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That retired carpenter who told me to stop sanding my drawer fronts to glass smooth
He said it makes the finish peel later because there's nothing for it to grab onto, and after 3 cabinets I redid last month I can actually see the difference.
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the_derek29d ago
Learned that lesson the hard way myself. Sanding too fine on bare wood just polishes it shut. Finish sits on top instead of soaking in. Peels off in sheets a year later. I go to 120 grit max now, anything finer is a waste of time for paint or poly.
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coleman.jade29d ago
And honestly the humidity in your workspace probably matters way more than grit choice. Even at 120 if you're sanding in a damp garage the fibers swell and then shrink later, making that finish crack no matter what. I started storing my wood inside for a week before any project and it cut my redo rate by like 60%.
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