I have a old vintage "Home Utility" Black and Decker power drill that is labeled as a Sander Polisher on the metal tag on the drill body. Any idea what gives?

Auto-correct messed up

What does the operating end look like?  Is there a chuck?  Is there provision for some kind of side handle?

A sanding/polishing disc head, properly mounted on the tool, would be less likely to slip than a similar head mounted in a drill chuck, and a little more compact.  Also, they could optimize the operating speed, which might differ from what you'd want in a drill motor.  Or it may have just been a way to re-use an existing tool, expanding the number of tools they could sell to the innocent homeowner.

Modern standards for real sanders and polishers call for different speeds for each tool, I believe; but this was a homeowner's tool, so, if they tried for an optimal speed, they probably split the difference.

But, without pictures, it's hard to believe you have anything at all      

Quote from: Bill Houghton on June 13, 2017, 02:05:36 PM

But, without pictures, it's hard to believe you have anything at all      

Ouch.   

Probably an oopsie at the factory.... But, as stated above, without pictures, hard to say...