Preview: Sanding Station

8 Responses So Far to “Sanding Station”

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  Thomas Dalzell says:

  For the average person, the best advice there is to sand outside. But the best advice on this page is this: Don’t sand. It isn’t necessary. I came to this conclusion when teaching myself drywall, I learned that sanding for the non-pro is not necessary in drywall. It is necessary for pros, because it cuts one or two trips to the site out. Though there are alternative to drywall. Can you totally avoid sanding, maybe, but I normally do very little, as with drywall the amateur is working in a different environment. It is no big deal to me to poke away at a project a few hours at a time, and at that pace one can use fairing technique that are additive, rather than ones that remove material, generally producing better results. But there are many subtractive tools that work great and don’t produce much dust. Hacksaw fairing tools a la Gougeon brothers; big chisels; planes, graters, etc…

  As with drywall.. completing large sections when doing the major work, and knowing how to do the work, are major factors. Often sanding is a crutch for bad work not done in a sensible order. For instance I always clear coat, cove, tape, and glass a boat in one session, Than means no sanding between steps that don’t exist. But conversely, I can return to a surface that then needs fairing a lot, and futz with it, if I absolutely had to, get it as clean as possible rather than sanding it. So on some occasions it is about leapfrogging the sanding, at other times it is about taking advantage of the fact that I live at the site.

  If you work with good pros, one of the things you quickly notice is how little they sand, but they do sand, amateurs should not copy the pros on the sanding, they aren’t doing production at a jobsite, the strategies can be a little different.

  It is a state of mind thing. Tell yourself you will never sand, work towards that goal, maybe you never completely get there, but there is a lot that can be done, and it isn’t as though unnecessary sanding gets the boat in the water any faster, or for less money.

  I never sand glass or epoxy in the shop. I have hepa filters and air cleaners (for normal wood operations occasionally). No mater how good your system, if you sand in the shop you will re-breath that dust as it will settle everywhere. Might as well mine asbestos.

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    Thomas Dalzell says:

    I should make clear I am talking about wood epoxy glass boatbuilding here. There are forms of boatbuilding and restoration work that consist largely of sanding. I don’t do them, but I admire results.

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  Trevor Gunning says:

  Great ideas and please everyone be very aware of the dangers of inhaling epoxy particles and wood….very nasty for the lungs!

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  randall spurr says:

  Very cool! With a set up like that you could almost start out with a big chunk of wood and sand yourself a boat!

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  Nick Giles says:

  Having looked long and hard I convinced myself to buy a Festool RO90 with their vacuum system. I cannot believe how effective it is at both the sanding action and the dust removal. I was so convinced by the quality and capability I found myself back at the shop buying a router and few months later – but they sure do charge well. If you can afford them I wouldn’t hesitate to recommend.

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  Larry Cheek says:

  I own exactly the same two RO sanders that Bill does. The Festool cost five times what the Porter-Cable did. As a measure of their relative functional value, I haven’t even picked up the P-C in the last five years. I keep it on a shelf in the extremely unlikely event that I might someday persuade a friend to help me sand a hull. Festools are painfully, unbelievably, unconscionably expensive, but I’ve never regretted buying them.

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  Andy Reynolds says:

  Bill, Your shop is amazing. You have obviously put a lot of thought and planning into it and a big investment to build it, but it seems like it has all the space and features you could ask for in a small boat shop. Love the overhead doors, and dedicated stations for specific jobs. I am really enjoying visiting you via OCH. Thanks, AR.
  PS Hi to Jane.

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  Patrick Walker says:

  How does the downdraft table work? Is it attached to the same vacuum as the sander? – pjw