# Is 120 Grit too Coarse?



## Geoguy (Feb 22, 2008)

I'm about ready to start applying color (stain) to a display cabinet. I'm trying to match the color to other furniture in the customer's house. I've found a stain color that matches perfectly when the wood is sanded to 120, but is just a little too light when sanded to 150. Is it OK to sand a piece of furnituresand to only 120? I've never stopped at 120 before, but I rarely use stain either. I thought about trying a tint to darken the stain but I'm affraid I would just make a mess of a nice piece of furniture. Any thoughts from you finishing guys would be greatly appreciated.

By the way, the wood is alder and is fairly soft but tight (if that matters).

Thanks,


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## phinds (Mar 25, 2009)

120 seems awfully coarse to me but if it combines with the finish you're using to produce a result that pleases you then that's really all that counts. Unless you're using something that fills in the scratches though, I'd be worried that it will retain moisture too readily without a slicker surface.


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## Big Dave (Sep 16, 2006)

I sand to 120 all the time. The finish will smooth it over just make sure there are no swirl marks after sanding.


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## JW_in_Indy (Mar 20, 2009)

I think a lot depends on the specie and hardness/softness of the wood. For example, on Red Oak which is hard, I rarely go past 150 prior to staining, yet on something like Pine, I wouldn't hesitate going to 220 prior to staining. I agree with Dave in that a nice careful finish schedule should fill in the sanding scratches left over (if there are any) from the 120. Especially if you use a bonding coat of some sort like sanding sealer, dewaxed shellac or vinyl type sealer between your stain and finish coats.

FWIW, I believe that Alder is a fairly hard wood more like Oak than ultra soft like Pine or Poplar.


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## Tony B (Jul 30, 2008)

If the color matches at 120, then stop at 120. All this means is that you will require an extra coat or 2 of finish. I am assuming the the finish will be a hard finish like varnish, lacquer. poly etc. and not an oil finish.


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## Geoguy (Feb 22, 2008)

Thanks for the tips guys. I'll try to do a good job of hand sanding to 120. I normally don't hand sand too much but it may be helpful here to allign the sanding scratches. The surface of the wood feels nice and smooth at 120 grit but now I'm more concerned with the color that gets trapped in the scratches. And, I'm planning to use an oil stain with poly top coat (probably a minimum of three thin coats). 

Alder is considered a hardwood but it's at the soft end of the hardwood hardness scale. I had never even heard of alder prior to this project and I really like it. It machines wonderfully. I selected alder because the customer didn't want much grain showing and alder doesn't have significant grain color variations like many species.

I'll post some photos when finished (if I don't screw it up too bad).

Thanks,


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## Rob (Oct 31, 2006)

I just finished a dining room built-in. I had to sand the maple wood to 120 and the ply sides to 180 to get a stain match. I used an ROS and didn't have any problem. I topcoated with 3 coats of medium rubbed, sprayed lacquer and it looked great.
Alder should even give you less of any problems.


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## Old Skhool (Oct 31, 2009)

Alder used to be used almost exclusively for interior parts, framework for upholstered couches, chairs... More recently it is being used in all aspects of woodworking, even top end cabinetry in kithchens. It has a lot of good qualities. I've heard it referred to as the poor man's birch, as it can be finished to resemble birch, or was that me talking to myself again?


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## Dave (PacNW) (Apr 19, 2009)

The Janka Hardness scale rates Red Oak at 1210, Black Walnut at 1010, Calif. Redwood at 425 and Alder at 490.

F.W.I.
Dave(PacNW)


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## JohnK007 (Nov 14, 2009)

Old Skhool said:


> ...... It has a lot of good qualities. I've heard it referred to as the poor man's birch, as it can be finished to resemble birch, or was that me talking to myself again?


I just picked up a bunch of Alder today from an auction I won. I had never really heard of Alder before much less worked with it. As the owner was explaining the virtues of it he said it was referred to as "poor man's Cherry" .


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## Rick Mosher (Feb 26, 2009)

Alder is one of the softer hardwoods and is prone to blotching like cherry and pine. On hardwoods like oak and maple 120 grit is fine, for softer woods like alder or pine I sand to 220 to minimize stain penetration which is one of the things that causes the blotching. The problem you are having is matching a dark factory finish with a wipe on oil pigment stain. They get those colors in the factory by using a dye stain. With a dye stain you can get very dark colors no matter what grit you sand with. Do Samples before you start on your project!


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