A monopodic sander is provided for an operator to sand a surface. The monopodic sander comprises a rotary sanding head for contacting the surface and an extendable actuator rod having one end pivotally coupled to the rotary sanding head. The monopodic sander further comprises a controller handle operatively coupled to the one end of the extendable actuator rod to allow the operator to select a pressure applied by the rotary sanding head against the surface.