Your best results would be from stripping it and scrubbing with a brass
brush (resembles a large toothbrush. Be certain to remove all stripper
before recoating. Light sanding of the smooth areas will also help, as
many strippers raise the grain.

I remove the baseboard first, as it is easier to work on that way, but
you have to be careful not to ruin the board when you are removing it,
as many of the older baseboards with contours are difficult to find and
expensive. Glue will often solve some problems, like splitting.

doug wrote:
I have a section of baseboard I want to repaint. It has a lot of
contours (in and out; I don't know the correct nomenclature but its
sorta fancy looking) and I want to sand/scrape it first but ordinary
sandpaper or a putty knife won't do it well. What are practical
choices to sand/scrape the old paint before repainting it? I just
thought of a hand wire brush or perhaps a wire brush (??) that is on
the end of a drill bit but I'd like to know what the pro's would use.

thanks.