I have a Supermax 19-38 that I bought used, the previous owner had hook and loop on it, I spent hours stripping it off and cleaning off the adhesive. With the hook and loop, the paper doesn't lay flat on the drum, instead it's off the drum by whatever thickness the hook and loop is...and this ends up being variable depending on how much it all compresses. When running a board through without it, the board is the same thickness all the way across...with the hook and loop, not so much. I use the drum sander to flatten rings for segmented turning, variable thickness is a no go.