Alexander Vallant of Parkett Schleif (“Parquet Sanding”) Service in Langnau im Emmental, Switzerland, has been sanding floors since 1998, and until 2022, he thought he’d handled all the best of the best floor sanders. Then a video of an American Sanders 12-inch drum sander—a unicorn in Europe—popped up on his phone. “I watched the video over and over again, trying to understand everything,” he remembers.
This video set Vallant off on a mission to track down any and all American 12s in Switzerland. He eventually procured two machines, enough for a Ryder Cart setup for large-scale projects. Testing went well, but it became clear he needed guidance before real-world application. So in the summer of 2024, Vallant made his first trip to the U.S. to learn everything he could about American 12 Ryder setups from Paul Nelson of Clinton, Mont.-based Western Sport Floors. “Paul, his wife, and the whole team were so incredibly friendly that as soon as I got home, I wanted to go back to the U.S.,” Vallant says.
On top of that, Vallant wanted to meet more of the American wood floor pros he’d connected with on social media, as well as see the site of the original American Floor Surfacing Machine Co. factory. “It was clear I had to go back and learn everything first-hand from people with experience.”
Vallant flew to Chicago and rented a car to drive to his first destination: Grand Rapids, Mich., to meet Eric Downing of EMack Manufacturing, the makers of the Ryder Cart. “I met Eric Downing at the workshop where the gym Ryders are built,” Vallant says. “Eric gave me a great insight into what he builds for gym floor workers.”
The next stop was Toledo, Ohio, where parts of the old American Floor Surfacing Machine factory stand. “In these buildings, or the parts that still stand, the first floor sanding machines were designed and built around 1906,” Vallant says. “Around 1928, Harry L. Myers was one of the designers at the factory. In my opinion, he put the most important inventions for the drum sander on paper.”
Then, Vallant was off to Fenton, Mo., to meet Keith Graff, the owner of Graff Floor Sanding LLC. Graff showed him his extensive wood floor antiques collection and brought him to a jobsite, where he picked up a few tips and tricks.
Vallant then stopped in Burns, Tenn., to meet the man who inspired him to change his “20-year-old patterns in edge grinding,” Wayne Lee of Middle Tennessee Lumber. Next, Vallant met Roy Cox at the current American Sanders factory in Sparta, N.C., then drove to the Savannah, Ga., area to join All American Floor Sanding and Installation owner Patrick Russell on a job.
The last stop in Vallant’s tour was the Boone home in Jacksonville, Fla., where Tina Boone showed him the workshop of her father and Boone Flooring founder, Joe Boone Sr. “There were many beautiful old things and machines,” Vallant says.
Now back in Switzerland, Vallant is planning his next trip to the U.S. in September. “I’ll start from Fenton with Keith,” he says. “I’d like to finish in Sacramento—I hope Dave Boberg has some time for me. He doesn’t know about it yet.”—E.K.
