sanding questions

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leatherjunkie

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Some people have stated that they slow down their lathe to about 1000 rpm when sanding their work.

Why?[?][?]

I have been sanding my pens at the same speed that i turn em.
What is the advantage to slowing down the lathe for sanding?[?]
 
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The first thing that comes to mind is sanding at lower speeds generates less heat and that's important in certain woods to prevent cracking.
 
Also, at faster speeds, the sandpaper can actually skip across the blank, creating ridges and flat spots instead of smoothing out tool marks.
 
I can think of two additional reasons besides heating the wood.

1. At the higher speed, there is more of a chance of oversanding.

2. If you ar using MicroMesh, thre is the possibility of melting it or wearing through it.

jeff
 
I tried both fast and slow. Slow gives me better results. That said, I usually sand faster than what some posted (mid range of my VS set at middle pulley).

There are some instances when I had to slow to the slowest possible speed to get the results I want.

Depending on material, some sandpaper also get "loaded" when you sand fast...not so when you go slow. Loaded sand paper is useless and could generate a lot of heat.

Use what works for you best...just know what to watch out for and slow down when needed.
 
My first thought on sanding at the same speed as i turn would be overheating material. just like some people have posted here.

jeffj13 posted about oversanding when lathe is set at fasted setting.
this might explain why i have trouble keeping the shape(not b2b) all the way to the sealer step[:(].

thanks to everyone for posting their insights.
i will sand my next project at a slower speed.
 
I sand the same way I drive, fast!

Once I've rounded, I crank up the lathe to it's highest speed. It stays that way until the pen comes off. Probable because I'm too lazy to adjust the belt on my Jet lathe.
 
Sounds like a good topic to investigate. Anybody got one of those new fangled infared thermometers (the non-contact type)? You could turn and take reading in real-time. Could prove to be interesting. Just a thought.
 
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