Sanding pine furniture

Press, 11 September 1986, Page 12

Sanding pine furniture

Now that we have got those pieces of unfinished pine home, and into shape for finishing, we will have to start the sanding work. Although the techniques we use are aimed at a piece of unfinished pine, they will work just as well on any other piece of furniture you might want to finish. First, get your sandpaper. You will need some 120 and 220-grit paper. Get aluminium oxide, and get enough, maybe five sheets of each. Sanding is too tedious to tackle with wornout paper. Fresh papers sand faster, cleaner, and more evenly. It will give you a better job, faster. While you are at it, get .a few sheets of 320 and 400-grit waterproof (wet or dry) sandpaper. You will not use these extra fine papers now, but you will need them later on for sanding between coats of varnish. You can sand by hand, or you can use a sander. I like to work with a good orbital finishing sander, and the most useful types are the little palm sanders. Black and Decker, Ryobi (illustrated) and Hitachi are among the biggest-selling models available. I like orbitals because they are easy to use, work fast, and get into tight spots. Despite what you may have heard, they will not leave millions of tiny circular scratches over the surface of your work — at least the good ones, with speeds of 10,000 orbits per minute or more will not.

I have tried creating these scratches on purpose for photographs, and even then I had to use very coarse paper, under lots of pressure. So, do not

worry about orbitals and scratch marks. As a matter of fact, orbitals are good for removing and preventing scratches. They are especially good for sanding parts that join at right angles, like the two being sanded in the sketch. If you sand these by hand, it is difficult to avoid scratching one part cross-grain while you are sanding with the grain of the other part. Since orbital sanders do not really care about grain direction, they solve that problem nicely. Speaking of cross-grain scratches, you probably brought some home with you when you bought your piece of unfinished pine. They are almost inevitable with the high-speed sanding techniques used at the factory. So, your first job is to go over your piece with the 120 paper, concentrating on any such scratches. Smooth out any other rough spots you find, but do not concentrate on a rough spot so heavily that you rub' a depression in your work. Sand the surrounding wood as well, blending or feathering smoothly away from the trouble spot. Dp all this with your

orbital sander, or sand by hand with a block. Use a rubber sanding block, or a block of wood padded with felt. If you sand by hand, always work with the grain. After removing all visible roughness with your 120 paper, go over the whole piece with 120, even if you do not think it is necessary. This will give the whole piece a uniform smoothness, remove invisible oil and dirt, and expose fresh wood. All this contributes to an even stain job down the line.

Now, switch over to your 220 paper and go over the whole piece again. As the paper dulls, switch to a fresh sheet. If your piece has any visible end grain, give these areas special are. The smoother they are, the less likely they are to soak up excess stain and become too dark.