. This machine with it's 1.8 amp motor has the power to remove material surprisingly fast in small places while giving you excellent control. Despite the seemingly small footprint of the sanding pad and the accessories, this machine cut far faster than I had hoped for. Over 640' of molding that had been badly re-painted several times came clean quickly. There was always a profile head that matched a particular nook or cranny. Originally, I had thought to use the 9444 only to do the grooves and tight places, but I found it fast enough to do the faces and edges of the molding as well - it was easier (and safer for the molding) than getting out the belt sander. When you use this machine your hand circles the entire motor. This is not a perfect feeling and I found myself having to stop at times to rest my hand. However there was far less vibration transferred to your hand that I expected. Porter Cable seems to think that you will never need a place to store extra sandpaper in the ubiquitous molded plastic case - there is a place for everything that comes with the purchase but nothing extra. When will toolmakers realize that they are missing a free marketing-moment by this sort of shortsighted design? I consider these gripes somewhat minor compared to the overall excellence of the machine. If you only have occasional tight-place sanding to do, there is probably a less expensive rodent-like solution out there. But if you have a seriously large project to do or are in the trades you can't go wrong with this machine.

pbrI have a lot of Porter Cable tools, and I'm one of the company's biggest fans. I love their routers, their circular saws, their biscuit joiner, and I have them all. But this is without a doubt the worst value in a tool ever.pHere's what's good about the kit:br1) The profiles are handy when not attached to the sanderpHere are the problems:br1) First of all, the profiles never REALLY fit what you're sanding, so there's always a point early-on during the sanding where the aggressive action of the sander wears right through the sandpaper and you start leaving black rubber streaks on your material (the profile is now rubbing the wood directly).p2) The machine is not smooth.p3) It's noisy.p4) The profiles won't stay in the holder. They fall out.p5) PSA paper (uses adhesive). Not much fun.pSo... there's my opinion. I consistently rate this as the worst purchase I ever made as far as tools go. Save yourself some money and buy the profiles separately. All by themselves, they're usable. Attached to the aggressive sander, they last about 3 minutes before you're burning rubber.pSorry, PC... I would have loved to have said something more positive!

I make furiture and do some restoration work. This sander has been a time saver. I do not know how I would improve it. Others have told me this unit is hard to hold for extended periods, I have not found that to be the case. It cleans up very well. You will find it simple to change profiles and sand paper. Heat build up has not been a problem for me. This is a quality tool that has a fine fit and finish.

I have never in my life been so disappointed with a power tool. The sandpaper will not stay on the profiles no matter how clean and dust free the profile is. The profiles will not stay in the holder. I spent more time cleaning the black rubber marks off my bookshelf trim due to the fact that the andpaper kept sliding off or wearing out within 2 minutes of installing the paper. I will never buy another porter cable product, and I have been purchasing woodworker tools for 30 years, and respected the brand name.

This tool is a real disappointment. I won't go into repeating the negative comments of the other owners of this tool for fear of scaring off potential P-C customers. I own several P-C tools (circular saw, belt sander, plate (biscuit) joiner and RO sander) and am very pleased with their performance. I spend a fair amont of time on woodworking sites and reading magazine reviews before plunking down ANY money (even a few $ on sand paper)on a tool or accessory. Unfortunetely, this research was not down prior to buying this (s)tool. I purchased this before a remodel project and did not get to use it before the 30 day satisfaction guarantee expired. If this was not the case, it would have been returned immediately. I gave this tool 1 star, however, it does not rate even 1 star. Save your cash. P.S. I bought a Sandvik scraper with holster and profile blades, reground the blades to fit the specific profile needed and they worked like a dream. Tim Allen is wrong, more power is not always better.pOK, I have doubled the review of this tool after having it for over a year. There are a few tasks for which this tool is handy, i.e. sanding a roundover profile on a table edge. But still the tool's feel is cheap and the thing eats sandpaper. DO NOT try to sand a painted surface with it.

A good tool with certain attachments, but using the knife shaped tool -- and most of the sharper shapes -- with the adhesive backed paper is a cruel joke. If you're lucky and the black rubber thingy actually stays in the plastic holder, the paper will wear out in 10 seconds flat and the black rubber will rub all over your work. I honestly can't understand how such a ridiculously lousy design made it to mass production. Try again, Porter Cable.

I debated between this and several other "detail" sanders that had only .5 to .8 amp motors but cost less than half this one. The guy at the hardware store allowed me to test drive the 9444 and a couple of mere "mortal" sanders. The others bogged on a painted surface under just a little bit of hand pressure, but this one just kept right on going. So my wife got me the 9444VS and her sister got me the 333VS orbiting sander for Christmas -- and BOY AM I SATISFIED!! I've had a couple of chances to put them to work now on refinishing windows and moulding and some woodworking and now I can't decide which is my favorite tool, this or my PC router! I haven't had any of the problems with the profiles coming off or wearing paper out quickly that others reviewers have -- as a matter of fact, the paper seems surprisingly long-lasting. There always seems to be the right profile for the job, and they change out easily. As far as comfort, vibration is minimal even when going at it with some aggressive grits. I have larger hands, so the barrel grip was comfortable even going at some door frames for an hour at a stretch. This is not my first Porter Cable tool, and definitely not my last if they keep making satisfying tools like this!

I HAD BOUGHT THIS TOOL FOR MY GIRLFRIEND. SHE SAID THE SANDINGSTRIPS KEPT FALLING OFF, I THEN USED IT MYSELF, AND FOUND THAT THEREAL NARROW ONES DID FALL OFF, THOUGHT NOT SHOOTING LIKE ANOTHER CUSTOMER PUT IT, BUT THAT THE SANDPAPER WORE THROUGH ALMOST IMMEDIATLY. I WAS DISAPPOINTED IN THE TOOL UNTIL I HAD TO STRIP THE PAINT OFF OF MY WINDOWS AND SILS,I THEN FOUND THE TOOL WELL WORTH THE MONEY. JUST KEEP IN MIND THE FLAW IS IN THE SANDPAPER, WHEN YOU TRY TO BEND IT TOO NARROW. I WOULD RECOMEND THIS TOOL FOR SPESIFIC JOBS ONLY(REFINISHING+WINDOWS) IT CUTS DOWN ON TIME BUT DOES NOT ELIMINATE ALL HAND WORK.

This profile sander works great. I just refinished my bathroom vanity. Why buy a new one when u can get a great sander and save money refinishing. It get all the nooks and crannies and was still big enough to do the doors in an efficient manner. Make sure to pick extra sanding pads for the hook and loop type sand paper that was you can swap different grits rapidly.

Unfortunately, I have to agree with the other reviews. I also am a Porter Cable fan but this was one of the worst tools in my collection. At the cost of $100 or more, I expected much better. The attachments don't stay on, it is noisy. And now, after moderate use, it rattles and wines. It was a good idea on the drawing board but in practice it fell short.

Well this certainly has a range of opinions. Even after the negative reviews I bought it since I have faith in Porter Cable (no kool-aid comments please). I thought I would address the comments by J. Smith directly.
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br /1. Even with all the profiles there will be some times that they don't fit but by rotating the sander I generally get it to fit pretty close. I never have worn through a pad and gotten a black mark and do some pretty aggressive sanding (makes up for poor cutting). So I haven't had that problem. If you want to save a little money and get more variety on sand paper try this. I use regular sandpaper and spray the back with a 3M adhesive (#77). That will stay tacky for about 30 minutes so don't do to much. They stay on the profile fine and I am currently using some #50 to rough sand the trough for New Yankee Workship marble roll.
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br /2. It isn't really smooth but then it is a high speed vibrating sander so I didn't expect that. I have found that by tilting it slightly forward or backward it will travel in that direction along the piece quite nicely.
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br /3. It is noisy but then I wear ear protection every time I use a power tool and I am sure your mother would want you to also.
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br /4. I have had no problem with the profiles sticking and I even take them off and reposition them as one part fills up.
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br /5. I don't know how else you would get the paper to stick without adhesive so don't understand this comment.
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br /All in all I am very happy with this tool. Now back to sanding.

i cant expand to much more that previous reviews, but i used this to refinish 150 year old window frames with what seemed like 150 coats of paint. i had the frames dipped and used this sander for all the nicks and groves. just a note: if you keep the sander level, you will not wear through the sanding paper as previous reviews stated (although this is sometimes easier said than done) i could not be happier with this sander and would buy it again if god forbid i ever had to redo windows again.

This thing is too big to work with and awkward to hold. The profile holders come off the machine during use and the adhesive paper doesn't hold to them well. The HL paper work well on the triangle foot, but you can get something easier to user for a lot less money. All in all you need something smaller, lighter and with (wire or other) clambs to hold the paper.

This thing is junk.
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br /This sander offers 2 sanding methods each with it's own design flaw:
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br /1) When using the profile sanding plate, the sandpaper doesn't stick to the little rubber blades rendering the "profile sanding" claim false. The sander works great for the first ten sheets of adhesive backed paper, but when you get to the eleventh sheet of sandpaper the blade has become too gummed up. You can try washing it but it's never really the same as it was new. Maybe it's due to Lowes selling the wrong type and width rolled sandpaper, but I found this "tool" more frustrating than the last presidential election.
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br /2) The second problem is the failure of the adhesive which holds the velcro backing to the mouse-style sanding plate. This adhesive backing started to fail within the first 2 hours. After two days use then leaving the tool alone for a week, the first sheet of velcro backed sandpaper completely removed the velcro backing from the mounting. Sure I could try to find some type of glue to reattach the poorly engineered setup, but why should I need to overhaul a brand new sander with less than 6 hours use on it; this isn't a racecar engine?
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br /I'm getting the Dremel (6000-01 Contour Sander Kit) and hoping it's the right tool for the job.

I have a lot of Porter Cable tools and have reccomended Porter Cable to a lot of people. I have their routers, circular saws (older versions), biscuit joiner, nail guns and a lot more. I bought this sander a few months after they came out. It is the worst tool ever made. They need a better design for holding the profiles. I have used it 3 times and it sanded good as long as the profile didn't fall out. I have decided to use the profiles without the vibrator. I hope someone will come up with a manual type profile sander that you can grasp easier than the little profiles. I wish I would have given it back to the manufacturer, but I have had it too long. I would not reccomend this to anyone unless you want to use the profiles manually.
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An expensive mistake. Porter Cable is generally a decent quality product, but the profile sander is unusable. The paper does not stay on the profiles, regardless of gluing, etc.. It has been very frustrating to spend so much time attempting to redo a bad tool design, when you have invested $100+ in a machine that was sold to make your work easier. I'd sell it, but I don't feel right sticking it on anyone else.

I bought it to do my wood windows. Best investment I ever made. It gets in the tight places I could never do by hand. The hook loop paper is expensive but seems to last a long time.

My experience with this machine is the large sanding pad is very useful. The profile pads fall off easily and are more trouble than they are worth. If you want it let me know.

I recently purchased this tool to use in some detailed trimwork that I am installing in my house. I find the tool to be easy to use and quickly does the job for which it was made.
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br /I have seen some reviews that state that the adhesive backed sand paper doesn't stick well to the profiles. When I first tried to apply sandpaper to a profile I learned that it would not stick. But then I realized that the rubber profile had a powder-like substance on them, a residue of the manufacturing process. I cleaned that off and there was no problem with it sticking. Just like any other adhesive-backed product, the surface must be clean before applying the adheasive-backed product. Sort of a "duh" moment. Not a problem with the sander's profiles.
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br /I also have had no problem with the profiles staying in. Just make sure that they are fully seated in the holder clip that grips the profiles. Also, for additional sticking power on the adhesive-backed sandpaper, I recommend that you run the paper up the sides of the profile to almost the edge of the clip that holds the profile.
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br /All sandpaper clogs after some use. The smaller pieces will clog faster than the large pieces of sandpaper on, say a 6-inch random orbital sander. But I have had no problem with that. I understand how the use the tool and the sandpaper that is used with it.
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br /The first time I used it, I left a black mark on the wood. Another "duh" moment. I realized that I didn't cut the paper quite wide-enough to cover the entire contact surface of the profile. A new, properly cut piece applied and no more black streaks.
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br /I saw another comment about the profiles not matching every job. It would be IMPOSSIBLE to design profiles that *match* every profile of wood to be sanded. The trick is to practice and learn (quickly) how to use the existing profiles in ways that may not be immediately obvious. And one reminder that applies to ANY sander, don't hold it in one place too long or you'll remove more material than you wanted to remove.
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br /I am quite happy with my new profile sander and believe that I will use it many times in the future as I continue to improve the value of my home. I would have no problems recommending this tool to others.
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The manufacturer has down sized the 9444VS by reducing the number of profiles from fourteen to nine as contained in the 9444 model; the original package contained the Dust Wand which is no longer within the package; and case size has been reduced (it's black now instead of gray if you care). Effectively, the 9444VS kit is now the same as the 9444 with the exception of the tool itself. I was lucky enough to purchase the last kit in the store that was not down graded.brUpon taking the tool to the job site, I have been pleased with the tool's performance and versatility. The variable speed plus the lengthened stroke found in the VS model warrants the 30% increase in price over the 9444 even after the kit down grade. I was able to get into all locations by changing the profile accordingly. The resulting sanded areas did not show grit marks and therefor did not require and touch up, which was would have negated the usefulness of the tool.

Porter Cable is a decent quality product, I have and use a number of their products over the years and rate them as five star. I'm also a big fan but the profile sander is rather expensive, very poor to use, rather bulky, loud, and strongly recommend saving your money. Fein has a great sander and strongly suggest reading their reviews.

I HAVE OWNED THIS SANDER FOR ABOUT 7 YEARS AND AND HAVENT USED IT IN 6 YRS BUT STARTED TO GIVE IT ANOTHER TRY UNTIL I STARTED READING THESE REVIEWS AND THEY TRIGGERED MY MEMORY ON HOW TERRIBLE THE USE OF THIS SANDER WAS. MY REVIEWS OF THIS SANDER IS IN LINE WITH THE OTHER POOR RATINGS. THE SANDER DOES NOT HOLD THE PROFILES IN ITS HOLDER FOR LONG. BUT REST ASSURE BEFORE THEY FALL OUT THEY WILL LEAVE BLACK MARKS ON YOUR WOOD SURFACE. VERY SURPRISING COMING FROM THIS COMPANY. ALSO THE SAND PAPER WARES THROUGH IN A MATTER OF SECOND. IM NOT GOING TO EVEN TRY TO FIND THE REPLACEMANT PARTS FOR THIS SANDER AFTER THESE MEMORIES WERE BROUGHT FORTH.
br /ANYWAY HOMEDEPOT (WHERE I BOUGHT IT FROM) DONT CARRY THE MACHINE ANYMORE. I DONT THINK PORTA CABLE EVEN MAKES IT ANYMORE. HOPE NOT!!
br /PS. I CANT SEE HOW ANYBODY CAN GIVE THIS SANDER A RATING OVER 2 STARS!!

I am retired and a part-time woodworker. I have used one of these for sanding:
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br /in the corners of bookcases
br /flutes on bookcases and other work
br /door casings
br /molding on doors
br /louvers on bifold doors (way too many of these!)
br /and, many more small projects.
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br /I finally wore the four slide bushings out on the first one. I bought a second unit from Amazon this week. I have ordered replacement bushings for the old one. The only noticeable wear on the "old" one was the bushings. For the price, this tool has been a dream. It does things that would take much longer without it.
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br /I read a review that complained of the adhesive backed sand paper not adhering to the profile. I had this problem briefly. As with most PSA sanders, if you press to hard on the tool, the adhesive backing overheats and becomes weak. Or, if you don't keep the rubber profiles clean the paper will adhere poorly. As for the paper wearing through, replacing the paper will prevent it from wearing through and damaging the work. I have never had this problem.
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br /The optional dust collector attachment works well with the sanding pads, but not with the profiles. As with every tool I own, the dust collector hose is annoying, but not as much as the dust.
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br /In summary, I would say I would buy another one. . . . but then I just did!
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br /Bill
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This is definitely the tool to have when it comes to difficult sanding tasks: It goes into inside corners and curves with ease and the variable speed allows less or more agressive sanding. The dust port is great, hardly any dust when hooked to vaccum. Great feel in the hand, good weight and just all around the expected American made PC quality!

This sander is one of the best on the market. I have used my neighbors a couple of times before purchasing one for myself. It takes a little time to get used to the proper pressure to use to prevent the sand paper from being worn out too quickly and causing black marks on the surface. But as with any tool it takes some patience to get the form right to use the tool properly and obtain the desired results.
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br /My only issue with the current production tool is that Porter Cable has reduced the number of profiles available. Earlier versions came with 18 different profiles. The current version only comes with 9 different profiles.

save your money period. had i read the reviews before purchasing this product i'd never made the investment. returning this one asap!!!!

This is the single most useless piece of junk porter-cable ever made. It is a complete waste of money and a huge source of frustration. I cannot believe the company made such a horrible tool. If I was porter-cable I would remove the tool from circulation to avoid completely driving away customers forever. IT DOES NOT WORK and makes more work if you try to use it. VERY VERY VERY DISSAPOINTING !!!!

After useing the profile pads a few times they will not stay in the mounting attachment. I insert them in the mounting attachment,turn the sander on,and they shoot out of the attachment like a bullet. Is anyone else haveing this problem? At this time I WOULD NOT recommend this sander to anyone.

My father was a very talented woodworker who was self taught,over the years he made some beautiful pieces using porter cable tools. Just before he died after fighting cancer for five years he wanted to buy me something that I could use around the house and also I could remember him when I used my tools.He bought me a Double Insulated Profile Sander Model 444 this was in 1996 I still use my Porter Cable Sander today and it is still going strong. Thanks Dad Love and Miss you and thanks Porter Cable Keep up the good work.