Question Of The Week.... ( 2026 Week 18 )

[ripjack13]

Do you have a favorite brand of sandpaper?



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**Rules**
There is no minimum post requirement,
primates, woodticks, wood spinners, and leprechauns are welcome to post an answer.
I have many leather-bound books, and my apartment smells of rich mahogany.

 

[ripjack13]

Sungold is garbage. so is great plains. However, I do like Dura Gold. and klingspor is very good.

 

[DLJeffs]

I'll second the Dura Gold. I've also had some paper made by Norton that seemed pretty good. I don't like the purple stuff sold in the bog box stores these days.

 

[ripjack13]

I'll second the Dura Gold. I've also had some paper made by Norton that seemed pretty good. I don't like the purple stuff sold in the bog box stores these days.

The purple duragold is not better than the other stuff, even though they say it's better. It wears out 2xs as fast...

 

[Gdurfey]

I am using Diablo, found it on sale. They are discs I can use on my ROS but the abrasive is bonded to fabric so I grab them for turning. Long life and almost as good as the Abranet but the size is wonderful compared to price vs. size of the Abranet.

 

[Mike1950]

I bought a bunch of sandpaper in 2013? at an auction. close to rest of my life suppy- multiple barnds but when I bought container of wood and tools, one was a festool vacum and ROS and a bunch of festool sandpaper- I bet it is expensive but very durable. way too cheap to buy fesstool but it sure is nice

 

[2feathers Creative Making]

Yeah, free. Can't stand most of the box store stuff. 3m used to be good as did Norton but outsourcing stuff to China has eliminated personal accountability for the manufacturer. They can just blame China and move along.

 

[daniscool]

I just buy yard sale paper. No one else wants it and it usually isn’t so good but it is so cheap I can swap the paper every two minutes and it works like a charm. You also get a variety of grits for when you have that one wood that resists sanding. It also gets you some very high grits that are good for sharpening weird gouges and such.

 

[ripjack13]

I get the dura gold discs from work. They work great. But I got a bunch of rolls from amazon and they are just useless after a few uses. Too late to return em so I'll just use em up and never buy em again.

 

[Mike1950]

Yeah, free. Can't stand most of the box store stuff. 3m used to be good as did Norton but outsourcing stuff to China has eliminated personal accountability for the manufacturer. They can just blame China and move along.

This is truth. I ham some 3m from 2009 and some from a couple years ago. New stuff is garbage.
I think it is sorta like masking tape. If it is cheap it is useless.

 

[woodtickgreg]

I like klingspore, and Norton sheets. I also use Diablo disc when I can catch them on sale in 50 packs. I bought a bunch of disc from Amazon in various grits that seems to be holding up really well, doesn't have a tendency to clog. I used them on both my makita ros and the more aggressive bosch and they have worked well on both. Now having said all of this I'm really not loyal to any one brand. Sandpaper is just a consumable in my opinion. I dont try and make it last forever, I use it until it doesn't cut anymore and then change it out. My time is worth more and I dont waste it on a few pennies worth of paper.

 

[JonathanH]

For sanding lathe turned pieces i really like the blue disc's that Vince sells. Works great and lots of grit options.

 

[Gdurfey]

I like klingspore, and Norton sheets. I also use Diablo disc when I can catch them on sale in 50 packs. I bought a bunch of disc from Amazon in various grits that seems to be holding up really well, doesn't have a tendency to clog. I used them on both my makita ros and the more aggressive bosch and they have worked well on both. Now having said all of this I'm really not loyal to any one brand. Sandpaper is just a consumable in my opinion. I dont try and make it last forever, I use it until it doesn't cut anymore and then change it out. My time is worth more and I dont waste it on a few pennies worth of paper.

Greg brings up a point that I was trying to remember where I heard it. Might have even been on here at one time. I, like so many others, can keep turning, folding, trying to find that unused spot…..and I was told to use sandpaper like someone else paid for it. Now, I’m not going that far, but the saying has merit. Greg said it, time is extremely valuable.

 

[Mike1950]

Greg brings up a point that I was trying to remember where I heard it. Might have even been on here at one time. I, like so many others, can keep turning, folding, trying to find that unused spot…..and I was told to use sandpaper like someone else paid for it. Now, I’m not going that far, but the saying has merit. Greg said it, time is extremely valuable.

This is truth. Same goes to TS blades and others. Band saw blades become hazardous and cut crooked when dull. Safe cutters, including sandpaper are sharp cutters.

 

[trc65]

I really like keeping 2" wide rolls of mesh paper around. Think the last I was getting was from Klingspor. 120x through 600x. Very handy for smaller turnings and spindle blanks. Also use it a lot for hand sanding with the lathe off between grits and for problem spots.