Would you recommend this to take of the gloss on a small section of wood flooring?

Yes. Use the least aggressive sandpaper you can find. This will help you not cause deep scratching. Remember to let the tool do its job, don't apply too much pressure to the sander. Ideally an orbital sander would be best for a project as you are describing. But for a small area, this will allow you to save some money by using this particular sander. Good luck!