sanding epoxy

[minuztarzan]

Hello all,

I recently made a coffee table top using a slab of spalted maple.
It had alot of voids which I filled with epoxy.
I plan on sanding the top to 180grit, then applying danish oil, and soon after a satin varnish on top to provide a more hard wearing finish.

I have sanded the top to 120 grit, and can see that the epoxy has scratches and is cloudy. I know it will still be cloudy at 180 grit.

Should I sand the areas with epoxy to a higher grit to ensure clarity when finish is applied? Or will I have to sand the entire piece to the higher grit?
Or will 180 grit be okay?

Thanks!

 

[Phil Pascoe]

Unless you've used a specifically clear epoxy it will probably remain cloudy no matter what. I wouldn't bother with D.O. and then varnish, I'd use one or the other. For a good finish I'd go to 240 or 320 grit - some people will tell you to go finer again. Personal opinion of course.

 

[sunnybob]

2 part epoxy isnt clear. doesnt matter what you do.
If you want clear, you need a cold pouring plastic like made by west systems.

 

[minuztarzan]

ITs not clear, i know this because i tinted it brown. I want the epoxy to be shiny, not matte, after finish is applied

 

[AndyT]

The only way to find out for sure is to try it. If you have some of the same wood and epoxy left over, you could run some experiments.
You might just get lucky and find that your varnish fills in any remaining scratches so they disappear.

 

[sunnybob]

sanding epoxy to glass finish is going to take a lot of work, going through all the grades to 3000 grit wet or dry, and most likely even jewelers rouge.
look up how to make acrylic or perspex clear.

 

[Rorschach]

The varnish will help, but you need to sand to a high grit first. As other have said, do some testing if you can. I would be surprised if you could get away with anything less than 4-600 grit.