I got a question about sanding materials.
I took a look at the store where I buy all of my model making stuff.
And I’m wanting to buy some new sanding materials to improve my results.
However, I don’t know anything about the various sanding materials you got for model making.
Could you help me out in this matter?
Because I have no idea what I’m looking for.
What I need etc.
I would be happy to provide more information if you need it to help me out better.
I apologies if the quality of this post isn’t as good as my other posts.
I got a new tablet and I’ m testing it out.
And I’ m not used to using a tablet instead of a laptop or desktop.
So I have to adopt more to it, learn it etc.
Anyway thanks for the help in advance.
Polishing sticks (soft nailfiles) used for fingernails are useful
Link to some types,only for inspiration:
Should be easy to find locally …
These polishing sticks can be cut into smaller pieces and held with pliers or tweezers or glued to pieces of sprue or wood sticks
Small pieces of fine sandpaper (from 120 or 180 grit and finer) glued to wood sticks or pieces of sprue are useful to get into tight corners.
For general purpose sanding on models (except for polishing jobs on car models) I buy sheet sandpaper from DIY stores like Home Depot, etc. Aluminum Oxide sandpaper in (roughly) 8" x 10" sheets are available in grits from 500 (fine) to 1000 and above (super fine). They come in packs of 5, or 6, and you can even get assorted packs. For a few dollars an assortment pack will last many, many models!
Hi Modelbouw! At the store I work at, we deal with a whole host of different brands and materials when it comes to sanding.
When it comes to doing things like sanding sprue gate remnants etc away, you want a low-grit sandpaper (sandpaper grit counts should almost always be on the package). You can even buy sandpaper from a hardware store for this. I often use 400-grit for getting rid of nubbins.
Then you have what I like to call “intermediary grit” sandpaper. This stuff generally ranges from 400-1200-grit and includes things like sanding sticks, pads, sponges, all that good stuff. The reason why I call this category intermediary is because this is what you’ll use when building your model, in the intermediary stage. This is also the category where hobby-specific products come into play. One of the best items to buy when you’re getting started is the Tamiya sanding sponge. I find that it doesn’t lose grit easily, and it lasts a long time. Also worth investing in are sanding pads, like those made by Squadron. You don’t need much to start off.
If you make cars or aircraft, odds are you’ll be looking to polish. There’s a wide variety of products available, but when it comes to that sort of micro-sanding I stick to a microfibre rag and some Arm and Hammer toothpaste. Works a charm.
I’m making World War II Military ground forces models/subjects.
Things like, Tanks, half tracks I’m working on right now, artillery and guns are on the planning, trucks I want to build as well.
And so much more on that subject of World War II.
And I’m mostly interested in World War II axis.
As those kits are the most interesting ones to build, because the complexity, details and work they need to put in them.
Thanks everyone for the help so far. It gave me some more insight in the products I would need or want to buy.
I’m hoping that providing more information on the go will help out even further in what products I would need to buy.
And that you will be able to provide even more specific help.
Things that work for me might not be the best for you so you need to find out what works best for you.
Collect our experiences and then figure out what works for you.
Our local beauty supply shops have been out of their sanding sponges and such for a few months now. They don’t even have any emery boards left. At least I still have the hardware stores to buy sheets.
Sanding materials are often a matter of personal preference. Wrapping wet/dry 600 grit sand paper around a thin small metal straight edge is still one of my favorite ghetto sanding sticks.
On a slightly more upscale note the Squadron medium grit & tri-grit sanding sticks are pretty good too.
However, my current favorites are the Infini Sanding Sticks. They don’t shed grit like typical sanding paper or ordinary sanding sticks. They also seem to cut better than other sanding sticks I’ve used both wet and dry.
I think parts clean up is generally easier and faster for me using Infini 400, 600, 800 & 1000 grit sticks than other products.
About a month ago I broke down and purchased a God Hand sprue cutter. Really minimizes the need to sand down nubs. Mind you it does not eliminate the nub but but gives a very close clean cut to the part thus greatly reducing the nub and the time and effort it takes to remove it.
the automotive section at Walmart carries sand paper as fine as 1200 grit (might also have 3000 grit). Awhile back, I discovered that Harbor Freight sell micro drill bits really cheap. They do assortments and also have sets. They think they have a number drill set in their catalog, and that will cover all bases. I but all my small files there, and today I discovered that they carry a diamond file set for $6.49!! Great place for clamps too
gary
This pack is dirt cheap, you get a bunch of sanding sponges but the file is the star of the show as it has 4 grits and sands anything flat without marring the surface. Sprue gates gone without damaging parts. A tool I use every day and have bought spares just in case.
