Why does nobody talk about how much faster wet sanding is than dry?

I spent 6 years doing dry sanding on every repaint job in my shop down in Austin. Last month a buddy told me to try wet sanding with 2000 grit on a hood I was fixing. It cut my buff time down by almost 40 percent on that one panel. The finish came out glassy with way less haze too. How come nobody in the training videos ever shows wet sanding as the default method? Has anyone else made the switch and seen similar time savings?

3 comments

3 Comments

ericj452d ago

Wet sanding is one of those things that works better but nobody believes until they try it, like using a sharp knife instead of a dull one.

shanelee1d agoMost Upvoted

Ha, preach man! I tried wet sanding once on a old guitar I was refinishing and ended up with a puddle of water and regret on my shoes. My hands were so pruny I could barely grip the paper, but dang if it didn't come out smoother than my bad life choices. Sharp knife analogy is too real too - I've cut myself more with a dull one trying to force it than a sharp one that just glides. Guess I gotta learn the hard way every time.

leodavis1d ago

Honestly, @shanelee probably had the right idea with the puddle of regret and pruny hands. Wet sanding is like trusting a recipe from a stranger - you're not sure it'll work until you're elbow deep in wet dust and wondering why you didn't just use a dry sheet like everyone else. But yeah, sharp knives are the truth too, until you're the one pinching your fingers around the blade because your grip got sweaty.