Sandpaper is a necessity in any workshop and
it works in a manner similar to a saw or chisel
for taking off rough edges. There are two different
grades of sandpaper and you use each of them
for different purposes. Commercial grade sandpaper
is available at hardware stores and is the grade
used in home projects. Industrial grade sandpaper is made from higher quality materials and is
only available where industrial supplies are
sold.
Open-coat sandpaper has gaps and open spaces
between the grits that helps prevent clogging
by giving the sawdust a place to go. This is
the kind most often used in woodworking. Closed
coat sandpaper is mostly used for sanding metal
and wood finished.
Every
wood project needs to be sanded before it is
completely finished. Once you are finished
with the sandpaper, the sanding sealing is
applied to the project. If you are refinishing
furniture care must be taken with the color,
sanding too much can remove the color of the
grain. The sanding sealer is an undercoat for
varnishes and stains. It is transparent and
does not cover the wood color. Sanding helps
to smooth out the surface so that when you
apply a finish it does not have any lumps in
the top.
The
least liked job in a workshop is that of profile
sanding. This is especially tedious when the
project is a tiny one, such as in Christmas
ornaments. Profile
sanding is smoothing out the little nicks and
grooves in a woodworking project so that it won’t feel rough.
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