Thread: Sanding with rubbing compound

Just wondering if anyones done this before, since it's worked well for me so far. When sanding with lower grit, coarser sand paper I find putting some rubbing compound(i use turtle wax brand because it's the cheapest) on the the blade first helps the sand paper cut faster, and actually makes the scratches more uniform so the next grit gets them out faster. It only works up to about 600grit, and then it just clogs up the paper and has the opposite effect. I guess it's similar to wet sanding, or using a slurry while honing. It does work though. Anybody done this? What do you use for it?

Yes, I do this too. I have been using Wenol, a metal polish from Germany. It does seem to help a lot. I have used it up to 1000 grit with a lot of finger pressure to get a nice polish on the blade.

Regards - Walt

I used to use WD-40 on the blades when I hand sanded them with wet-r-dry, for the same reason it created a slurry and seemd to create a soft glossy sheen on the blade....

Originally Posted by Walt

Yes, I do this too. I have been using Wenol, a metal polish from Germany. It does seem to help a lot. I have used it up to 1000 grit with a lot of finger pressure to get a nice polish on the blade.

Regards - Walt

Nice, I'll look out for that polish. Any type of abrasve polish will work it seems, but the turtle wax works best for me and it's cheap so it's win-win!
I gave tried it with up to 2400grit but at that point the compound is more abrasive than the sandpaper so there's no benefit. I'm sure different compounds will work better with some grits and not so good with others. That's what I'm hoping to get here, info on which combos work best. It seriously cuts the sanding time in half with the really coarse stuff. I to use firm finger pressure.