A few years back I decided to make a pattern sander out of an old shaper and an old craftsman 6x48 belt sander that I stood up and bolted to the table. I found a rubber drum on clearance and had my buddy at the machine shop make a shaft for it. It worked good but I have a hard time keeping shafts in it that won't bend or break after a few bows.
About a year ago I started looking on CL for an edge sander that I could afford to modify into a pattern sander and retire the one that I have....
Well, here it is. This weekend I will try to start making some new jigs to try out!
Thanks for all your help with the ideas on how to do this!!!