Sand Paper

[Guy Mueller]

What brand/type of sand paper do you use

[Rick Bailey]

Here you go.
http://vinceswoodnwonders.com/

[Joe Meirhaeghe]

There are many cheaper papers available but I prefer to use 3M & Norton. Sand paper is a tool & I'd rather pay a little more up front than wish I had later. The Sanding Glove is a good supplier for both 3M & Norton.

[John Keeton]

For discs, Vince has the best I have found. For sheets I have used these for years- http://www.onlineindustrialsupply.com/abrasive-sheets-aluminum-oxide-no-load-9--by-11--paper-sheets.html AO up thru 320 and silicon carbide on up.

[Brian Kent]

I agree with Vince for discs.

I just got some aluminum oxide cloth sheets from Industrial Abrasives and I am very happy with them.

[Reed Gray]

I have been buying discs from Vince for a long time. He keeps coming up with different discs, but I always seem to go back to the blue ones. Best value out there as in price is good, and they cut longer than any other disc I have tried. The Norton Dry Ice discs cut about the same, but last time I bought some, they were twice the price. For hand sanding, I have been using the Norton 3X, but I think they have 'new and improved' it and it has a different name now.

robo hippy

[Aaron Craven]

I really like Abranet by Mirka Abrasives, though it's a little expensive. I tend to use cheaper stuff when doing heavy sanding with coarse grits (I swear one day I'll develop enough tool control that I don't need so much 80-grit as I currently do!). Broken sander belts can be good for this, though the backing isn't very flexible. I haven't found Abranet above 600, so for 800 and 1000 I use some foam-backed stuff (various brands) sold by my favorite tool store in $0.50 4x4 squares. I keep intending to locate some micro-mesh to see whether it makes a difference, but I'm getting pretty good results sanding to 1000 and then burnishing with shavings, so I'm not sure I'll go for the expense.

On a lark, I picked up some really cheap paper at the dollar store -- I figured for a dollar it was worth a try. The end result was that I wasted a dollar and learned a lesson. :-/

[Hilel Salomon]

Ditto on Vince. He is also an excellent source of sanding wisdom and has invariably been patient in answering my questions.

[ALAN HOLLAR]

Klingspor PS33 paper and LS309 cloth discs in 2, 3, 3.5, and 5" discs. I buy them direct from the Klingspor facility, not through the Sanding Catalog.

[Pat Scott]

For discs, Vince has the best I have found. For sheets I have used these for years- http://www.onlineindustrialsupply.com/abrasive-sheets-aluminum-oxide-no-load-9--by-11--paper-sheets.html AO up thru 320 and silicon carbide on up.

John I'm curious why you switch at 320 grit to silicon carbide.

[John Keeton]

Actually at 400. My sandpaper days go back to flatwork days and I normally stopped sanding the bare wood at 320 and used the 400 to wet sand the finish in order to flatten it.

With turning, I mostly wet sand above 320, but often start even at 220. However, the AO paper seems to hold up very well to wet sanding. I am not sure the finer grits of AO would hold up well with wet sanding, but, I have never tried.

[Paul Williams]

John and others, do you use water, Mineral spirits, or BLO for wet sanding?

[John Keeton]

Hate to get off topic too much, but it depends on the circumstances. I rarely use water, but will if I intend to use water based dye. I use BLO often if the wood has the type of color or figure I want to highlight and/or darken. I use mineral spirits to sand and level WOP finish prior to buffing or between coats. I will often use WOP when sanding to fill pores, such as in walnut. The slurry should be wiped off gently with a dry paper towel fairly quickly.

[John K Jordan]

What brand/type of sand paper do you use

It depends. You forgot to mention the type of turning you do - power sanding bowls or for sanding with the hand?

I do very little power sanding (I get a better surface on bowls and platters using curved cabinet scrapers then usually 400 or 320 paper by hand) and I don't like clouds of dust. I do most of my sanding by hand and much with the lathe turned off.

When turning boxes, goblets, spindles, etc. I use two types of paper. One is the Klingspor Gold rolls and the other is Rhynowet sheets.

The Klingspor Gold is very good grit with a tough cloth backing. I made a dispenser for the wall behind the lathe and keep 2" and 1" rolls and tear off pieces as I need them. I recently removed some of the coarser papers since I only used them on break drums and rusty metal!

334381

For finer grits, again for hand use, NOT power sanding, I have found nothing better than Rhynowet:
http://www.supergrit.com/products/RedlineRedFlexSheets

This is wet/dry paper but holds up so much better than the black stuff and will not crack if bent and folded. The backing is flexible and tough and not too thin - just the right stiffness for me to get into tight places. I've been using this paper since I first found it in Highland Hardware (Woodworking) in Atlanta about 12 years ago.

I cut this into pieces about 1"x3" and put in small plastic bins under the rolls. I keep 600, 800, 1000, and 1200. By far, for spindle turning in good wood with sharp tools I go through more 600 Rhynowet paper than anything else. Occasionally I start with 400 paper but rarely anything coarser.

BTW, for occasional power sanding I banished my right-angle drill to the automotive part of my shop. On the advice of turner Rudy Lopez (http://www.rudolphlopez.com/index.html) I bought a Grex air-powered random orbital sander that will take 2", optional 1" or 3" pads and extensions are available. This thing is amazing - very light weight, variable speed, it will work quite gently if needed, and no chance of oversanding as possible with a spinning disk and not clouds of dust. It does need air (2.2 cfm at 90 psi) but I plummed air from a remote compressor.
http://www.amazon.com/AOS368-2-Inch-105-Degree-Random-Orbital/dp/B000HFPDJQ
334383 (http://www.amazon.com/AOS368-2-Inch-105-Degree-Random-Orbital/dp/B000HFPDJQ)

JKJ

[Justin Stephen]

Vinces blue and now green discs for power sanding, mostly Industrial Abrasives sandpaper for hand work.

[Jim Silva]

I sand almost exclusively on the drill press using 3" Abranet or Klingspore Gold H&L disks. I find that it's quicker, eliminates those pesky lines that sanding on the lathe gives and it's far easier to see and hold the piece.

For me it lets me keep crisp edges on natural edge bowls and pieces with voids in them that prevent pain free sanding on the lathe lol.

I'm using a drillnado attachment on the drill press that picks up far more dust than I can grab off the lathe.

[Justin Stephen]

I sand almost exclusively on the drill press using 3" Abranet or Klingspore Gold H&L disks. I find that it's quicker, eliminates those pesky lines that sanding on the lathe gives and it's far easier to see and hold the piece.


While I do sand on the lathe, I am increasingly agreeing with your basic philosophy. I start each grit with the piece turning as slowly as my lathe allows (just under 50rpm) but that is only for efficiency's sake, to get a quick "base sand" in with the help of the lathe. I finish each grit only slowly rotating the piece by hand and occasionally with the piece not moving at all. I have been much happier with the results, I feel like it is actually faster and I also find that I enjoy sanding more now than when I used to.

[Guy Mueller]

Thanks to everybody I called Vince order material from him

[Rick Bailey]

You are in good hands with the Sandman.:cool: