Popular Woodworking 2007-10 № 164, страница 67

Power sanding. Random-orbit sanders are easy to use and efficient for smoothing wood. To reduce the likelihood of the squigglies these sanders produce, use a light touch. Don't press down on the sander. Let its weight do the work.

Tack rags load up too quickly with the large amount of dust created at the wood level. These sticky rags should be reserved for removing the small amounts of dust after sanding between coats of finish.

Compressed air works well if you have a good exhaust system, such as a spray booth, to remove the dust.

It's not necessary to get all the dust out of the pores. You won't see any difference under a finish, or under a stain and finish. Just get the wood clean enough so you can't feel or pick up any dust when wiping your hand over the surface.

How Much to Sand

The biggest sanding challenge is to know when you have removed all the flaws in the wood and then when you have removed all the scratches from each previous grit so you can move on to the next. Being sure that these flaws and scratches are removed is the reason most of us sand more than we need to.

A lot of knowing when you have sanded enough is learned by experience. But there are two methods you can use as an aid. First, after removing the dust, look at the wood in a low-angle reflected light - for example, from a window or a light fixture on a stand. Second, wet the wood then look at it from different angles into a reflected light.

For wetting the wood, use mineral spirits (paint thinner) or denatured alcohol. Avoid mineral spirits ifyou are going to apply a water-based finish because any oily residue from the thinner might cause the finish to bead up. Denatured alcohol will raise the grain a little, so you'll have to sand it smooth again. PW

Bob is the author of "Understanding Wood Finishing" and a contributing editor to Popular Woodworking.

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