Micromesh Sanding vs Polishing

[burns420]

I'm sanding up some black canvas micarta with micromesh, and I've gone up to the 12000 grit. It puts a nice shine to it and gets it fairly black,
but there is still some "grayish" spots. I tried using some car polish on it but it seems to be more abrasive than the micromesh and takes away alot of the smoothness that gives it the deep black look.

My question is whether to keep going with the 12k micromesh or switch to a very fine polishing compound, like the blue or white stuff that is "non-cutting" and use a polishing wheel. Would that be more abrasive than the 12k MM? Is there a chart or something that shows the micron size of each abrasive compound and micromesh?

[burns420]

I found some info, so all is good. Micromesh 1500 is 30microns and it progresses to 2 microns for 12000 grit. I don't know about the polish though, they all seem to be different based on brand.

I polished a lot more with 8k and then the 12k and it's pretty close to where I want it. I'll stay with the 12k and see if it improves. I don't think I'll need any polish at all afterward.

I also tried Maas, Flitz and Peek polish just to see, and they all are more abrasive than the 12k micromesh IMO. Also, the micromesh when wet won't provide as smooth a finish, leaving it similar to when the Maas was used. It could be because the MM pad stays cleaner when wet, but it still provides a smoother finish dry even when new.

[Mijbil]

I dont think with sanding pads or paper, even high grit micromesh, you can get anywhere near as "shiny and smooth" a final polish as you can with some buffing wheel (dremel, etc) and a polishing compound. My favorite is microgloss - works on EVERY material - steel, ivory, plastic, whatever, and works great.

[burns420]

Sounds good, I'll try it. I agree polishing will give a smoother finish but the micromesh comes very close with the 12000 grit.

[LHCB]

I used MM to repair a plexiglass windshield once. The kit went finer than 12K, and was sold for plexiglass/plastic scratch repair. It worked great.