When woodturning, the real work starts when the turning has finished. Sanding
and finishing a turned piece can make or break it, so it is important that
more care is taken during this time. Some professional turners recommend up
to 3 times longer for finishing a project compared to turning it.
There are several problems when attempting to sand a rotating piece of wood.
Firstly personal safety can be an issue if using a strip of sandpaper held
in the hand. The least that can happen is the paper gets hot and so do your
fingers, the worst is the sandpaper can get caught up causing more permanent
damage. As well as your fingers getting hot, the wood will also be warming
up and there is a danger of "heat checks", small cracks forming
on the surface of the turned piece, spoiling all the hard work put into making
it look good and creating a lot more work.
The second problem caused when using sandpaper held in the hand is that as
soon as the paper touches the surface of the rotating wood concentric rings
around the piece appear.
The way to stop these problems from happening is to ensure the sandpaper is
always moving when in contact with the surface and the best way to do this
is by using a system where the sandpaper is securely held whilst rotating,
such as the Robert Sorby "Sandmaster".
The Sandmaster uses a 2" sanding disc held on a Velcro sponge pad that
rotates via a friction free oiled bush. This is held in an adjustable head
giving easy access and is operated via a wooden handle. When the sanding disc
spins against the surface of the rotating wood the sanding job is done quickly
and efficiently. There are 5 different grades of abrasive included with the
Sandmaster. They range from 60 grit, which is very coarse and is used for
removing torn endgrain and imperfections to very fine 400 grit for the final
finish, giving a perfectly smooth feel. To achieve the best performance from
the Sandmaster, if comparing the work piece to a clock face, work on the area
6 - 9, keeping it moving across the surface.
To ensure that the Sandmaster is kept in top condition keep the bush oiled
and when changing abrasive discs ensure that the edge of the Velcro is held
down with a thumb to ensure no damage is caused to the sponge pad.
Happy sanding.
