Today's
Sponsors:


Finish Systems

Firth Maple Products

FORDAQ

FormWood Industries

Freeborn Tool Company

Fuhr International

Fuji Spray

Gabbiani Machine

Gary M. Katz

Global Hardwood Flooring

Glue Machinery Corporation

Goby Walnut Products

Graco, Inc.

Granite Road

Grayson Ferguson Woodworking Inc.

Great Lakes Kiln Drying Association

GreCon

GUHDO

Hanson and Leja Lumber Company

Hardwood Council

Hardwood Store of N.C. Inc.

Heartwoods, LLC

Her-Saf

Hermance Machine Company

High Point Grinding - Total Saw Solutions

Historical Plus Wood

CNCROUTERSTORE.com

CNT Motion Systems

Colonial Saw

Construction Programs and Results

Cook's Saw Mfg.

COOLwoodworkingstuff.com

Country Saw & Knife, Inc.

Courmatt International Inc.

CP Adhesives

CSH Custom Service Hardware Inc.

CTS Manufacturing Inc.

CustomMade.com

Cutlist Plus

D.S. Brown Machinery

Dancer Lumber

Delle Vedove USA, Inc.

Delmac Machinery Group

Delta

Denray Machine

DeVilbiss

Dispoz-A-Blade

Diversi-Tech

DMC

DODDS

Don Hall & Associates

Donald Dean and Sons

Durable Wood Products

E.W. Tooling Inc.

Eagle Machinery and Repair Co.

ECabinet Systems

Edge-It Edgebanding

Edwards Wood Products

Electrophysics

Elias Woodwork & Manufacturing

Elkom North America

Emerald Hardwood Floors

Endeavor Hardwoods

EnRoute WOOD

ETemplate Digital Measuring

ETK International

EX-FACTORY

Excel Dowel and Wood Products Inc.

Extrema Machinery

ez-Router

FastCap




Sanding Moulding Profiles       Tips and tricks for sanding the profiles surface of trim moldings without overly softening the sharp edges. August 21, 2006

Question
I have about 2,400 linear ft of trim and base that I am staining/clearcoating. I need to find a way to easily sand between coats. Do any of you know how to make a sanding block that fits the shape of trim? I have heard of using Bondo to get the shape and then gluing sandpaper to it. Is there a better way - maybe a little stronger - like fiberglass or something like that??

Forum Responses
(Architectural Woodworking Forum)
From contributor A :
In the past I've used a section of moulding wrapped loosely in cling film, made up of a 4-sided carton with an opening at the bottom on each side to pass the moulding through then just sprayed in expanding urethane foam. It’s not pretty, but it works. If you wax the moulding really heavily that works too, but it's then a problem getting the sandpaper to stick.



From contributor B:
Put some coarse sticky back sandpaper on the profile and rub a piece of foamboard (blueboard - extruded polystyrene insulating foam) against it until you have a counter profile. Now put some fine grit sticky back paper on your sanding block and you are good to go. If the grain raise is not too bad, scotchbrite will knock it down well enough, although the sandpaper may clog and need replacement more often than is convenient.


From contributor C:
Bondo is what I have most often seen, however you could do the same thing making the sanding block out of epoxy and micro balloon additive or with fiber glass. This should pretty much give you a very long-lasting block.


From contributor D:
When I have a lot of molding to sand I use a profile sander. It is a wheel with flaps of cloth sand paper on it that you can mount to a drill motor.


From contributor A:
I've used the slashed abrasive wheels in the past and found that they can only handle a limited range of shapes. They have a tendency to knock the edges off finer angles on the moulding and not be able to get into the little corners you sometimes get in fancy cornices (crown mouldings).

For longer runs I use a Volpato LBK oscillating edge sander which has an additional profile sanding head on it (non-oscillating). This allows me to use a friable abrasive wheel which I set-up by back feeding a square-cut piece of the moulding into the wheel while it's turning to form the profile sanding shape. I then feed normally to sand the profile - a bit like using a spindle moulder as the machine has two cast-iron fences and we have a power feeder on our unit, too. But it’s a bit of an expensive solution for 2400 ft of trim. Worth looking at if you do a lot more, though.



From contributor E:
Take a look at a sanding head from Klingspor called a Mac Mop. It works great on mouldings without killing the profile edges.


From contributor A:
To contributor E: What speed do they run at?


From contributor E:
3400 rpm is the listed max. I have heard that they work better at lower speeds like 1725.

Would you like to add information to this article?
Interested in writing or submitting an article?
Have a question about this article?


Have you reviewed the related Knowledge Base areas below?
  • KnowledgeBase: Knowledge Base

  • KnowledgeBase: Architectural Millwork

  • KnowledgeBase: Architectural Millwork: Moldings




    Would you like to add information to this article? ... Click Here

    If you have a question regarding a Knowledge Base article, your best chance at uncovering an answer is to search the entire Knowledge Base for related articles or to post your question at the appropriate WOODWEB Forum. Before posting your message, be sure to
    review our Forum Guidelines.

    Questions entered in the Knowledge Base Article comment form will not generate responses! A list of WOODWEB Forums can be found at WOODWEB's Site Map.

    When you post your question at the Forum, be sure to include references to the Knowledge Base article that inspired your question. The more information you provide with your question, the better your chances are of receiving responses.

    Return to beginning of article.



    Refer a Friend || Read This Important Information || Site Map || Privacy Policy || Site User Agreement

    Letters, questions or comments? E-Mail us and let us know what you think. Be sure to review our Frequently Asked Questions page.

    Contact us to discuss advertising or to report problems with this site.

    To report a problem, send an e-mail to our Webmaster

    Copyright © 1996-2009 - WOODWEB ® Inc.
    All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced in any manner without permission of the Editor.
    Review WOODWEB's Copyright Policy.

    The editors, writers, and staff at WOODWEB try to promote safe practices. What is safe for one woodworker under certain conditions may not be safe for others in different circumstances. Readers should undertake the use of materials and methods discussed at WOODWEB after considerate evaluation, and at their own risk.

    WOODWEB, Inc.
    RR4 Box 265A
    Montrose, PA 18801

    Contact WOODWEB













  •   Home » Knowledge Base » Knowledge Base Article