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Hey guys

It seems that a lot of people are using this method. I used to wet sand em6000 with soapy water, but stopped because it would go through the finish too easily. I have been doing it dry for awhile.

I have a couple of questions regarding wet sanding with mineral spirits:

-How much do you use? Just a few drops or "full wet"?

-Do you use it at all grades or at a specific point?

-Do you use gloves and a respirator?

Any other detail regarding this method would be appreciated.

Cheers


Pat

I have done one finish with EM6000. I used low-odor mineral spirits and it was pretty easy. You don't need a lot of the stuff. The mineral spirits seems to go further and last longer than soapy water. Definitely use rubber gloves but a respirator does not seem necessary if you have the low-odor stuff.

I use about a 1/4" of the low-odor mineral spirits in the bottom of a tin pie plate. I just dip the sandpaper in it as I go to keep it clean. You can sand through the finish easy whenever you wet sand because the paper cuts so well. I've been wetsanding from 600 up to 2000 before I buff but not sure that's the best method. It worked good for me but I still want to experiment some.

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Steve Smith
"Music is what feelings sound like"

Have you tried dry sanding with stearated papers like 3M gold? I've only done a little bit of wet on EM (USL to be technically correct) but I much prefer the dry. If you haven't tried it - try it.

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I used min. spirits on my last & it went well.
I'm a believer in "soaking" the papers (in whatever medium) before using.... soak under spirits for a couple of hours. Then just lift out, use & return frequently... same procedure for all grades. Definitely use gloves (...sanded off more than enough fingertips by not using!)

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Dave
Milton, ON

I'm a dip and sand person myself, not a soaker

I start wet sanding with 1000 grit, everything before is dry, I start with 600 then 800 3M gold, if they had higher grits, I'd use them too before starting to wet sand.

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Thanks for the input guys

The reason I was asking is mostly curiosity. I seem to read more and more about people going wet and mineral spirits.

I am just about to start the sanding stage on a customer guitar. I think I'll stay with my usual M.O. for now: dry sand with 800 to 2000, buff, Nu Finish Scratch Doctor and Bob's my Uncle!

Pat

I've been thinking about trying that out myself. I'll give it a try on the next one.

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Alain Moisan
Former full time builder of Acoustics, Classicals and Flamencos.
(Now building just for fun!)

Alain wrote:



I have tried a few other brands, including the new stuff from Magiuars (Scratch X2). I find that Scratch Doctor is the better one for what I do. Just remember to do only small surfaces at a time, use small dabs and don't let this stuff sit on the finish too long, it may start to "penetrate" the finish and soften it.

Good luck with it!

Pat

Thanks for the tips!

_________________
Alain Moisan
Former full time builder of Acoustics, Classicals and Flamencos.
(Now building just for fun!)