Flat Sanding Small Peices
#1
Thread Starter
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Flat Sanding Small Peices
I had to thin a small piece of 1/8" balsa sheet. The piece was about 1 x 3 inches. I put it between two Great Planes sanders and started rubbing. Worked great! The piece stayed on one sander while the other moved over it. It took just a few moments and it was easy to keep the pieces flat and consistent. Check out the pics.
#2
It's an old trick. I learned it from a free-flighter 20 years ago. Coarse sandpaper, and fine sandpaper. Put a sheet of fine sandpaper on a flat work surface, and use a coarser paper on your sanding block, or stick.
#3
I purchased a 96" X 24" 3/4" thick piece aluminum honeycomb panel around 12 or 15 years ago, I have always used it as a sanding board by mounting 220 grit silicon carbide open coat full sheets of sand paper to one side covering nearly the entire side at times, then I just move the work in 45 degree motions over it. I have never found anything that works so true and easily. I soak my joints with thin and medium CA and never worry about how hard it is to sand the high CA glue down because with this method it removes the high spots like butter. As you can see the tail feathers glued up and sitting on the honeycomb panel ready for sanding, and after sanding. This is a 55% fuselage after sanding and gussets glued on after using the same board and method of sanding as the smaller size stuff. Sanding curved surfaces like wings, turtle decks and so I just use a flexible spline board to level the high spot even with the low spots, believe it or not I mound 80 grit sand paper for this process and again a 45 degree motion is used.
Bob
Bob
#4
My Feedback: (3)
Another trick from the indoor free-flight fliers:
To sand to a desired thickness, place a piece of music wire of the right diameter on each end and use an aluminum sanding bar with very fresh sandpaper. Don't apply any pressure. Use very light strokes to let the sandpaper do the work. This will give you a consistent thickness. You can even sand tapers this way by using different sizes of music wire.
I glue the music wire down to a piece of scrap balsa and place the work piece in between the wires. It won't slip because the wires act as stops and you can't cut too deep. Plus your sanded surface will be flat.
Mark the wire sizes on the board and toss it into your jig box.
Dave
To sand to a desired thickness, place a piece of music wire of the right diameter on each end and use an aluminum sanding bar with very fresh sandpaper. Don't apply any pressure. Use very light strokes to let the sandpaper do the work. This will give you a consistent thickness. You can even sand tapers this way by using different sizes of music wire.
I glue the music wire down to a piece of scrap balsa and place the work piece in between the wires. It won't slip because the wires act as stops and you can't cut too deep. Plus your sanded surface will be flat.
Mark the wire sizes on the board and toss it into your jig box.
Dave
Last edited by dbacque; 12-08-2014 at 01:42 PM.
#5
I purchased a 96" X 24" 3/4" thick piece aluminum honeycomb panel around 12 or 15 years ago, I have always used it as a sanding board by mounting 220 grit silicon carbide open coat full sheets of sand paper to one side covering nearly the entire side at times, then I just move the work in 45 degree motions over it. I have never found anything that works so true and easily. I soak my joints with thin and medium CA and never worry about how hard it is to sand the high CA glue down because with this method it removes the high spots like butter. As you can see the tail feathers glued up and sitting on the honeycomb panel ready for sanding, and after sanding. This is a 55% fuselage after sanding and gussets glued on after using the same board and method of sanding as the smaller size stuff. Sanding curved surfaces like wings, turtle decks and so I just use a flexible spline board to level the high spot even with the low spots, believe it or not I mound 80 grit sand paper for this process and again a 45 degree motion is used.
Bob
Bob
Leroy
#6
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Another trick from the indoor free-flight fliers:
To sand to a desired thickness, place a piece of music wire of the right diameter on each end and use an aluminum sanding bar with very fresh sandpaper. Don't apply any pressure. Use very light strokes to let the sandpaper do the work. This will give you a consistent thickness. You can even sand tapers this way by using different sizes of music wire.
I glue the music wire down to a piece of scrap balsa and place the work piece in between the wires. It won't slip because the wires act as stops and you can't cut too deep. Plus your sanded surface will be flat.
Mark the wire sizes on the board and toss it into your jig box.
Dave
To sand to a desired thickness, place a piece of music wire of the right diameter on each end and use an aluminum sanding bar with very fresh sandpaper. Don't apply any pressure. Use very light strokes to let the sandpaper do the work. This will give you a consistent thickness. You can even sand tapers this way by using different sizes of music wire.
I glue the music wire down to a piece of scrap balsa and place the work piece in between the wires. It won't slip because the wires act as stops and you can't cut too deep. Plus your sanded surface will be flat.
Mark the wire sizes on the board and toss it into your jig box.
Dave
#7
The only kickers to this are:
1. You must possess a long flat rigid surface.
2. When mounting the 220 grit sand paper sheets do not allow any area of the sand paper sheets to overlap onto another sheet of sand paper.
3. Sand in +/- 45 degree motions using light to medium pressure. That's it, this is fast and simple rendering perfection as the outcome. I actually learned this trick from my old two cycle motorcycle racing days, we would mount wet/dry sand paper to a thick and flat piece of glass and surface our cylinder heads wet in a figure eight motion prior to a reassembly of our engines. Once any builder tries this, they will never go back.
Bob