# Wood Sanding, finish



## maxim (Jun 21, 2012)

What final grit of sandpapper do you use ?? 
I have notised that stabilized wood will look plastik like when it is sanded up above 1k grit, maybe its just me :O
But i like to finish them to max 800 grit. 

For Natural wood i feel comfortable with 1k and above but on stabilized it begin too look like imitated wood.
What do you guys think ??


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## Pabloz (Jun 21, 2012)

I usually go to 2500 wet or dry on stabilized or natural. Stabilized I will then buff to a high gloss on the bufffer. On the natural woods I will usually finish with Tru-Oil (as many coats as necessary for any given wood) and then wax, hand buffed to a high glossy sheen.


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## Maluaka (Jun 21, 2012)

2000 wet/dry then power buff. I like em shiny.


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## kalaeb (Jun 21, 2012)

I like em to shine as well. I go 320,400,600,800 buff, Tru-oil and wax.


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## apicius9 (Jun 21, 2012)

I am buffing with white compound and then lightly again with pink compund. I think I read that the white compound is approx. 1500grit equivalent, and I haven't noticed any big improvement if I sand beyond 1200grit in most stabilized woods. However, that changes with metal pieces, then I also go higher. Usually, I also apply some oil-based finish before buffing to bring out the colors better.

For non-stabilized woods I vary a bit, depending on how oily the wood is. I used to apply a dozen layers of finish or more but have cut that back to less in most cases, trying to find a balance between giving the wood some protection but retaining some of the wood character. 

Especially with burl woods you sometimes find that even after stabilizing the wood still has micro voids or is not 100% smooth after sanding to 2000 grit and buffing. Unless there are deep voids or grooves, my personal preference is to take that as a character of the wood and leave it like that rather than slathering it in epoxy or CA glue for a smoother finish. 

Stefan


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## Eamon Burke (Jun 21, 2012)

I agree that it can look and feel like plastic. I finish wood, currently, with brown paper bags. You may be surprised how fast it is.


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## Twistington (Jun 21, 2012)

At the moment im toying around with ca-glue, 600>1200>2500grit and a sock loaded with a 3micron compound.


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## bieniek (Jun 21, 2012)

I dont bother higher up than 600. But I repeat that few times. 

Do you use damp cloth after each grit/round? 

After little buff by hand and ready steady go.

But I aint no mass producer, just a pendehito [if you translate literally]


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## Taz575 (Jun 21, 2012)

I have sandpaper that goes to 12,000 grit (Micro Mesh), which is about a 4000-6000 grit US equivalent. If it's fully done, it will leave no scratches that are visible, but makes everything look like plastic. I bring the handles up to the 12,000 usually and look for scratches. Then I drop back down and bring it up to 400 or 600 US grit, and again look for scratches. I then go to the Micro Mesh starting at the 1500 and going to around 4000, then rub in a few coats of Tru Oil or Lin Speed oil. Then I check again for scratches and do a couple thin coats of either of those finishes, rubbing them in by hand. I prefer the wood to feel like wood, not plastic! I tried buffing the handles, but the wheels tended to make the burls look muddy and dished the wood in the softer areas, like on Spalted Maple Burl.


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## maxim (Jun 21, 2012)

Thanks guys  
I usually finish with 1k or more but now i see that sometimes even 400 grit with some buffe looks very good and shinny.


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## El Pescador (Jun 21, 2012)

bieniek said:


> I dont bother higher up than 600. But I repeat that few times.
> 
> Do you use damp cloth after each grit/round?
> 
> ...



Not disputing the fact you're a_ pendejito_ just the way you spelled it.


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## WillC (Jun 22, 2012)

If buffing out on a wheel, anything over 400/600 is wasted on stabilized wood imo. If there are scratches, you missed a bit at a lower grit. I'll often buff then go back to a 400g belt, then re-buff. 
To get an equal shine by hand, would be the full set of micromesh up to 12,000.


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## ncowan (Jul 2, 2012)

Don't use sand paper it tends to scratch, foam sanding pads blend way bette. Just search Norton 3x. And fishish with 0000 steel wool.


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## pkb (Jul 5, 2012)

I don't bother with anything higher than 400 for most purposes. I like the results of 400 grit lapping and then touched to the buffing wheel. All of the 400 grit scratches vanish immediately--just like any scratches of higher grit paper would have. No need to go higher if I'm doing a handle with that finish. The exception is when I'm using tru-oil and "wet"-sanding stabilized wood. At that point, I find that 1000 grit paper works great.


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