sandpaper question

[Judy Hunter]

I have bought sanding mops in the past from RJR ....Grit 180
Decided to make my own and ordered the rolls as advised on here from Klingspore ....180 grit.
they seem much more coarse.  I thought sandpaper grits were universal??
I can't return them as I started cutting a few 6 inch pieces off one roll before I realized it.

Any Advice?

[BilltheDiver]

Grits are supposed to be universal, but the type of sandpaper may be making the difference.  I forget the details, but it involves things like open coat paper vs closed, and the material used, like garnet vs others.  Different details affect the agressiveness and the life of the sandpaper.  Still I would expect 180 to be fine in any paper.  That is about the limit of what touch can determine from what I have read.

[rob roy]

Hi Judy I agree with Bill. I've been using the stuff for 40 years and you will find a difference, dependent on the type of grits the manufacturers use and the type of backing they use and what bonding agent is used. When we were in the shop, if the paper was kind of harsh we gave it a few rubs on the top of the table saw??.
Rob Roy.

[Stravides]

Going technical ....
as usual there are differing bodies that like to vie for the definitive standards...


Grit size refers to the size of the particles of abrading materials embedded in the sandpaper. Several different standards have been established for grit size. These standards establish not only the average grit size, but also the allowable variation from the average. The two most common are the United States CAMI (Coated Abrasive Manufacturers Institute, now part of the Unified Abrasives Manufacturers' Association) and the European FEPA (Federation of European Producers of Abrasives) "P" grade. The FEPA system is the same as the ISO 6344 standard. Other systems used in sandpaper include the Japanese Industrial Standards Committee (JIS), the micron grade (generally used for very fine grits). The "ought" system ({0, 00, 000, ...} aka {1/0, 2/0, 3/0, ...}) was used in the past in the US. Cheaper sandpapers sometimes use nomenclature such as "Coarse", "Medium" and "Fine", but it is unclear to what standards these names refer.

Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sandpaper#Grit_size_table

[julief]

Judy,  Keep going.  Klingspor 180 grit is a fine sandpaper.  It may feel courser to you in the state it is in but once you assemble it and bump it with a 2 X 4 a few times.  You will have a fine sanding mop. 

[Judy Hunter]

Hey Stravides... that is a lot of information on sandpaper....Thanks for the info.
Julief.... thanks I am going to ive it a try. Seems this way for a little extra time and effort I get two for the price one one

[Billy in Va]

This week I received my sanding mop. I order it from Rockler and they call them Sanding Stars. Seems Sanding Mop is a brand name for Sand Flee. The come three to a pack with a number of spacers.  The more spacers one uses, the less aggressive the  star sands.  I also ordered the arbor , but next time all I need is the stars. So far I am very pleased.

[Judy Hunter]

I think stars are different.

http://woodworking.rockler.com/search?asug=&sli_uuid=&sli_sid=&w=sanding+mop&Search.x=0&Search.y=0

[Billy in Va]

Judy, 

The star and mop do look different. the mop looks much fuller. The star comew with 3   - stars -  for lack of as better word.  I put them on with 2 spacers between each  (for a less aggressive cut)  I "broke them in with a scrap piece of oak and the  became fuller.  But still not as full as them mop.  The star comes already cut and assembled. All you have to do is put them on the three pieces on the arbor. Maybe some more familiar can she more light on the differences.  Could be  a case of I you think the star is good, wait till you try the mop.

[MOONIE]

I've been using a 180 grit Sand Mop purchased at Sears.  Very happy with it, then thought I would get another. So I ordered a star from Rockler.   Two months later it didn't ship.  I called and they said it would be another two months.  I cancelled my order.   

[cdrover(Clyde)]

I ordered a branding iron from Rockler Aug 2nd. Got it yesterday oct 7th. Anyone else having problems with orders from Rockler?

[dgman]

Hey Clyde, as you probably know, the branding irons are custom made by another company other than Rockler. It might of been a delay from them other than Rockler.

[BilltheDiver]

It's worth the wait Clyde.  I bought a branding iron from woodcraft and it really does the job on projects.

[Billy in Va]

I order from Rockler frequently ( to frequently according to my wife:(  )  My last three orders have been nothing short of excelllent. Arrive on time The one last week was actually a day early. I will applaud Rockler for that even tho it was probably the carrier ( UPS ).  I do that because if something is late arriving I tend to want to blame the sender so this kinda evens it out some.  Orderd a set of brad point bits several months ago and when I opened the box, then the drill bit case, the 1/16 in bit was missing. I sent an e-mail to Rockler, got an answer back the same evening and the replacement arrived with in two days. Bottom line, their customer service is excellent IMHO.

PS  My Name is Billy,I am in no way affiliated with Rockler and I approve of this message