Finishing-- How to.

[Shadow Wizard]

Okay, so my next question is about finishing..  Well I guess sanding?  Is there a better/other way to do it then by hand?  I am not a huge fan of hand sanding anything..  So I thought I would ask.

 

[don in brooklin on]

What are you sanding?

Flat items or ornaments.

Intarsia?

 

[OCtoolguy]

27 minutes ago, Shadow Wizard said:

Okay, so my next question is about finishing..  Well I guess sanding?  Is there a better/other way to do it then by hand?  I am not a huge fan of hand sanding anything..  So I thought I would ask.

 

Short answer......NOPE!

 

[old sarge]

+1 on short answer.

Edited October 21, 2021 by old sarge

[dgman]

There is no easy way, but there are a lot of ways to get it done. First is using quality wood. Weather you are using a good plywood, soft wood or hardwood, you need to sand the blanks before you scroll. I use a random orbital sander for this. Depending on the smoothness of the wood, I’ll start with 100 grit. Then 180, then 220. This is fairly standard in wood working. After you have done your scrolling, you can touch up your cuts with 220 grit sand paper. Either with a folded piece of sand paper or sand paper attached to a sanding block.
For clean cuts, you need to use a good quality blade. Most scrollers use  reverse tooth blades. The bottom teeth face upwards to help clean the fuzzies. Once you find the right blades, and your cutting improves, you will need very little, if any sanding on the cuts.

Edited October 22, 2021 by dgman

[Scrappile]

Will I use a Mac Mop on my lathe to sand even the most fragile of my fret cuttings.......  I do not run at this speed,,, but I do use them.   I have three grits... 120, 180. 240. I use the the 120 most and it produces a smooth finish equal to 220 grit.. I need to talk to these people the do not really show all the advantages...  I use it to get a good smooth finish and to remove almost all the "frizzes" .  Been using them for year.. they will last longer than I live..

 

Edited October 22, 2021 by Scrappile

[preprius]

Here is an expansion to the short answer.... 

1 hour ago, OCtoolguy said:

Short answer......NOPE!

 

 

[BadBob]

8 hours ago, dgman said:

you need to sand the blanks before you scroll

Not necessasarily.Not necessarily. When making small items, it is easier and faster to sand after the piece is cut. Less area to sand, and I have to sand the fuzzies off anyway.

[BadBob]

I have

• several belt sanders in assorted sizes
• disk sanders - rarely used
• drum sanders
• spindle sanders
• sanding mops
• rotary tools with a large assortment of attachments

 

With all of this, I still need to do some hand sanding.

[FrankEV]

The OP's question is so vague it almost does not warrent an answer.  

Everything others have said is all true but there are so many different sanding and finishing processes it is impossible to be sure what answer is appropriate.

In this world of Scrolling there are so many different type projects from flat fretwork to sculptured projects. all requiring different sanding methods and equipment.  Then there is associated wood working like making frames which also requires sanding and finishing. And , of course, the project wood being used can dictate the appropriate sanding and finishing process.

Yes hand sanding is often necessary, especially for very final finishing and between applications of finishing materials slike Lacquer and Polyurethane..  However, the use  of many different power sanding equipment is also useful and appropriate during the actual wood working process.  Hand held random orbital sanders, belt sanders, spindel sanders, disk sanders sanding mops, rotary tool sanding drumbs and more are very common sanders used by most of us. 

[preprius]

Since started scrollsawing last december, i bought a small band disk sander , a belt / spindle sander and over $200 of sandpaper to fit new machines. A mop sander. Accessories for drill /rotary tools for sanding. 

I already had palm vibrating sander. 

If you walk through wood specialty stores , rockler or woodcrafter , they have a good portion of the store for sanding.  Another big portion is finishing stains and protection. 

So yes this concept of getting away from hand sanding is always a big topic in industry.

When I use the big belt sander or the small band sander I always accidently touch areas of the piece that already sanded. So I have to redo that area,  it becomes a cycle.  So i end up hand sanding those areas.  But those machine can save alot of time.

Mark

Edited October 22, 2021 by preprius

[crupiea]

I sand the wood before attaching the pattern and cutting. 

Gives me a bit of a head starrt at least.  Then once cut its just a light sanding type thing before paint.  My pieces are made up of really small pieces so it still sucks to sand them all but I like a smoother finish. 

I just do it by hand with a piece of folded sandpaper.

[Denny Knappen]

I know it is expensive, but I use a Sand Flee on almost every project.  And like Scrappile, I also use a Mac Mop.

[BadBob]

15 hours ago, Denny Knappen said:

I know it is expensive, but I use a Sand Flee on almost every project. 

I'd love to have a Sand Flee and a drum sander too.

[TAIrving]

On 10/21/2021 at 8:02 PM, Scrappile said:

Will I use a Mac Mop on my lathe to sand even the most fragile of my fret cuttings.......  I do not run at this speed,,, but I do use them.   I have three grits... 120, 180. 240. I use the the 120 most and it produces a smooth finish equal to 220 grit.. I need to talk to these people the do not really show all the advantages...  I use it to get a good smooth finish and to remove almost all the "frizzes" .  Been using them for year.. they will last longer than I live..

 

Paul,

What do you use to attach the Mac Mop to your lathe?

Thanks,

Thurman

[Scrappile]

@Algae  I use a collet chuck with a 1/4" collet in it..

 

[Foxfold]

I improvise and do this. It's a 120 sanding mop in an upside down drill.    That said, I do pretty much everything on here even my most intricate stuff.

[kmmcrafts]

On 10/22/2021 at 6:24 AM, FrankEV said:

The OP's question is so vague it almost does not warrent an answer.  

Everything others have said is all true but there are so many different sanding and finishing processes it is impossible to be sure what answer is appropriate.

In this world of Scrolling there are so many different type projects from flat fretwork to sculptured projects. all requiring different sanding methods and equipment.  Then there is associated wood working like making frames which also requires sanding and finishing. And , of course, the project wood being used can dictate the appropriate sanding and finishing process.

Yes hand sanding is often necessary, especially for very final finishing and between applications of finishing materials slike Lacquer and Polyurethane..  However, the use  of many different power sanding equipment is also useful and appropriate during the actual wood working process.  Hand held random orbital sanders, belt sanders, spindel sanders, disk sanders sanding mops, rotary tool sanding drumbs and more are very common sanders used by most of us. 

Exactly!!! and why I have not put in my 2cents yet.. maybe OP will not come back to respond either.. 

Also correct blade selection for said project can make the difference of "needing" to sand or not.. Saw dialed in with proper blade alignment also make a world of difference.. I rarely get fuzzies on the back... even with spiral blades.. I pre-sand all my work and rarely have to sand after finishing the project..

 

[CSull]

I have found that sanding prior to cutting is a big time saver.  My planer does a great job when I am getting my hardwoods to thickness, I can usually go  straight to a 220 grit after planing. I have also become fond of using the torch to remove the fuzzies, you just have to be careful.

[OCtoolguy]

6 hours ago, Foxfold said:

I improvise and do this. It's a 120 sanding mop in an upside down drill.    That said, I do pretty much everything on here even my most intricate stuff.

I like your style. Looks like a "bush fix" that I might come up with. Watch those flea market sales for $5 corded drills. Use them til they die.

[kmmcrafts]

6 hours ago, Foxfold said:

I improvise and do this. It's a 120 sanding mop in an upside down drill.    That said, I do pretty much everything on here even my most intricate stuff.

I use those quite a lot.. I get them at Harbor Freight for like $8-10 each.. They are more of a ball shape than a cone like yours unless you worn yours down like that.. I use it in my drill press though..

[Shadow Wizard]

12 hours ago, Foxfold said:

I improvise and do this. It's a 120 sanding mop in an upside down drill.    That said, I do pretty much everything on here even my most intricate stuff.

I am trying to find one of those.  I am located in Canada, so such stuff can be hard to find, or be called different things.  Any idea what else it may be called?  What are the bristles made out of?

[Shadow Wizard]

10 hours ago, kmmcrafts said:

Exactly!!! and why I have not put in my 2cents yet.. maybe OP will not come back to respond either.. 

Also correct blade selection for said project can make the difference of "needing" to sand or not.. Saw dialed in with proper blade alignment also make a world of difference.. I rarely get fuzzies on the back... even with spiral blades.. I pre-sand all my work and rarely have to sand after finishing the project..

 

Actually, the question was vague because 1) I dont have the knowledge to make it more specific.  I an VERY new to woodworking and don't know what else I should have added to get better 'help' and 2) Because it gives me a very wide range of answers.  Lets say for example, I give every tiny bit of detail.  Wood I am using, pattern, speed of saw, type of blade, current humidity, current temperature, time it takes me to cut, examples of what I did, time of day, etc, and I got a response that says "Use this method"  Then if anything changed, I would need to come back and ask again, "Well I am doing the exact same thing, but I am cutting on poplar this time instead of oak..  Should I change my sanding method?"  with a wide range of answers like what I am getting, I gain more knowledge.

See, for example, I just learned I need help with blade selection..  I thought those fuzzies were normal..

[John B]

I use a sanding mop from Klingspore and their Mac Mops

[BadBob]

19 hours ago, Foxfold said:

I improvise and do this. It's a 120 sanding mop in an upside down drill.    That said, I do pretty much everything on here even my most intricate stuff.

I've been considering these.

I have some small ones that are for rotary tools. They work OK, but I haven't used them enough to recommend them.