Your favorite paper for hand-held sanding?

[roger wiegand]

I need better sandpaper for hand sanding on the lathe. I use the blue or green disks for Vince's for power sanding and they work quite well for me. They are also good when hand held, bit it doesn't seem to make sense to pay for small disks with velcro backing when I only need a plain paper.

A couple years ago I bought the bargain box from Klingspor and have been working my way through it, hating every minute. The stuff I got is on a way too heavy backing, won't hold a curve (cracks to a sharp angle when you fold it over), and doesn't last for beans. Well, it was real cheap.

I use Abranet disks on my ROS mostly, for turnings I've found it to be overly flexible and slow. It really doesn't seem to like it if you push too hard and heat it up.

So what have you found that you really like? I want extremely uniform grit (hate that one deep scratch), as fast as possible, it should last long enough to sand a modest size piece with a few square inches of paper, and it should be fast (yes, I said that twice). Within limits, I don't much care how much it costs if it gets the sanding done sooner rather than later with a great result.

I only need anything below 120 grit on bad days, but want to go up to at least 800. (Abralon seems good for the very high grits.)

[Richard Coers]

Try the SiaSoft that Vince sells. 1/4" foam back with a really flexible cloth backer on the abrasive.

[Dave Fritz]

https://www.woodturnerscatalog.com/p/18/1714/finkat-Sanding-Paper-10-Pack I cut it down into smaller sizes and a little goes a long way.

[tom lucas]

I need better sandpaper for hand sanding on the lathe. I use the blue or green disks for Vince's for power sanding and they work quite well for me. They are also good when hand held, bit it doesn't seem to make sense to pay for small disks with velcro backing when I only need a plain paper.

A couple years ago I bought the bargain box from Klingspor and have been working my way through it, hating every minute. The stuff I got is on a way too heavy backing, won't hold a curve (cracks to a sharp angle when you fold it over), and doesn't last for beans. Well, it was real cheap.


I use Abranet disks on my ROS mostly, for turnings I've found it to be overly flexible and slow. It really doesn't seem to like it if you push too hard and heat it up.

So what have you found that you really like? I want extremely uniform grit (hate that one deep scratch), as fast as possible, it should last long enough to sand a modest size piece with a few square inches of paper, and it should be fast (yes, I said that twice). Within limits, I don't much care how much it costs if it gets the sanding done sooner rather than later with a great result.

I only need anything below 120 grit on bad days, but want to go up to at least 800. (Abralon seems good for the very high grits.)



I hear ya. I did the same thing. It's going to take forever to go through all that Klingspor scrap. I use it when I can, but have to use some cloth-backed paper too. I've started being less conservative with the Kling of late. When the cutting is reduced even a little, I throw it away.

[Don Stephan]

The Norton best brand of sheet paper has worked well for me. Recently I think the brand name changed so I'm not sure what it is called now. I buy it at the local Woodcraft store in 20 sheet packs.

[Reed Gray]

I used to buy the 'jobber's' packs of the Norton 3X as they used to call it. I think those were the 20 sheet packs. Not sure what they call it now. I had to go to a painter's store to find it last time. I would like to see the blue abrasive that Vince sells as sheet or strip stock as I prefer it for abrasive discs to anything else I have seen. I would also like to see it in 3 inch wide strips for my drum sander. The red and white aluminum oxide abrasives just don't hold up as well or cut as well.

robo hippy

[Dick Mahany]

I have used the gold disks from Vinces for 2 and 3" disk sanding and like them. More recently I was introduced to Mirka 4.5 x 5" Soft Flex foam padded sandpaper. It was used to de-nib cabinet doors and panels that were sprayed with waterborne finishes. It worked so well that I tried it for hand sanding on the lathe. It worked equally well. The sheets come on a large perforated roll and I plan to get some coarser grades now than the 400 that I started with. It is meant for hand or block sanding and doesn't have hook and loop or PSA capabilities.

446396

[Kevin Jenness]

I like the Klingspor Gold cloth backed abrasive- very flexible backing. Kind of pricy, you have to use it as if someone else is paying for it. I too got a Klingspor bargain box, and it's luck of the draw. Some of the rolls are flexible enough to be useful, and the rest is cheap enough to throw away. I have several boxes of Abranet disks from 320# on up that I use for lathe work as well.

[John K Jordan]

Roger, I most of my sanding is by hand, all that is usually needed after using NRS and hand scrapers. I have tried a lot of things and this is what works for me:

For coarser grits, Klingspor Gold, in 1" and 2" rolls, from 400 grit to 60 grit. I mostly use 220-400.
These (and almost everything from Klingspor) is discounted 10% if your club signs up with Klingspor and sends them a list containing your name and email address.

I mounted the Klingspor Gold rolls on a dispenser I made and mounted within reach on the wall behind the lathe:

446392

446394

I mount them on the dispenser with the finer, most used grits closer to me on the left. I added a slice of paper towel roll, handy to tear off small pieces.
I see no need to ever use 80 grit on wood so I reserve it for cleaning brake drums and such.

I often use the Klingspor Gold strips backed up with a soft rubber eraser to better conform to the curves of the piece. I call this my Soft Sanding Block.

446395

I also glue the strips onto 1" and 2" wide pieces of thin plywood to make sanding sticks, so useful for some things.

446397

For finer grits I use Indasa Rhinowet Redline sheets, from 600 to finer. I mostly use 600 and 800. (Edit: I got confused and earlier wrote "400" and "400 and 600")
https://www.indasa-abrasives.com/global/en/catalogue/abrasives/rhynowet-red-line
https://www.supergrit.com/view.php?pg=products/RedlineRedFlexSheets
I use Indasa grits up to 1500 for special applications such as sanding turnings from acrylic.

This is wet and dry paper buy unlike some the black stuff the backing and bonding are very flexible and can be bent over and creased without any particles breaking loose. I cut the sheets up into about 1"x3" pieces and store them in little bins just under the rolls of Klingspor Gold. I also use them with the soft sanding blocks.

These two are the only sandpaper I use by hand.

JKJ





I need better sandpaper for hand sanding on the lathe. I use the blue or green disks for Vince's for power sanding and they work quite well for me. They are also good when hand held, bit it doesn't seem to make sense to pay for small disks with velcro backing when I only need a plain paper.

A couple years ago I bought the bargain box from Klingspor and have been working my way through it, hating every minute. The stuff I got is on a way too heavy backing, won't hold a curve (cracks to a sharp angle when you fold it over), and doesn't last for beans. Well, it was real cheap.

I use Abranet disks on my ROS mostly, for turnings I've found it to be overly flexible and slow. It really doesn't seem to like it if you push too hard and heat it up.

So what have you found that you really like? I want extremely uniform grit (hate that one deep scratch), as fast as possible, it should last long enough to sand a modest size piece with a few square inches of paper, and it should be fast (yes, I said that twice). Within limits, I don't much care how much it costs if it gets the sanding done sooner rather than later with a great result.

I only need anything below 120 grit on bad days, but want to go up to at least 800. (Abralon seems good for the very high grits.)

[andy bessette]

The sandpaper I use most is adhesive-backed 8" discs in 80-grit. 3M gold has been best. These discs are wrapped around rectangular blocks of scrap 3/4" plywood and are used for shaping/smoothing wood and knocking down epoxy glue squeeze-out.

[John Keeton]

For round discs I use the blue from Vince, but for sheet paper that I tear into smaller squares (12 squares from a 9x11 sheet) I have purchased from these folks for better than a decade - https://www.onlineindustrialsupply.com/abrasive-sheets.html

Great uniformity of grit and a lot of usage from the paper - best value I have found. I buy the platinum through 320 and the silicon carbide for higher grits.

[Thomas Canfield]

I used the Norton 3X that has been replaced by Norton Pro in 20 sheet pack. Sheets are torn into 6 pieces and those tri-folded for use. The tri-fold give body but some foam backing can also be used to fit curves like interior and exterior of bowls, etc.

[John Keeton]

Thomas, the Norton paper is good paper, but costs over twice as much as the paper I have been using for years. I have used Norton and in my opinion it isn’t worth the difference for my needs. But, that is just my opinion and the Norton may work better for you.

[David Walser]

Roger — This thread reminds me of the truism: If you ask 10 turners a question, you’ll get 12 opinions.

In this case, I think one of the reasons for the differing advice is which abrasive is ‘best’ depends a lot on what is being turned. For example, my favorite abrasive for hand sanding is abranet or one of its clones. Yet, I seldom use it at the lathe. For smaller items, such as pens or boxes, I like the convenience of tearing off a 1” or 2” strip from a 20’x1” roll of “turner’s sandpaper “. As convenient as these rolls are, the J-weight cloth backing make them inappropriate for fine details. For such details, I cut an appropriately sized piece from a sheet of Norton’s paper backed abrasive. For larger projects, such as bowls, I use abranet. Even then, I’ll use Norton’s for fine details. It’s not unusual for me to use three different types of abrasive on a single project.

The only constant is I wet sand whenever I can.

[roger wiegand]

I pretty much figured I was going to get a wide range of responses. There does seem to be a pretty broad consensus that the blue disks from Vince are really good, also my experience. Of course I was hoping that there would be a similar situation for sheets or strips.

Several good things here to try. It's hard to try when the stuff comes packaged in large expensive units-- I recently pitched a whole pile of less expensive 6" mesh abrasive disks I'd bought because they were essentially useless and irritating. I still have the remains many 100 sheet boxes of garnet paper from 30 years ago that I should pitch, the abrasive is just falling off at this point.

Something that comes in 2" strips where you can tear off what you need is really appealing from an organization point of view. The area around my lathe is littered with pieces of "still good" sandpaper-- but unmarked as to grit, so I wast a lot of time trying to figure out which is finer.

Maybe the answer is to get Vince to package his blue paper in 2" rolls?

[Dick Mahany]

........ The area around my lathe is littered with pieces of "still good" sandpaper-- but unmarked as to grit, so I wast a lot of time trying to figure out which is finer.

Maybe the answer is to get Vince to package his blue paper in 2" rolls?

A few years back I saw an idea that helped me avoid a similar problem. The sand paper sheet received a light coat of spray paint on the back, different colors for different grits. The the sheet was then cut into 1.5" x 2.25" pieces. The pieces were stacked and clamped on one edge. A thin layer of yellow glue was applied to the clamped edge to make post-it type packs. It has worked great. It is easy to tear a single piece and the color coded backside clearly lets me know what the grit is when they are scattered all around. Over the years, the silicon carbide paper has remained flat but the typical sand paper has some curling.

446431

[Paul F Franklin]

It's a pet peeve of mine that sandpaper manufacturers don't mark the grit all over the back of the paper so no matter how you cut it, 1/4, 1/3, 1/2, 1/8, whatever, at least one grit label will still be on the piece. I mean how hard would it be? They are already printing across the back and have a few grit labels scattered about. I've gotten in the habit of marking paper whenever I cut it, but what a waste of time when it would be so easy for the maker to mark it better. If someone would do this, it would certainly factor into my brand choice assuming quality was still there....

[David M Peters]

It's a pet peeve of mine that sandpaper manufacturers don't mark the grit all over the back of the paper so no matter how you cut it, 1/4, 1/3, 1/2, 1/8, whatever, at least one grit label will still be on the piece. I mean how hard would it be? They are already printing across the back and have a few grit labels scattered about. I've gotten in the habit of marking paper whenever I cut it, but what a waste of time when it would be so easy for the maker to mark it better. If someone would do this, it would certainly factor into my brand choice assuming quality was still there....


Craft supplies carries rolls (https://www.woodturnerscatalog.com/p/18/4405/color-grit-abrasive-Abrasive-Roll) with varied color backings.

I use 1" Klingspor Gold rolls for hand sanding at the lathe. Because that line only goes up to 400, I have a roll of 600 grit of their "shop roll". Seems to be about as equally flexible so I might downgrade the next time I order.

[John K Jordan]

Something that comes in 2" strips where you can tear off what you need is really appealing from an organization point of view. The area around my lathe is littered with pieces of "still good" sandpaper-- but unmarked as to grit, so I wast a lot of time trying to figure out which is finer.


Roger, I agree that the labeling on sandpaper is horrible. I solve this with the rolls the old-fashioned way. When I tear off a piece I write the grit on the back with a sharpie. All grits get a number except for the one I use the most - 400 grit, I leave it blank. That way I know paper with no number is 400.

I do the same for the finer Rhinowet paper strips - after cutting up sheets in to usable strips I write the grit on the back of each piece. This does take a few minutes but saves a lot of speculation lather. The fine grit I use the most, 600, gets no label so I can instantly tell if it's 600.

When I use a piece of paper some but I judge it to still have some life, I toss it into a shallow plastic container, easily retrieved as needed.

This system works for me for hand sanding.

I recently bought some rubber stamps to label wood blanks. I think one to stamp grit number on strips would be helpful. It would be far more helpful if manufacturers would simply print the grit every inch or so on the back.

Edit: in an earlier post I got confused and said my finer Rhynowet papers started at 400 grit. My mistake, my coarsest fine paper is 600 grit. Sorry.

JKJ

[John King]

I've had excellent results with Klingspor Abrasives Stearate Aluminum Oxide, PS33, Paper-Backed, 9"x 11" Sheets. - John

[roger wiegand]

I too write on them with a sharpie -- and here's the kicker-- when I remember.

Something like a rolling rubber stamp that one could run over the whole length of a 10 yard roll to mark the grit at close intervals would be great. Just a different color sharpie stripe would also work, assuming I could keep track of the key.

[andy bessette]

Pro tip: An accountant's accordion-style paper filing folder works great for keeping different grits sorted.

[Prashun Patel]

I love Indasa Rhyno paper. I love it on the ROS. I love it for hand sanding sheets. I love the 2" sanding discs, and I love the Rhynosoft foam backed flexible sheets.

2Sand has them up to 600 and the flex up to 1200. I haven't tried all manner of sandpaper, but every now and then I get adventurous and am reminded how good this is. As a point of ref, people swear by Vince's blue discs, but I'd put these up against his any day. They last forever, and don't wear through to the backer - even if you're aggressive.

I have some 800 and 1000 abralon only because I need something for the 5" random orbit sander. It's good for burnishing

[roger wiegand]

Do you like the Rhynowet that John uses? (I don't typically wet sand) Or something else? My head started to spin as I read through the description of at least 40 different kinds of sandpaper and then discovered there was still a button for "see more products". Yikes, no wonder this seems confusing. Do you use the foam backed sheets for turning?



I love Indasa Rhyno paper. I love it on the ROS. I love it for hand sanding sheets. I love the 2" sanding discs, and I love the Rhynosoft foam backed flexible sheets.

2Sand has them up to 600 and the flex up to 1200. I haven't tried all manner of sandpaper, but every now and then I get adventurous and am reminded how good this is. As a point of ref, people swear by Vince's blue discs, but I'd put these up against his any day. They last forever, and don't wear through to the backer - even if you're aggressive.

I have some 800 and 1000 abralon only because I need something for the 5" random orbit sander. It's good for burnishing

[Brice Rogers]

I must be the luddite of this group. I've been using 3M sandpaper. Probably because I can buy it at Lowes and HD. It seems like of expensive but I don't use a whole lot of sand paper.

I use a marker to mark the grit on the back. I skip the zeroes, so I use numbering like 15, 18, 22, 3, 4, etc.

I pick up 2 and 3" sanding disks from the local wood turning club. They are velcro backed and off-white in color. So I use a felt tip and write the grit on the rough side/front side of the paper. The numbers last longer than the paper, and I can easily see the grit while it is still mounted on the round sanding pad.

[Melvin Feng]

For 1 inch strips, I've just been using those 5 packs from woodcraft and rockler. I have noticed that sometimes the backer is more stiff on some rolls. I've bought the full set of A&H abrasive strips from woodworker.com: https://woodworker.com/sandpaper-caddy-body-wsupport-tube-compl-mssu-174-476.asp

I haven't used every grit from the A&H set (I bought the entire range from 80-800), but I've been very happy with the ones I have used so far, the backing is more flexible and easier to contour for me.

I used to just cut a small strip and then throw it away. Now I typically cut a longer piece, and like many others here, write the grit, and save it until it is worn out. I find I don't waste as much, though I probably hold on to some a bit too long!

[Thomas Wilson80]

I've been using the Klingspor's gold (have on rolls similar to John Jordan) but am also continuously frustrated that the grits aren't labeled. I'm easily distracted/impatient/lazy....whatever you want to call it, and so I don't think writing on each piece I use would work but I've been thinking that I would get some different colors of permanent markers and color the edges of each roll in different colors, that way it would be a one-time time commitment and then I should be able to tell on torn off pieces forever....has anyone tried this? (I'm in the process of a cross-country move right now so it will be months before I have my shop up and running and can try this).

Tom

[Prashun Patel]

I get all these from 2 sand.

For Random Orbital Sander: Rhynogrip Hook and Loop Sanding Disks 50 pack (40 grit to 600)

For flexible pads: RhynoSoft Pads 4-1/2 x 5-1/2 White & Red Line 20 Pack

RhynoWet 9x11 Waterproof Sandpaper 50-Pack (1000-2000 grit)

For drill sanding on the lathe: 2 inch Sanding Discs White Rhyno 25/pk Aluminum Oxide (60-600 grit)

For hand sanding: Indasa Redline RhynoDry 9x11 Heavy Duty Aluminium Oxide Sheets 50-Pack (120-400g)

For jigs: Rhynogrip Red Line Hook & Loop 2-3/4 inch x 27-1/2 yds. These have to be spray adhered. But I buy smaller rolls of the white psa aox from philadelphia luthier supply

(the discs are also poorly labeled; I end up sharpie-ing them.

[roger wiegand]

I sent a note to Indasa last night asking for their recommendations, this morning I had a half hour call from their tech rep who expounded at length on the tradeoffs of their various products and their uses. Just based on customer service I'm going to order some of their products and give them a try. The interesting tradeoff seems to be between cutting speed and longevity. Their "lower" grade (white) apparently cuts much faster than the top like stuff (red), but lasts a much shorter period of time. For my use in sanding small turnings that might just be fine. He really pitched the foam backed material for lathe work. He apologized profusely (and then some) that with COVID they don't have anyone working on site who can put together sample packs.

[David M Peters]

Who knew a thread about sandpaper could be inspiring? I ran a stripe down the back of my sandpaper rolls with dollar store markers.


https://i.imgur.com/i3klt3Al.jpg
https://i.imgur.com/xXIo0KGl.jpg

The worst part about it was getting the rolls wound back up!

[John K Jordan]

The worst part about it was getting the rolls wound back up!

Nice!

Do you have a variable speed lathe? Make a mandrel to fit the cardboard spool, tape the strip, and run the lathe at very slow speed?

I wonder if you could apply the colored stripe while under power, especially if winding by transferring onto a second, empty cardboard spool.

BTW, one thing I did helped keep my rolls straighter, especially since I have 1" and 2" next to each other: cut a round separator to fit between the grits. I cut these from thin plywood on the lathe.

446642

I just have them between the various grits but I wish I'd made them also to fit between each of the 1" and 2" rolls of the same grit.

[Prashun Patel]

Imho I would rather get flat backed paper for the lathe and use foam backers or interface pads separate.

[roger wiegand]

Uh oh-- looks lie we will next need to begin the debate on over vs under for how you hang the rolls.

446655

[Pat Scott]

More recently I was introduced to Mirka 4.5 x 5" Soft Flex foam padded sandpaper. The sheets come on a large perforated roll. It is meant for hand or block sanding and doesn't have hook and loop or PSA capabilities.

446396


Festool sells the same thing, they call it a Shop Roll and make it in grits from 120 to 800. I cut one of the 4.5x5 squares into 3 strips roughly 1.5" wide which conforms nicely to peppermills and other small turnings. The foam backing provides some padding and protection to your fingers from heat (although if you feel heat you're pushing too hard). These are my go to for sanding anything small up to peppermill size on the lathe. A bonus is the cut edge doesn't leave hard sanding lines like regular folded sheet sandpaper can. The foam can be rolled or folded over for sanding small curves and coves with no hard edge.

Uneeda is a company you might not be familiar with. They make Shop Rolls also but I like the foam backing on Festool better and I think the grit lasts a bit longer on Festool. The kicker is Mirka, Festool, and Uneeda Shop Rolls are all the same price or within a dollar or two of each.

If you haven't tried the FilmTek 2" and 3" discs from Vinces you should. They are the same price or a little cheaper than his Blue Flex. The difference is the FilmTek have a Mylar backing which is more durable than paper and can be folded without creating a crease, and the velcro is hands down the longest lasting and holds better than any other disc I've used. If you wet sand a Mylar backing is better than paper. FilmTek are excellent discs and the scratch pattern is consistent throughout grits. Oh, and they are made by Uneeda! If you've ever used the Deerfos discs from Craft Supplies, these are also made by Uneeda (peel off the velcro backing and it says FilmTek). The FilmTek 1", 2", 3", and 5" discs are my go-to discs now. Vince likes them so well that the FilmTek have replaced his Green Flex in standard sizes. FilmTek only comes in standard sizes so if you want 2-3/8" and 3-3/8" sizes I use GreenFlex. I think the GreenFlex grit lasts a bit longer than BlueFlex but that's just me. I tried Sia discs but didn't think they lasted very long.

For sanding sheets I like Finkat that Craft Supplies sells. I bought a bunch of Norton 3x years ago which I also really like, I haven't tried any of the Norton ProSand. The Finkat has a very consistent scratch pattern and produces an excellent sanded surface. I use Finkat when I need to get into tight V's, small beads, and other small areas, which is not to say that it won't do larger areas equally as well!

With Finkat and Festool Shop Rolls I'm set for hand sanding. For power sanding bowls it's FilmTek in standard sizes, Green Flex in oversized.

[Bernie Kopfer]

Abranet is available quite inexpensively, per sq in, in large rolls and multiple grits on Amazon. I dedicate a pair of scissors to cutting the length I want. Problem with it Is that it does not wear out unless you compare it to a new piece.

[Kyle Iwamoto]

I'm also a firm believer in Indasa. I use the Rhyno dry. I use Micromesh for wet sanding.
I don't think it's been mentioned, but the main reason I love the Indasa products is the grit consistency. The grits, whatever size they may be, are all the same sizes and very consistent across the paper. I've used cheap paper that had random sized grits that leave those giant scratches.....

[John K Jordan]

Uh oh-- looks lie we will next need to begin the debate on over vs under for how you hang the rolls.

446655


Ha! Always over for me, paper towel, toilet paper, sandpaper rolls.

I have a theory why some people like the "under" hanging. I suspect they (or an ancestor) were rowdy when toddlers kids and thought it was good fun to spin the "over" toilet paper rolls with their hands, dumpling half the roll on the floor before mama stopped them. Wise mama turned the roll around so spinning provided no entertainment feedback. These kids grew up thinking "under" rolls were normal. The practice has been passed down in some families for generations.

But now the debate is settled. On a Jimmy Fallon segment called "Obama Settles It" Obama pronounced a hot dog is not a sandwich, the edge brownie was better, never ketchup on eggs, pecan is pronounced peCAN, and no question, the roll should hang "over, definitely", "the other way is a mistake." So there, Obama Settles It. :D

JKJ

[BOB OLINGER]

For sanding on the lathe, i like the 3M drywall sanding screens. You can cut them into strips, very flexible, and given the open cell design, they don't clog up with sanding dust. Go medium, then fine, the 0000 steel wool.

[paul vechart]

John do you use those papers for wet sanding as well as dry sanding?
Thanks,
Paul

[roger wiegand]

So I've started ordering some new sandpapers to check out. The Indasa RhinoDry and foam backed pads came today (less than 24 hours from placing the order to delivery!) and I have to say it knocked my socks off in the sanding ability and lifetime. I guess I'd forgotten or never known how good sandpaper could be. Unbelievably fast. I was churning out ornaments this afternoon and got through six of them with one 2x3" pieces of each grit in less than half the time it had been taking me before it started to slow down-- at each grit there was a big plume of dust coming off-- I found I needed to move much more quickly than I'm use to to not overdo it, which was fine with me. The paper I had been using before was tired after one ornament. The scratch pattern, based on a very small sample, is perfect.


The foam backed paper was great, I'd never used anything like it before. Same abrasive as the plain paper, but much more flexible and conforming to the work. Not perfect for every situation, but something I can see using a lot.


The downside of the plain paper is that it is almost brittle. It cracks badly when bent, so doesn't make smooth curves (if you bend it backwards it actually breaks off). It's not the ultimate answer for me, but boy is it better than what I've been doing up until now. More new types will be arriving in the mail soon.

Our club had a great Cindy Drozda demo last week and we had a bit of time to chat with her. Apparently as well as being a computer video geek she's an aficionado of abrasives. She has a whole array of different kinds of abrasive, each targeted to a particular niche application. I'm starting to see how that can happen.

[John K Jordan]

The downside of the plain paper is that it is almost brittle. It cracks badly when bent, so doesn't make smooth curves (if you bend it backwards it actually breaks off). It's not the ultimate answer for me, but boy is it better than what I've been doing up until now. More new types will be arriving in the mail soon.


I don't know if I mentioned this, but one of the reasons I like both the Rhynowet Redline fine paper and the Klingspor gold rolls is the flexibility of both. I can repeatedly fold or bend either and nothing cracks and no grit comes loose. I typically cut the Rhynowet into 1"x3" rectangles for small work then fold a piece to get a tight edge to sand in grooves and such. I sometimes fold it several times and unfold/refold to expose fresh edges. When the paper gets loaded with sanding dust I wipe it off on my jeans and keep going. Works well with wet sanding of course, with water, oil, mineral spirits, CA glue, etc.

Same thing with the Klingspor Gold - very flexible. I use the strips flat, fold, and often twist into tight spirals to hand sand in small coves on spindle turnings. This paper has an excellent life and can also be cleaned when loaded. Sometimes I clean with a soft brass brush. I use it wet or dry.

I realize this thread is about sanding by hand, which I'm assumed meant with the lathe turned off, but the papers I use work fine with the lathe running too.

JKJ

[roger wiegand]

I realize this thread is about sanding by hand, which I'm assumed meant with the lathe turned off, but the papers I use work fine with the lathe running too.

JKJ

Sorry if I wasn't clear, but I'm sanding with the lathe running most all the time. Perhaps incorrectly, when i think "power sanding" I'm thinking of a disk on an electric or pneumatic sander or drill. "Hand sanding" for me is when you hold the paper in your hand whether the workpiece is rotating or stationary.

Sounds like I need to check out the ones you reference as well. Seeing how much improvement is possible I'm happy now to explore more possibilities.

[John K Jordan]

Sorry if I wasn't clear, but I'm sanding with the lathe running most all the time. Perhaps incorrectly, when i think "power sanding" I'm thinking of a disk on an electric or pneumatic sander or drill. "Hand sanding" for me is when you hold the paper in your hand whether the workpiece is rotating or stationary.


A perfectly valid use of the term "hand sanding"!

I also sand by hand with the lathe running but mostly on spindles, boxes, etc. BTW, I use a low speed, then when finished with one grit if the design allows it I stop the lathe and sand by hand with the grain. My theory is if the grit I just used doesn't take out the circular scratches, the next finer grit probably won't!

I've quit using rotating disks but when needed a small pneumatic random orbital sanders is a dream (I use the Grex). Mostly use these with the lathe off on bowls and platters. After smoothing with NRS and hand scraping, not much sanding is needed. (Sorry if I've mentioned this too many times! OK, off the soap box now!)

[Dave Jain]

3M sandblaster, for hand sanding