Oli,

For sanding fretwork your best best is some sort of palm sander, I use a Black and Decker Mouse (the small one). An orbital will be too agressive when trying to sand delicate work.

I usually use the orbital sander before cutting to smooth the wood and the mouse to get rid of the fuzzies after the cutting.

 

Tom

Another option you have for the fuzzies is to use a sanding mop. Practice on a heavier (thicker) piece so you get the feel of the mop. I use 180 grit.

Hi everyone

 

Sorry it has taken me so long to reply but the unfortunate comp crash had me reformatting...blahhhhh.

 

I appreciate all the feedback, as I am just starting out I never thought about sanding the wood first which is probably one of the smartest things Ive learned. 

 

Im going to go with puchasing an orbital and  a smaller mouse one.  I did have a look at the black and decker mouse one earlier Tom and it did cross my mind.

 

Now I know that asking what is a good orbital sander would have my mailbox full with replies and would take a week to tally up all the recomendations...So...I would love some input on whats important in buying one.  I saw that some have speed controls when pushing on them and others have ballbearings thingamagigs.  To many options and huge difference in prices from end to end.  As a beginner I probably just need something that will fit my needs until I feel Im ready to tackle the badboys.

 

Any suggestions??

Thanks

Oli

I use two sanders and they are both orbital. For the fuzzies I use a Portal Cable 340 with either 60 or 80 grit and for the front side I use the Portal Cable Speed Block with 180 grit. I do very intricate work and no breakage. The spped Bloc has 12,00orbits per minute.