what is wet sanding?

[Gatsu]

I've seen the term used a lot here in the forums......I've googled it and never got a good description of how its done.

Its supposed to help achieve a more plastic-like finish on wood right?

I ask because I'm at the painting stage of my vewlix cab project...and I want it to look like molded plastic. Not MDF.

[shponglefan]

I believe it simply refers to sanding a surface moistened with water, thus reducing/preventing dust from getting into the air.  Since sanding with fine grit sandpaper can produce very fine dust, this way the dangers of inhaling that dust are greatly reduced.

I've used wet sanding, mainly when working with metal.  Inhaling wood dust is one thing, but inhaling metal is something else.

[Octo]

It also allows you to see subtle variances in a surface, and keeps the sandpaper from clogging.

[Gatsu]

ah ok. so the process would be lightly moistening the surface with a damp face cloth or something, then proceeding to sand lightly? wipe surface clean, redampen, resand?

[Octo]

I use a little spray bottle to mist the paint. Make sure to use a sanding block for the flat surfaces, otherwise you'll do more harm than good.

[saleem]

wet sanding gives you a more smoother surface,you just vgot to use finer grade wet and dry sandpaper.it removes that roller shiny look you get from the roller when pasints rolled on.if you use roller,look at the finish,from a distance its shiny,get close and its bumpy as heck.wet sand it,it will remove the bumpy look and get it flat,smooth but,you lose the shine.so the shine is put back afterwards with a coat of clear paint.

[shardian]

wet sanding gives you a more smoother surface,you just vgot to use finer grade wet and dry sandpaper.it removes that roller shiny look you get from the roller when pasints rolled on.if you use roller,look at the finish,from a distance its shiny,get close and its bumpy as heck.wet sand it,it will remove the bumpy look and get it flat,smooth but,you lose the shine.so the shine is put back afterwards with a coat of clear paint.

You can also buff to get a shine.

[Gatsu]

what if I use a spray gun to paint my cab? should I wet-sand?

[Octo]

The method of painting has little to do with whether or not to wet sand, only how much will be required. If your paint job looks smooth enough without a fine grit sanding, then just clear coat it.

[UberCade]

I know this thread is old, but I thought I'd add my two cents anyway for anyone else who might want/need some more information regarding wet sanding. Wet sanding is used on a color coat finish to smooth out the coat and remove "orange peel" which is that bumpiness you can see if you look closely enough. For the best results, you should wet sand between each coat of color applied with 200-600 grit wet/dry sandpaper. The more coats of color you apply, especially if you're using glossy paint, the deeper and richer the color will be. Once you're happy with the overall look of the color, you can buff the finish to achieve a high gloss shiny surface.

I went through the auto body training program in college and most of the principles of auto body finishing can be applied to any kind of paint project. The main differences are the materials used, and the cost. You can actually make a painted piece of MDF look like a super shiny piece of hard colored plastic. It's all about how much elbow grease you put into it. The more you buff, the shinier it gets.