Advice needed for which grade of sandpaper to use

irishgirl62

I am a newbie in sanding down furniture, I have started to sand down old pieces of furniture to re paint them... I used a belt sander today which was fantastic on flat surfaces of the cabinet and now struggling to sand the queen anne legs to get it up to the same par as the belt sander did!

I have tried three types of sandpapers and now wondering if there is a recommended one that would do the job for hand sanding?

I would be grateful for any advice or tips

aboard_epsilon

Use an old belt off the sander ..cut it ..rap it around leg ..and pull back and forth

grade of paper ..depends on how marred and scratched the underling wood is ...or how marred and lumpy the finish that is on it now.

ideally ...180 grit ..followed by 240 to get the marks left by the 180.

if it's slow and it's not happening quick enough, start with 80 or 100 grade....be careful, 80 grade when used by hand can leave deeper scratches than if used on a machine.

if its polished finish now..

There are specialist strippers for varnishes ..but i think you may have there French polish ..so you need French polish remover ..this will be gentler than the varnish remover that will taint the surface.

then again, you say it has queen Anne legs ..there for, its some sort of antique and should not be painted..

if a furniture restorer was doing it, he would be carefully removing the polish with polish stripper..or other methods..sanding would be a last resort ..he would never paint it.

he would probably use warm soapy water..then if no progress move up to white spirit ..then wax and polish remover ..or then meths .

but you've already started aggressive sanding ..and possibly ruined an antique.

all the best.markj

irishgirl62

Thanks markj, its not an antique it is a bedside table which has been heavily varnished over.

ormus

as above. start with 80 grit. but be careful. it can leave deep gouges.
and finish with say 240 grit for smooth results.

a heat gun maybe the answer with some jobs.

PasturesNew

If you have a drill, you might be able to get some small sanding attachments. They'd get into the cracks (assuming there are lines/cracks to be followed and it's not a straight leg).