Sanding basics

Definition of sanding

Sanding is a surface treatment of various materials which can have the following purposes

• Elimination of dimensional and form deviations (calibrating) through pre and coarse sanding; grit 24 to 80
• Enhancement of surfaces through fine and post sanding. At wood working, it's also called cross-section sanding - by sanding perpendicular to the wood fibres , lapping fibres are better cut off and won't stand up later during priming and lacquering; grit 100 to 150 – or parallel sanding –sanding parallel to the wood fibres results into a smooth and fine grinding and traces of prior treatment are eliminated; grit 100 to 240.

Manual sanding

is done by hand or with tools, eg

• Only by hand: the abrasive is used on the surface by hand
• Cork or wood block: the abrasive is attached to the tool and used on the surface by hand
• Hand sander: the rectangular abrasive is attached to the machine and used on the surface by hand
• Edge or excentrical sander: the round abrasive is attached to the machine and used on the surface by hand

Mechanical sanding

is done by machines, eg

• Hand belt sanders (treatment of wood and metals): the abrasive is attached to the machine and used on the surface by hand
• Belt sanding machine (treatment of metals): the narrow endless sanding belt is attached to the machine; the work piece is manually treated at the contact roll
• Long belt sanding machine (treatment of wood and metals): the endless sanding belt is attached to the machine; the work piece is manually treated with the sanding shoe
• Wide belt sanding machine (treatment of wood and metals): the endless wide sanding belt is attached to the machine; the work piece is manually treated with the sanding roll or shoe