Customer Reviews for RYOBI ONE+ 18V Cordless 3 in. Variable Speed Detail Polisher/Sander (Tool Only)

Bought this little guy for working on my fiance's headlights. Worked great! I also used it for polishing my ring while I waited for her to come home. See the pictures for proof that it's a great tool.

This Ryobi spot polisher/sander is a very nimble tool for small areas. It comes with 2 foam and 1 wool attachments for polishing, each are 3” wide. There are also 3 sanding discs (60,80, and 120 grit) used for detail spot sanding, each disc is 2” wide. This product is not designed to buff large areas such as waxing a whole car, rather for spot buffing and sanding. Ideal polishing uses are for buffing out small paint blemishes on your car or for refinishing the plastic headlights that get cloudy as a car ages. The sanding discs can be used for light rust spot removal or smoothing out jagged edges on wood or metal. This polisher/ sander has only has one direction on it, no reverse. This one direction spinning is by design so the twist on spindles do not back up and unthread themselves. It comes with a long screw in handle for stability so that the unit does not “walk” to the right as you touch a surface when its spinning. If I were to have one recommendation for this product, it would be to have a small nylon carry bag for all the attachments. It did not come with a bag, so I put all my attachments in a Ziploc bag. Overall I think this is a great product to have for small buffing and sanding needs, it seems built really well and even has a light near the battery that shines up illuminating your surface.

Absolutely recommend, awesome sander/polisher.

This is a perfect piece of equipment for home and work. I manage a fleet of over 100 vehicles and from time to time they need some extra love and attention. This tool is going to come in super handy with just that. To add, at home I'm always doing fine detailed work and the sander is by far going to be very useful. What I love most is that this tool is just not a tool... its a MULTI-TOOL! You can use it for sanding, polishing, cleaning, scrubbing and so on. To me this increases its value significantly. I love that its light weight and easy to handle. When you have to do those fine - detailed jobs this will come in handy. Speaking of, it fits pretty good in my hands as well. When I used it to clean the hard water build up in our shower the variable speed control helped out. I had a spot that was tougher then the other areas. I kicked it up a notch and just like that the stain was removed. Overall, this tool fantastic and if I could give it 10 stars I would. Definitely RECOMMENDED!

i really like this ryobi one+ cordless 3in variable speed detail polisher/sander. i have other ryobi tools so i already had a battery. its fairly lightweight in size so i can use it for a good amount of time and not have a tired and sore wrist. i will say i use it more as a polisher and not so much sanding. i tried detailing my car and the pad size is just too small. with this size i focus on smaller areas and it works perfectly. i really like the light at the bottom too because it provides light when i'm in those tight or small spaces. over all the options are good and this is a good additional tool but not an end all for detailing. worth a try though.

This is a great little polisher and sander to keep in your tool arsenal for easy and quick jobs you may have. You can use the Ryobi One+ battery(it is not included in this bundle) which delivers good performance and is interchangeable with a wide array of tools. It is very easy to use out of the box either for sanding or polishing whatever your needs may be. It also comes with a side grip handle that can be easily attached or removed. There are 2 speed settings located on the top for sanding or polishing.The 2 inch sanding discs easily screw on/off and come with 60-80-120 grit pads and the polishing pads come with 2 types of foam and a wool pad. I used it to wax my truck and although smaller than a typical buffer it was easier to control and I was able to get into hard to reach places easier and with no cord had the flexibility to move about freely. This is a perfect tool to keep on hand for the DIY’er for quick sanding jobs that don’t require a large sander and will fit easy into a tool box or drawer.

This thing is awesome! I used it to clean up the hard water spots on the cowling of my boat motor and it worked great! Buy it, you will not be disappointed!

This Ryobi 18v One+ 3 in. Variable speed detail polisher/sander is great. I like to start my reviews off with the tool's features and then end it with my personal experience. This tool has 2 different modes. There is a switch that easily changes between modes. The polishing mode has a speed between 0 and 2,800 RPM. The sanding mode has a speed between 0 and 7,800 RPM. With the variable speed trigger you control the speed by the amount of pressure you put on it. The maximum accessory size for polishing is 3 in. And for sanding 2 in.. This tool comes with a nice hard plastic handle for maximum stability and control. The handle is a screw on type and can be mounted on the left side or right side of the tool. This tool has many applications including polishing and buffing vehicles, boats, RVs, personal watercraft, motorcycles, hardwood floors, and large furniture. Sanding can be done on wood and metal surfaces. One thing I have noticed with all the new Ryobi tools is they seem to all have built in LED lights. I think this is a great feature for their 18v line up. Their is an LED light on the front base of this tool. The light is only activated when the trigger is pressed. The light shuts off immediately when the trigger is released. The trigger has a safetly lock to protect it from accidental start ups. The tool includes a 3 inch polishing backer pad and a 2 inch sanding backer pad that screw on. The polishing backer pad is hook and loop velcro and also includes 3 3" polishing/buffing pads (2 foam, and 1 wool pad). The sanding backer pad is twist and lock type and comes with 3 2" sanding discs (60, 80, and 120, grit). The operator's manual that comes with the tool is very detailed. The operator's manual also has a list of accessories with their model numbers for when you want to order new backer's or pad's. I really like this little detailer. I have tested it out on a few little projects. I love the size of this unit. I have the Ryobi 18v 10 in. Buffer which is great for big flat surfaces. One of the best thing's about this little detailer is the size. You are able to get in all the nooks and crannies of odd shaped surfaces. My headlights were getting hazy so I decided to try this detailer on them. I will post some pics on this review. They came out like brand new. I own the Ryobi 18v 5 in. orbital sander but there are some areas it can not fit. That's where this little sander will come into play. The build quality is solid and the grip is excellent. With the supplied handle it was so easy to control. I didn't worry about covering the paint around my headlights because I was so confident in the handling of this tool. Even if you already own other buffers or sanders this is still a great tool to have. Like I said earlier it is great for those odd, uneven surfaces. My mother has an old wooden chest that she wants to restore. I think this is going to be the tool for the job.

This RYOBI Buffer / Sander fits right in to the large ,practical and versatile collection of great tools, designed to do most any job a portable battery tool can be called on to preform. This Buffer /Sander comes with two different size screw in holders equipped to easily attach with Velcro any of the buffing or sanding pads or disks furnished with it. It also has a sturdy handle that screws firmly in either the left or right side to stabilize and help control the work. Great addition to the Ryobi One collection.

Really nice for tight or small areas that the larger buffer can not cover. Plenty of power and quick changing attachments. The two rpm settings are what makes this tool a great value. I used it to restore my 4” fog light lenses on my hummer.

This polisher/sander is handy to have for all kinds of projects. It is lightweight and yet powerful. My wife started commandeering it for her art studio project because it is so easy to handle and operate. We did have to buy a different Ryobi battery for it because we only had the 40V batteries on hand. The tool does not drain the battery very quickly, so it is easy to finish a moderate project on one charge.

This polisher/sander kit has everything you'll need to perform small polishing or sanding jobs. There are two different speeds to choose from on the top of the tool; one of them is for sanding jobs and the other is for polishing. Three different grades of sandpaper are provided (60, 80, and 120 grits) and three different polishing heads are included (finishing, correcting, and compounding). All are easily attached using the threaded spindles. There is a trigger lock for the on/off function, and a threaded handle for stability that can be used on either the right or left side of the polisher/sander. The polisher/sander weighs only about three pounds, so it is easy to carry/maneuver. The important thing to remember is that this is a ROTARY polisher/sander and NOT an orbital sander, so you have to be careful when using it - especially if you are using it to polish small areas of your car or any other surface that can be "burnt" if you leave it in one place too long. I have several other Ryobi tools and have been happy with each one. They are well thought out and durable. Also, because I have many different batteries, I can interchange them between tools. Works most of the time if I'm only using one or two tools. If I am using more than that, I always need to be sure to bring along a charger.

Battery and charger worked as expected. The sander pads are small and handy for detail work in tight places. Used the 60 grit on plywood at the lower speed. Tried to make a straight line but the power of the polisher combined with my weak arms resulted in a more scalloped edge. I can work with this. The sanding pads appear to be very durable and this first one shows no wear after the small test. The sander base pad and sand "paper" pads are threaded and screwed in. The polisher base pad is hook-and-loop for the three different levels of polishing attachments provided for compound, correcting, and finishing.

I picked up this polisher/sander combo to go with my other Ryobi One+ 18v tools. I have a normal palm sander and did not have a polisher so this combo tool seemed like a good match for my needs. Admittedly, I typically do more sanding and a detail sander was needed, but a polisher/buffer for my car and other uses is good to have. The sanding function works and the provided pads work quickly, but are not great for getting closer to finish sanding. It also does not have a random orbit function so you will see swirls in your sanding. Overall the sanding function is decent. The polishing I have not used yet, but the tools provided seem ok. The wool pad throws a lot of lint the first time you use it so I would spin it a few times before your first use to prevent that. The size of these tools are pretty small and are definitely more for detail work. My biggest concern is I have been looking for additional accessories and the seem hard to come by. This design uses a threaded connector and most accessories are made with a standard drill bit connector or a version for tightening onto a grinder. With some research it looks like I will be able to use Roloc style attachments, but not anything that is very big. This is basically just a cordless drill with a different style attachment piece. Some people may prefer to just by attachments that fit a standard drill instead of this entire tool.

Great for small, tight detailing jobs. Did a good job removing the hard water deposits on the shower tile floor. There's a toggle for two speeds. The drive is strong and can be a little squirrelly so I really needed to use the handle for a secure grip. This smart little sander / polisher comes with a few attachments. We have a new car and will eventually use this for wax and polish after we've educated ourselves about how to use compounds, finish, and correcting products. This detailer has attachments for each process. I had to read the Operator’s Manual carefully and study the diagrams/figures to fully understand the terms used. The spindle lock holds the female shaft in place so the male polisher or sander pad can be securely threaded in. The spindle lock button needs to pop up so that the shaft can spin properly. This little guy is going to get a lot of use.

The RYOBI ONE+ 18V CORDLESS 3 IN. VARIABLE SPEED DETAIL POLISHER/SANDER is a handy tool. Having a cordless polisher/sander with a reversible handle makes those days of using a drill for polishing and sanding obsolete. The Ryobi polisher/sander is two speed and variable speed. The low (1) setting (polishing application) operates from 0 to 2,800 RPM while the high (2) setting (sanding application) operates from 0 to 7,800 RPM. Here is my only complaint about this tool, and it’s a minor one at that—when switching between the low speed and high speed settings, it is difficult to tell (audibly) that there is a difference in RPM’s 2,800 versus 7,800. At first I thought the tool was defective, but it wasn’t. I discovered this when I had the 3-inch wool pad attached. In low mode it did its thing, in high mode it flung the wool pad across the room. The kit comes with a 3-inch yellow correcting pad, a 3-inch black finishing pad, a 3-inch wool compounding pad, a 3-inch backing pad, a 2-inch twist-lock backing pad, and 3 sanding pads (60, 80, & 120 grit). The handle unscrews and it can be attached to either side to accommodate both left handed and right handed people. With a battery, the buffer/sander weighs in at 3 pounds 6 ounces. At the base of the drill is a LED light that operates when the trigger is pressed.

This is the perfect tool for lady crafters. The unit is just the right size for my hand (size 5.5 ring). I can hold my project in my lift hand and easily hold "one handed" the sander/polisher in my right hand. But when it is necessary, a screw-in handle is provided. This mini sander does not include the needed 18 volt battery by Ryobi so be sure to pick one up. I have one that I have from another Ryobi product I own.

I am quite impressed with the Ryobi ONE+ Polisher/Sander Kit. It is both a 3” polisher and a 2" sander. It is good for sanding in tight spaces and can reach areas that 5" sanders just can't get into. Also nice for working on small areas for automotive paint correction. The polishing kit comes with several pads and can be used for buffing and polishing small areas; it also does well on corners and hard to reach spaces where a full size polisher doesn't work very well. The included side handle can be mounted on either side; it makes it easy to use both hands for maximum control. The 2.0 Ah battery is the perfect size to provide both balance and plenty of power. The Polisher/Sander operates from 0 to 2800RPM for polishing and 0 to 7800RPM for sanding. The variable speed trigger is smooth and offers precise speed control. The Polisher/Sander is easy to operate. I had my wife help me remove some scratches and scuff from my truck, she found the polisher to be easy to control and just the right weight and balance. I see myself using the Ryobi ONE+ Polisher Sander for polishing or sanding small areas and to refinish items such as headlight lenses, but I think it would be too small to polish an entire car.

I just got my RYOBI ONE+ 18V CORDLESS 3 IN. VARIABLE SPEED DETAIL POLISHER/SANDER KIT WITH (1) 2.0 AH BATTERY AND CHARGER. It's the same great quality I always expect from Ryobi! It is easy to use and comes with two different mounting heads. One is for the various grit sanding disks and the other is for the buffing/polishing attachments. Another nice feature is the ability to move the handle to one side or the other so its just as easy to use regardless if you are a left-handed or right-handed user. The only thing that would have made it better is if it had come with its own carry case :-)

I have been using a rather heavy electric grinder to ready my horse trailer for painting. There are areas that I cannot get to with my grinder that I am sure will be easily accessed with this smaller, lighter tool. For this review, I just tried the sand paper disc to see how easily it will take old paint off of my barn door, and it makes a very quick job of it. One thing with the smaller discs is that it can gouge wood really easily, as you can see from the pictures. I need practice before I will try this on my trailer, but that is because of me, not being used to using such a small polisher/sander. A nice addition to my set of tools.

I have other Ryobi products in my tool bin so I did not hesitate trying the 2 speed, ONE+ polisher/sander. Even though it is not addressed in the manual I plan to use it to clean and polish the tiles in the shower, tub and floors. I will use the sanding discs to re-stain window/door trim. The tool is well balanced with the powerpack attached with no stress on the wrist. The powerpack charger has any easy-to-read power level indicator. The pads and discs securely attach to the spindle which screws and locks into the powerful drive unit. The LED work light and auxiliary handle are nice additions. The design of this tool was very well thought out.

This is such a wonderful light weight small polisher/sander. It can be used just about anywhere because of the size Your not going to whip out a polished finish in a few minutes; the head is too small to do a large project quickly. It's made for small projects that need precise tenderness. So get out those projects that you've been going to do but have to large a polisher and get them done.

Ryobi 18V Cordless 3 in Variable Speed Polisher/Sander. Comes with a 2ah battery and charger. Accessories include polishing and sanding attachments. This unit has rotating discs vs the vibrating type. The attachments screw into the head (with a push button locking mechanism) vs vs a rotating chuck like a drill has. The pads and sanding discs are somewhat small so they work well in tight spaces like around the doors of your car. This unit is part of the Ryobi One family. Onboard LED light. I have several Ryobi tools so I have multiple chargers and batteries. A nice feature of the batteries is the push to test power level left in the battery. Two set speeds ranges (switch) and controlled by how much you press the trigger. Be careful on the high speed range. It really spins when you fully press the trigger.

RYOBI ONE+ 18V Cordless 3 inch Variable Speed Detail Polisher/Sander Kit with (1) 2.0 Ah Battery and Charger. This Cordless Polisher/Sander was delivered with all the Start Kit items you need. It came with several of the polishers (foam and clothe) and some of the smaller sanders It also includes the battery and charger. I used it to polish the hood of a car and sand some rust off an outside chair with no issues.It would be nive to have a storage/carry bag included.

This tool is a perfect fit for small polishing/detailing and sanding jobs. I have a 10 inch and 6 inch corded polisher/sander, but they can be too cumbersome for smaller work. I selected this Ryobi because of the versatility of this tool. It is quick and easy to change-out polishing attachments and to switch over to sanding. All backers are included for both sanding and polishing and 1 of each type of pad/disc. I haven't used the sanding accessories yet, but have used parts of the polishing to remove rust stains from a Corian countertop. The Ryobi performed perfectly in the small areas that I needed to buff out. I use a small amount of rubbing compound and the correcting pad. I set the Ryobi tool to low speed and with a slight pressure buff the rubbing compound on the Corian surface. Within a minute the rust stains were buffed out. A lot easier to control than a larger polisher and a lot less mess. The variable speed is perfect to maintain control of the polishing steps and I am certain it would also serve well for sanding task.

RYOBI ONE+ 18V CORDLESS 3 IN. VARIABLE SPEED DETAIL POLISHER/SANDER (TOOL ONLY). This is a nice tool. I have not used it for polishing yet but I did do a little sanding on some steel to weld and it did a nice job. I like that it comes with so many attachments and the arbors. The 2 speeds are a nice feature. I would definitely recommend this product.

First, I have to say that I got this primarily for polishing furniture as my corded polisher is just too big for the work I wanted to do. Having said that, I figured that having a detail sander as part of the deal was a win-win. Unfortunately, this is a true DETAIL sander (think relatively small pieces), so it is not practical for large surfaces, but great fro small spot work, like deck chairs; however it is a great detail sander and allows me to spot remove and smooth out paint imperfections easily. The tool itself is relatively small and light and fits really nicely in my hand and is easy to get into small spaces. For sanding small spots on furniture or removing rust spots it is great. In my experience it gets good run time on the batteries I have used it with, but I have not been doing big pieces; the tool is really too small for that. I does a great job as a polisher for furniture (what I use it for): its small, easy to maneuver size works really well for drawer fronts and small surfaces like desk shelves. The two settings (for sanding and polishing) which limit the maximum RPM is nice, and I find that controlling the RPM within each setting by using the trigger to be very easy. The big drawback with this are the sanding discs and polishing pads: I simply cannot find them (the tool is so new Ryobi has not listed them yet) or anything that can replace them. I would like to get a 1000 or 1200 grit disc for some really fine sanding work, as well as finding replacements as what I have wears out. For the time being I have simply been using a sanding eraser to rejuvenate the sanding pads. Despite this, I recommend this tool, especially for those of you doing DIY furniture renovation.

Ordered the detail polisher/sander to replace an aging corded unit for the cordless convenience. The unit has variable speeds to polish or sand. The mode is selected by a switch on the top of the unit. It comes with three different grades of polishing pads, three different grades of sanding disks, and two backer pads; one for sanding and one for polishing. An LED light illuminates when the trigger is pressed which is always nice for more light. I like the small lightweight feel that I can easily operate it with one hand. It also has a removable handle if you need to handle it with both hands or to reduce fatigue. It uses the standard One + battery which power all my Ryobi tools. Good instructions on operation and care of the tool are included. I used it to sand small areas on my boat before painting and the tool did all of the job before the 4.0 AH battery even came close to running out of charge. I think it’s another excellent cordless tool for small detailed sanding and polishing jobs.

Here is why you need this, and possibly why not: A polisher/sander is necessary primarily for the RPMs that it puts out. An AVERAGE drill only puts out 1,500 rpm max. The trigger of this Ryobi tool provides variable speed, and there is a switch up top with a setting 1 for polishing (up to 2,800 rpm) and setting 2 for sanding (up to 7,800 rpm). Clearly that is far faster. This unit’s design is nice, but could be better. The removable auxiliary handle can be attached on either side. I would’ve liked a 3rd option in the top to possibly help my accuracy, perhaps, but they located a spindle-lock there. I’m not upset about that, as the spindle-lock is an important feature (for tightening/removal of backer pads). It doesn’t feel cheap at all, with the die cast gearbox, and grip overmold. Somehow it is still lightweight. The LED light helps, but doesn’t replace a flashlight. I have no idea who would put this tool on a lanyard, but a hole exists for this purpose. I personally think that their advertised claim of up to 60 minutes of polishing time is misleading. This is only true if you have a 9.0 Ahr battery. First off, those are heavy, and you have to go out of your way to find them. If you only have a 2, 3, 4, or 6 Ahr battery, like most people, expect a proportional reduction in run time. In terms of accessories, this starter kit is nice, but I think Ryobi should’ve sold this with a carrying pouch. There are 9 accessories, if you include the handle, so I could see myself misplacing pieces - especially the small sanding discs. How it works is you attach the correct backer pad to the spindle. The 2” sanding discs thread into their backer pad. The 3” polishing pads sort of stick to their backer pad. Simple and effective. So, you are locked into buying more discs and pads from Ryobi. With 60, 80, and 120 grits in this set, you may need to buy yourself a wider variety of grits straight away. Anyway, this is a great tool. I think Ryobi could make it more convenient by implementing my suggestions. I used this for car headlights today, and it was effective.

My garage shop is filled with Ryobi, but a polisher and sander is something that it doesn’t have. I was happy to see this added to the ONE+ lineup, and I was a bit surprised on how compact this is when I received it. That’s a great thing and with the included detachable handle you can easily use this for a while with as little hand fatigue as possible. Both the sanding pads and sanding discs go on easy, just screw each of them on and you’re good to go. Can’t wait to tackle some projects with this!