: I also found this.
: http://woodworker.com/luthiers-friend-sanding-station-mssu-154-724.asp
: It looks incredibly simple to replicate but the drum sander
: parts are more expensive than the safe t planer.
Scott-
I agree. Replicating that fence (or similar one) would be easy. (And wood (rather than UHMW, nylon, metal) parts will be fine, since you don't need this to stand up to thousands of hours of use.....)
The 'RoboSander' is a sanding drum with a same-size bearing attached to the bottom, for pattern sanding.
Not the tool for your requirement.
If you want to buy something (other than the Safe-T) an oscillating spindle sander (Ridgid or similar) can be equipped with a fence for very light thickness sanding.
And making a small thickness sander is a pretty simple job if you have a spare electric motor around the shop.
Saves wear and tear on the drill press bearings (which really aren't designed for side loading).