I think everyone's wrong about sanding between coats of polyurethane

I was finishing a maple table in my garage last month and skipped the sanding step on the third coat, just wiped it with a tack cloth. The final finish came out smoother and clearer than any piece I've done with all that scuff sanding. It saved me over an hour and the client in Tacoma never noticed a difference. Has anyone else tried skipping that step on water-based polys?

2 comments

2 Comments

price.alice12d ago

Totally get it, I started skipping the sanding on the final coat of water-based stuff a while back. The dust from sanding just gets everywhere and can mess up the next layer if you don't clean it perfectly. I found that if the previous coat is smooth and dust-free, a light wipe with a damp cloth works just as well for that last seal. Saves a ton of time and you avoid those tiny scratches you sometimes see under bright light.

taylor92912d ago

Yeah, that damp cloth trick is a total game changer.