Another sanding question

[nate167]

I’m at the point where I’m ready to restore this 300 gallon tank I got. I’ve done lite paint correction on vehicles but never wet sanded. I have all the paper and know to fully do each step in grit in opposite directions . My question is what grit would you start on with these scratches? I have a random orbit palm sander with variable speed. I’m planning on running the sander on the lowest speed to keep the heat down. I tried polishing this with a dual action polisher and an orange cutting pad with novus 3 but didn’t have much luck. I thought about trying a heavy cutting pad first but not sure how much better that would work be sanding.

 

[Pico bam]

Following hopefully someone will drop some knowledge. I have paint to remove from a large acrylic tank. Figured I'd sand it off because nothing else is working.

 

[Amphibious Wallet]

I'm not a professional in polishing acrylic or anything and you seem to know what the process is i.e don't sit in one spot trying to get that one scratch off, constantly moving around a broad area. IMO higher speed with adequate lubrication is better than a lower speed covering less area., you can't over-water it. Make sure you do a very thorough job in wiping off whatever you use for a final polish, particularly if it's a liquid-based polish. Most can be thinned with turps, if it's any good.

I only stop to mention that some DA sanders have a little note in their manual that running at the lowest speed doesn't provide adequate cooling with more than a whiff of load applied. Pay note to the exhaust temps or give it a blast on 11 for 10-20 seconds every 5 minutes or so.

/speech

 

[nate167]

I'm not a professional in polishing acrylic or anything and you seem to know what the process is i.e don't sit in one spot trying to get that one scratch off, constantly moving around a broad area. IMO higher speed with adequate lubrication is better than a lower speed covering less area., you can't over-water it. Make sure you do a very thorough job in wiping off whatever you use for a final polish, particularly if it's a liquid-based polish. Most can be thinned with turps, if it's any good.

I only stop to mention that some DA sanders have a little note in their manual that running at the lowest speed doesn't provide adequate cooling with more than a whiff of load applied. Pay note to the exhaust temps or give it a blast on 11 for 10-20 seconds every 5 minutes or so.

/speech

Thanks. I’ve been reading and reading about sanding acrylic and watching videos but having never done it before I just want to make sure I’m going in the right direction with it. Good call on the speed and providing enough cooling.

 

[nate167]

I started on my tank today after really thinking if I want to jump straight to sanding. I decided to try my 6” da polisher, novis 3, and a heavy cutting foam pad(green). I made vertical then horizontal passes with the polisher on low speed. I prob spent 2-2.5 hours on just the top half of the front. Impressed with how it’s turning out. There are a few deeper scratches but I’m going to make a 2nd pass after I finish the bottom half and see how it looks.

 

[Amphibious Wallet]

Lookin' good, chief. Sucks missing a deeper scratch but that's all part of the fun I guess!
Did you get a good sense for when it feels like the pad is drying out or getting gummed up?

 

[nate167]

Lookin' good, chief. Sucks missing a deeper scratch but that's all part of the fun I guess!
Did you get a good sense for when it feels like the pad is drying out or getting gummed up?

Thanks. Yeah I’m hoping after a 2nd pass the deeper scratches won’t be as noticeable after it’s filled with water. Yeah it doesn’t glide as easy and the polish is dry behind the polisher. I saw a video where someone recommended to keep the pad wet with a few drops of water and that really helped a lot. When it was drying out I’d put a few drops of water on the pad and it was good to go again. I only had to apply product once to the pad per 3x3 foot section.

 

[J&K Reefers]

I’m at the point where I’m ready to restore this 300 gallon tank I got. I’ve done lite paint correction on vehicles but never wet sanded. I have all the paper and know to fully do each step in grit in opposite directions . My question is what grit would you start on with these scratches? I have a random orbit palm sander with variable speed. I’m planning on running the sander on the lowest speed to keep the heat down. I tried polishing this with a dual action polisher and an orange cutting pad with novus 3 but didn’t have much luck. I thought about trying a heavy cutting pad first but not sure how much better that would work be sanding.

I just finished sanding and polishing my 300 gallon tank. I wish I had started with 500 grit because there are some deeper scratches like your that did not come out and may go back and do so in some areas, but I started with 1000 grit then 2000. As long as I kept the paper wet I could run the sander at a high speed. I did find that when applying the #3 it was best to put it on by hand and then use my drill to polish with a little water. #2 was easy with the drill, #1 was easy as well. Just a lot of elbow grease. Be ready to use a lot of elbow grease, my arms are still sore a day later. Good luck