I am finishing some 1X6 clear heart Redwood siding. I am sanding with a RO sander up to 180 then a final pass by hand with 220. I remove all dust then apply two coats of Penofin Marine Oil. Some of the boards are coming out with a striping pattern as shown on the picture. Any ideas what is causing this or how to minimize this? Thanks for any help.
Dan
Replies
Its not your fault, It's just tiger/curly redwood.
Work Safe, Count to 10 when your done for the day !!
Bruce S.
People pay extra for wood that looks like that....
It's hard to mask without completely obscuring the grain. Most finishes will accentuate it rather than hide it.
-Steve
That pattern may be the result of your sanding technique with the RO sander. Redwood is pretty soft, and if you're "tipping" your RO when you sand, you may be creating low spots. Then, if you're using a sanding block when you hand sand, you're only sanding the high spots.
If that's what's happening, your finish is going onto boards that are rougher in the low spots (180 grit) than the high spots (220 grit) - an almost certain way to get blotching in soft wood.
Put the RO away and try sanding a piece of scrap to 180 just using a sanding block, then apply your finish. I'm betting that the "pattern" disappears. - lol
If you're using the siding as actual house siding, why are you going to 180 or 220? That's nearly a furniture quality smoothness and your redwood probably won't hold that for long if it's exposed to the elements.
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