Galaxy_Stranger Posted August 2, 2015 Posted August 2, 2015 Ok - Sanding. Kind of a noob question, but I'd like to know about other people's sanding practices. What grits do you use and when? Quote
mickyg Posted August 2, 2015 Posted August 2, 2015 Now there's an incredibly vast question, with a myriad of answers! For what reason? We can cover everything from sanding bits off plastic that shouldn't be there (sprue marks, for instance) to sanding putty and filling fixes, to prepping for paint, to finishing clear coats. Just to start us off, here's what I commonly do for sanding, applied purely to model kits. But this can be translated to toys or anything else you need to sand, for that matter. I use something around 400 grit for quick sanding of plastic parts, or to knock down imperfections quickly. I tend to use the black, wet/dry stuff and use plenty of water to carry away the sanded stuff and prevent the paper from getting blocked up with dust. I'll often switch to maybe 800 grit to make sure it's smooth. Most often in this sort of instance, I'll use paper that's been glued to plastic sticks with superglue, so it's easy to work with and gives me a hard, flat edge to work against whatever it is I'm trying to sand. For painting, I usually start with 1200 grit, so I don't sand right through the paint. Again, I use wet/dry and plenty of water. I'll often follow up with 2000 grit to finish it off. This works well for a primer coat too. And the other sanding practice I have is when it comes to clear parts. The only way to deal with seam lines or other imperfections is to sand them carefully. I will usually start with 600 grit, and work my way up with a few intermediate grits, all the way up to 2000. And then I hit it with a polishing paste from Tamiya. And then usually dunk it in Future, just to make sure it's nice and clear. Hope that's a good start for you! Quote
derex3592 Posted August 3, 2015 Posted August 3, 2015 Great response there! Can you post a pic of your paper superglued to a stick method? That sounds interesting. Quote
mickyg Posted August 3, 2015 Posted August 3, 2015 Sure can! I don't have any on hand to show pics of, but I start with plain old plastic sheet and then cut it to about popsicle stick size widths and then cut each one in half, but at a sharp diagonal. Each stick is then about as long as my finger. I then cut out a piece of sand paper that's shaped so it'll wrap around the stick and not have any lumps when it's all folded up. Once I'm happy with the fit, I super glue it to the stick. This method gives me a sanding stick that is quite durable even when I get it wet. I'll post up some pics when I get home. Quote
Galaxy_Stranger Posted August 3, 2015 Author Posted August 3, 2015 (edited) Thanks for sharing! I've had varying problems with all of these issues in the past and had real hit-and-miss success. I'm used to using the colored Testors plastic sandpaper, but there's no real standardization. Now, I can purchase sandpaper based on standardized grit specifications. I did find an interesting video on sanding and polishing canopies, which I'll experiment with my Dremel to see if I can get his polishing process down: https://youtu.be/WHJmxKKxsew. He also has a video on sanding blocks: https://youtu.be/606_x_KAo4I. I've got some modeling projects coming up and I really want to get them right! Oh man - I'm REALLY gonna need a good scriber for various scales - any thoughts? Edited August 3, 2015 by Galaxy_Stranger Quote
Mintox Posted August 3, 2015 Posted August 3, 2015 Wet and dry. 360 grit to 1200 grit. Everything usually gets coated with Tamiya Fine Grey sanding undercoat. Or white just depends. Clear plastic as mentioned above polished with Mr Hobby polishing compounds then dipped in floor polish. Sanding sticks you can make yourself from various bits of thin board with double sided tape or buy some from places like HLJ: https://www.hlj.com/product/PROKK-59/Sup This for scribbing is very cool: https://www.hlj.com/product/HSGTT-1/Sup Quote
MechTech Posted August 5, 2015 Posted August 5, 2015 When I get sucked into going into the beauty supply store with my wife I make the most of it and purchase sanding blocks and sanding sticks (foam core) there. Those places are all over and easy to find. The "beauty blocks" are all waterproof so will take wet sanding and give you a smoother finish, espedcially on windshields. Many of the blocks are multigritted and perfect grits already for what we do. The sanding sticks are good too. Adam Savage from Mythbusters has some video on it (unless that's what you posted already). I HATE the Testors plastic paper. The grit always came off easily for me (long time ago) and ddin't last long. I also use rough industrial type sanding blocks from the hardware store for large areas or heavy removal like in scratch building. They also take wet sanding well too. - MT Quote
Galaxy_Stranger Posted August 9, 2015 Author Posted August 9, 2015 Hey, speaking of which, where do you get sheets of plastic to construct sanding blocks? Quote
MechTech Posted August 9, 2015 Posted August 9, 2015 Personally, I just buy the sanding sticks or the blocks with grit embedded in them They can be 4 sided. If you check my tool box in signature there's a couple of links for tools and plastic. Happy sanding!- MT Quote
Galaxy_Stranger Posted August 9, 2015 Author Posted August 9, 2015 How did you FIND all of this stuff!? I've been keeping a lookout for these kinds of things forever! And trolling traditional modeling sites didn't work either! Quote
MechTech Posted August 12, 2015 Posted August 12, 2015 Long story, but most of the places I lived didn't have this stuff. That's why I made the toolbox to help others. Another good place for general stuff is Scale Hobbyist. They take 2-3 days to ship, but I've been buying from them a few years now: https://www.scalehobbyist.com/%C2'> - MT Quote
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