# Tip: Sanding and Finishing Acrylics



## Bree (Nov 7, 2011)

I'm going to add another tip to my set of acrylic tips.  This one will be on sanding and finishing.  The attraction of acrylics is not only the infinite variety of patterns and colors but the finish that is achievable.  You can easily score a glass-like finish on these pens.  It is really simple and fast.  Here is how I do it.

I start by sanding with wet-dry paper.  I like a quality paper like Norton because they don't shed abrasive easily.  I don't want lower grits contaminating higher grit sanding and causing scratches.

I go through the following grits... 220, 320, 500, 800, 1000, 1200, 1500, 2000.  You might select a slightly different pattern but it is important to go through a full range of grits.  I cut my paper into strips 1 1/2" by 4".  

I hold them with my middle finger under the blank applying uniform pressure up and with my index and middle finger of the other hand applying pressure IN towards me.  You have to be careful not to allow the paper to wrap which happens faster than the blink of an eye.  

I constantly move the paper from side to side unless I have a spot that I need to do some forming on.  Usually that is only at the 220 grit level.  Something I missed while cutting on the lathe.  You want to do 99% of your shaping with the skew (or your chosen tool).  But there is sometimes a need to feather something out or reduce a bump.

Be attentive to the slurry that forms... no slurry... no cutting.  I always use my fingers to clean embedded slurry from my paper.  It interferes with clean cutting.  If your paper doesn't generate slurry get a new fresh piece.

Dip your paper frequently into a bucket of water and have a clean soft cloth to wipe away slurry from the blank as you change grits.  As you dip your paper clean it with each dip.  It will last through several pens that way.

Once you go through all the grits.  Then it is time to start over with MicroMesh.  Run the entire series.  Don't skip any.  I use the 3"x4" pads and cut them to 1 1/2" x 4" which is perfect for sanding blanks of all kinds.  Plus I get two sets of two sides each and long long life out of a single pack.  

Another tip concerning MM.  I find it hard to keep the color scheme clear in my head so after I cut my pads to size and while still in factory order, I put a sequence of dots on the edge of the pad with a permanent marker.  Red has one dot.  Green has two dots etc.  If they ever get out of order it is easy to reorder them by the number of dots.  And it is easier to make dots on the spongy part then to try to write a number.

You might wonder why put new scratches into work that you already sanded to 2,000 wet/dry???  The answer is that wet/dry and MicroMesh have different abrasive particle characteristics.  MM has a very uniform scratch pattern that differs from that of ordinary papers.  

I use the ordinary wet/dry to prepare the acrylic for MM which is what I really want for the finished product.  Since the ground has already been broken and the blank is very very smooth already, the MM goes very fast and very little slurry is created... just enough to make sure that the final scratches are MM scratches and not wet/dry scratches.

Once the sanding is done, I polish.  I use Meguiar's Extreme ScratchX which I apply a tiny drop to a 1 1/2"x 6" lint free cloth.  I use a good bit of pressure and move up on the cloth to buff it off.  I go to the other end of the lint-free strip and put a drop of Meguiar's PlastX polish and get it rubbed in and buffed.  It often squeaks it is so smooth.  

Lastly, I apply a small amount of Ren Wax using a different lint free cloth and buff it out with a clean part of the cloth.  The blank is now ready for assembly.

DO NOT ream out or chamfer the brass tube now!!!  That creates microscopic pieces of metal that will scratch your beautiful new blank.  Do that BEFORE you start turning and blow off all the metal with a can of compressed air somewhere far away from where you finish your blanks.

That's how I do it.  And it works for me.  The peeps always comment on the glass-like finish.  Same system works for CA on wood so long as you have sealed the ends of the blanks thoroughly and have no sand through to wood.  You must not allow water to contact the wood and get under the CA or you will ruin it.

Oh last thing... I never ever use my wet/dry sandpaper or MM which I use on acrylic for anything but acrylic.  Keep them separate from your wood sanding.
:biggrin::biggrin::biggrin:


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## Sawdust46 (Nov 7, 2011)

That's pretty much the same process I use except I use Novus products to remove scratches and polish followed by ren wax.  I'll have to try th Meguiar's products.


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## Bree (Nov 7, 2011)

Sawdust46 said:


> That's pretty much the same process I use except I use Novus products to remove scratches and polish followed by ren wax.  I'll have to try th Meguiar's products.



Novus is good.  I switched to Meguiar's because of peeps on here who spoke very highly of it.  I like it.  You get a good product at a good price.


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## sbell111 (Nov 7, 2011)

I wet sand to 800, run through three different compounds, and then plastic polish.  It's quick and easy and gives me a glass-like finish.


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## nsfr1206 (Nov 7, 2011)

I use a skew and then go right to MM and plasti polish. Shiny shiny


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## Canadian_Kid (Nov 7, 2011)

I think that the red micro mesh is only like 400 real grit so why go to 2000 and then back to red MM? I go to 400-600 and then MM. Just my 2 cents.


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## Bree (Nov 8, 2011)

Canadian_Kid said:


> I think that the red micro mesh is only like 400 real grit so why go to 2000 and then back to red MM? I go to 400-600 and then MM. Just my 2 cents.



Different abrasive characteristics between the wet/dry and the MM... if you look at them under a microscope you will see a difference in the scratch patterns with MM giving the more uniform and superior pattern.  

So I bring it to shape and high smoothness with the wet/dry (220-2000 grit) and then replace then entire scratch pattern with that of MM.  It also stretches out the useful life of my MM which costs a lot more than my wet/dry.


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## NewLondon88 (Nov 8, 2011)

I recently started using a second water bath because I'm paranoid
about those particles floating in the water and landing back on the
next grit. So most of the slurry gets left in the first tupperware
container full of water (with a dash of dish detergent) and the second
container has the freshest water. Can't say that it has made a difference,
as I don't make many pens lately. But I'm just imagining all these grains
of 320 grit waiting to cling to the 1000 and make new and exciting 
scratch patterns on my blanks   Nice writeup!


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## Richard Gibson (Nov 8, 2011)

I have gotten to where I DO NOT sand with the lathe running. It seemed redundant to me to sand in a circular pattern with the lathe running and then stop and go length wise to remove the swirls you just put in it. So I just go length wise. :tongue:  Works really well for me.


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## Bree (Nov 8, 2011)

Richard Gibson said:


> I have gotten to where I DO NOT sand with the lathe running. It seemed redundant to me to sand in a circular pattern with the lathe running and then stop and go length wise to remove the swirls you just put in it. So I just go length wise. :tongue:  Works really well for me.



If you are always moving your paper or pad you will not create circular scratches rather they will be helixes and they will switch as you change direction.  If you stay put in one place you get radial or circular scratches.
:wink::wink::wink:


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## Dan26 (Nov 8, 2011)

For those who sand with the lathe on, what speed do you use to sand and MM? I do both at about 1800 rpm.


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## Bree (Nov 9, 2011)

Dan26 said:


> For those who sand with the lathe on, what speed do you use to sand and MM? I do both at about 1800 rpm.



Way too fast IMHO.  I sand at about 100 RPM.  You can very easily wear right through the MM Pads at that speed.  I would slow it down to under 500 RPM.  In sanding you are not after speed but quality.  If you are sanding CA finished pens, you can very easily blow right through the thin CA layer and hit wood at the lower grits.


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