Simple Sanding Strategery

basswood

I spent all day with belt and random orbit sanders and a router. I keep my sanity on days like this with an iPod and good Koss Quiet Zone noise canceling headphones. They are comfortable, sound great and filter out most of the noise, but I can still hear my cellphone ring.

Also the Koss headphones allow you to turn off noise canceling if you need to hear something and their is a volume control on the headphone cord that is very handy.

I hook up the sanders to the Fein vac which automatically turns on and off with the sanders... virtually no dust.

I keep the boards in place for sanding with jarlid grippers.

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basswood

I buy the jarlid grippers at a Dollar Store, 4 to a pack.

I used to use the same gripper material, sold on a roll as shelf liner or rug matt material, but the lid grippers fit nicely in my tool tray that I keep my sanding disks in.

The grippers can also be used with spring clamps to double their effectiveness.

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loneframer

Hey Basswood, those things look like some drawer liners i found that come in a roll. They're awesome. I wish I had the vac setup though, you are obviously spoiled in the toy department.


Did you see my post in the tables and workcart thread?

basswood

When sanding glued-up panels, I use the scribble method, marking on both sides of the glue line. Then when sanding, the low side of the line still has pencil marks so I stay on the high side until I see the pencil marks disappear, then I know the two boards are flush.

Most of you probably know this already, but I thought I would post it anyway:

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basswood

I saw it, but I'm fading fast... past my bedtime... was gonna post back in the morning.

On the drawer liner, I've found that a few small disks of the stuff (lid grippers), work as well, but take up less room.

loneframer

Sweet dreams Basswood

KMac

The ipod is a necessity for me too when I have hours of sanding to do. Otherwise I talk talking to myself.

loneframer

Gotta be careful with the Ipod, especially if you like to sing out loud.
Been caught unexpectedly more than once.

basswood

I'm back. Got a good nights sleep. Several inches of snow fell overnight here. Just fired up the woodstove in the shop, so it can warmup out there while I have breakfast and check in here.

Looks like a great job you have going now. Nice to be able to really set up shop on the job. Is is a secure enough site that you are able leave it set up?

I have a set of panels I glued up to sand today, and about 100 flutes to plow. Gonna be another iPod day.

loneframer

Job is about 1/8 of a mile into the wood. It's pretty secure now ,but the site got hit by one of the stonemasons laborers a while back, all told we lost about 6 grand in tools, went out right away and replaced most of them. Less than two weeks later they were all recovered. BONUS BABY. The perps dad was one of the masons, and had done the stonework on my house!
He was very embarrased, and replaced my 20 year old Knack box with a brand new one. All is forgiven.

basswood

KMac,

Just don't get into arguments with yourself.

I've found that I'm more focused and productive when plugged into an iPod... in my own little world... nothing distracts me.

I found the Koss Quiet Zone headphones on sale at RadioShack for $30. Money well spent.

Regards (actually typed "Retards"-- the "g" and "t" are too close together on the keyboard),

Bass

loneframer

Love having backup tools

basswood

I love a happy ending.

loneframer

There is a god.

Leo G

Have you ever noticed that when you draw a scribble line on you woodwork you can sand the wood smooth before the line actually goes away?

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neolitic

Never saw the little gripper things.
I have rolls of the shelf liner tucked
every where though.
Keep a couple rolled up in the router
bit/accessory box that keep things
from shifting around and jumbling up
in there, several more here and there.
I like keeping the round ones in the
orbital box though.

For me it's head phone radio.
Cancels out the noise and still lets
me hear when the tools talk to me.
Radio keeps me anchored in time.
Else-wise I tend to drift......
If I'd had these things 30 years ago
I might still have high frequency hearing.

Of course, rock and roll may have had
a part in that too.....

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loneframer

Funny, I hear high frequency 24/7. It's annoying with no background noise.

neolitic

Oh, perzactly!
Ain't no such thing as silence,
the crickets and cicadas sing
all the time!
It's the hf sound outside my head
that's gone...

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basswood

Hello Leo,

True, you can go by feel rather that using visual scribbled lines. If you need a dead flat panel, nothing beats a straight edge and the touch of fingertips.

In this case, I am in the process of making a total of 37, eight-foot, fluted column faces so the speed of the "scribble and belt sand" approach is helpful.

The column blanks have not dished too much from the sanding.

Off to the shop,

Bass

loneframer

Hey BASS, ARE YA DONE YET?