Sanding is an inescapable part of the woodworking process and just like any other craft, working with good tools makes all the difference! A good sandpaper is tough, durable, and effective. It’ll remove a ton of material while leaving a consistent and minimal scratch pattern so you can enjoy that beautifully smooth and even surface on your wood projects.
There’s an ocean of products to choose from so I’ve spent four days testing 19 papers with a special robot arm to help you navigate this ocean!
Discover my top 3 picks for performance and durability in 2021 below.
Kane
March 14, 2023
A few observations.
I have a bunch of oak panels to finish and have been playing with my new Festool sander when I came across the video on YouTube. Till now, I’ve been using discs that came with the sander, and Mirka Abranet that had been recommended by the store from which I purchased the sander. Definitely prefer the mesh. This week, I got a test pack of this 3M product, and notice the results are significantly different for the same grit product.
After sanding with the same grits (80 pop 120) the Mirka product feels significantly smoother, less ‘hairy’. Taking a stab at it, it seems like the profiled grains provided by 3M score into the wood, whereas the Mirka cuts. Also, wiping my hand over a sanded panel, the 3M seems to leave quite a bit more dust. Been fiddling away from the ‘standard’ setting to find something that works.
During the sanding process, you definitely feel the 3M product dig into the wood, wobbling the sander around more than Mirka or Festool product.
Going to fiddle with it some more to see if I can work out a process, since the price differential — less time swapping out paper means more of my time spent actually sanding, is significant.