Which Abrasives are best for woodturning?
Posted by Nicholas Mayne at
A very simple question to ask is which sandpaper or other abrasives work best in wood turning. There are other factors to consider which can easily influence which products would be the most suitable.
For spindle turning, rolls of sandpaper with various grits should be adequate. Also, sandpaper can reach further into finer crevices and detail for sanding. We recommend the Indasa Plusline sandpaper rolls -
For general spindle & bowl turning, including Natural Edge bowls, we would recommend stronger & durable abrasives like the VSM Sanding Cloth.
The strong and flexible cotton backing makes the abrasive ideal for stripping metal, sanding wood, woodturning and finishing walking sticks.
More recent products are the Net Abrasives. These allow the dust to escape more easily and allow air flow through the netting to help keep the wood cooler. It will also allow dust to be extracted through the netting -
One VSM sanding cloth was originally designed for metal work, with a closed grit and having a stearate coating to prevent clogging. This works superbly for woodturning, but try not to generate too much friction heat. This is available from P80 to P600 grit -
One of the main factors we consider for our choice of abrasives is the durability of the product and how long the abrasive keeps a cutting grit. The grit on cheaper abrasives often wear out quicker, which can create more friction heat on the wood and could damage the piece of work you are sanding. Good practice is to only apply gentle pressure to minimize heat generation on the wood and help the abrasive last longer.
It is worth trying several abrasives to find what works best for you.