James Rodgers

“The sanding process Sanding is the process of scratching the wood surface with finer and finer scratches until the abrasions are invisible. After all the work and effort in creating the project, it is important to make it as presentable and fit for its intended use as possible. The work of creation does not end with the turning. To make your work as complete as desired may require more time than the actual turning did! Here are a few guidelines to help. •Use the best sandpaper you can buy and discard it when it begins to wear. This will save you a lot of time by always using sharp paper that cuts correctly. Worn 80-grit paper does not become 120-grit—only 80-grit that won’t cut any more. •Always follow the order of grits: 80, 120, 180, 220, and 320. Don’t skip grits in a rush or earlier scratches may not be completely removed. •After sanding with the lathe running, turn off the lathe and hand sand in the direction of the grain to remove all circular scratches caused in the previous sanding step. You can remove a lot of stubborn scratches this way. •Keep the lathe speed low as high speed sanding generates surface heat and can cause small surface cracks to appear. •Don’t proceed to the next grit until all circular marks are gone. It may require a bright light to see the marks clearly. •If scratches reappear as you work in finer grits, they were always there and are only now being seen due to the smoother surface surrounding them. You must go back to the grit of sandpaper that created the scratches and rework the whole sanding process. •Sanding wood and sanding a finished surface are different processes. There is no point in sanding a course-grained wood beyond 320-grit as the pores of the wood themselves may be larger than the grit of the sandpaper. Once finish is applied and the wood pores are filled, sanding between topcoats can proceed with even finer grits.”
― James Rodgers, A Lesson Plan for Woodturning: Step-by-Step Instructions for Mastering Woodturning Fundamentals