"Dan White" wrote in message
...
Hi. I've been experimenting with different polyurethanes for my butcher
block counter tops and it looks like I'm settling on a Sherwin Williams
clear poly. I want a pretty high shine, but not the tacky gloss feel and
uneven "liquid" look. My understanding was that I should sand the final
coat with maybe a 400 or even as low as a 220 grit, and then go up to 600
and higher depending on what kind of finish I would like. Tonight I
decided
to try wet sanding with 2000 grit on the clear gloss poly right off the
bat
instead of going through the paces of higher and higher grits (this is on
a
test piece). It looks to me like it does fine. I have a nice smooth
finish
that has a little less gloss but is smooth to the touch and I don't see
any
imperfections. Am I missing something on my final 2000 grit finish by
doing
things this way? Might it be a better finish by going something like
400/600/1500/2000?

No. The only reason to use more abrasive grits is to more quickly knock
down areas. If your application is smooth enough that you can achieve the
desired smoothness with only 2000 grit, then don't go any more abrasive -
you're just making more work by doing so and removing finish for no good
reason.


I sanded with 2000 on one half and left the other half of the sample with
the high gloss "tacky" feel. When I put a wet towel down to clean off the
sanding dust I noticed that the water beaded up on the untouched poly
while
it layed down on the sanded part. I can understand why this might be, I
suppose, with the micro abrasions on the sanded side, but I wonder if it
has
any impact on the resistance the finish has to liquids. After all, I'm
doing all this in order to protect the wood from occasional spills.


As long as you don't go through the finish - which is unlikely with 2000
grit, then you are not at any risk with what you see. You just don't have
the same surface tension as when the scratches weren't there. If it really
starts to bug you then go get a quart of automotive buffing compount (light
cut) and buff it up with that. It should take the fine scratches from the
2000 right out with a bit of elbow grease.

Any comments or ideas are appreciated.


Comments? Here?
--

-Mike-