Sanding is a pain! What do you guys do???

[Joey V.]

So I have been looking for the perfect drill press chuckable Flap type sander to speed up the arduous task of finish sanding the riser.  I found an attachment at Rockler wood working for something called the “Sand Flee”  The “Sanding Mop” looks like it will work great in a drill press but for the cost of it I don’t know..  How do you guys finish sand your risers currently and is there a cheaper better alternative?

[4est trekker]

Use a razor blade, knife blade, or cabinet scraper.  This will leave a very nice, smooth surface in a hurry.  Touch it up with some graduated grits of sandpaper followed by some steel well.  No substitute for a little elbow grease!

[Jason Scott]

I rough out the riser on the end of my 4x36 table top belt sander - 15 mins. Take it to final shape with 1/2 round file - 1 hour, and then sand with a 3x5 sanding block that has a rubber pad and clamps to hold the paper. Start sanding with 120 grit and then 220. Takes at least an hour of hand sanding. No smoke breaks on this job, got a break the day I hired in.

[Mike Most]

I have spent 40 plus hours on some risers, using what I was given at birth....my hands, they are the most versatile things I have ever seen.

[walkabout]

i gotta agree, nothing gets it smooth as doing it b y hand. scraping with a knife is one of the last steps i use in finish, because it gets rid of tool marks alot faster than sanding does. it also leaves a basic smooth surface. as far as rough sanding/shaping though, i use rasps along with a sanding drum chucked in my drill press.

[SEMO_HUNTER]

Not that I'm an expert by any means, but I used a mop wheel that I could chuck it into an electric drill to do the rough working in and shaping, but the finishing part was all done by hand with 150 grit, then stepping down to 22o grit.
Like the other guys have said already, it eventually comes down to good old fashioned elbow grease.

I did use an electric palm sander on the belly of my limbs to get them nice and smooth. I found that the flat surface of the palm sander made it easy for me to keep it all even, I alse employed the help of a small palm sander with a triangle shaped head for the smaller areas where the bigger palm sander couldn't get to. That was a nice break from rubbing and scrubbing, but don't get to crazy with that cause you can take off tiller in a hurry with it if you aren't careful.

[Bob Tebeau]

I use old belt sander belts 50 grit after rough out with files,then scrape and sand and scrape and sand and sand some more. Try the belts its worth buying new ones and just tear them up, they last a long time and make shaping a breeze. on a self bow I'll burmish the whole thing with a glass rod.

[GREG IN MALAD]

A palm sander makes quick work of a riser, I wouldnt build a bow without it.

[machomanandysavage]

I got a Dewalt Orbital palm sander - it really speeds along the process of shaping and sanding the riser. Shape with 60 grit, work up to 220, then finish by hand.

[Jason Scott]

I have one of those cheap orbital palm sanders from Harbor Freight and it seems to take longer than a hand sanding block. I may check into a better brand. My other issue is the cost of the loop connection pads.

[Joey V.]

THX Guys.

[machomanandysavage]

Yeah, a good sander with good power makes a huge difference. I recently came to the realization that I need to buy quality tools to begin with. I always wanted to, but couldn't afford it, or thought well, I'm just gonna use it a little bit... then I always just end up buying the good one I should have bought in the first place! I can tell you this though, I have never regretted spending the money on a good tool.

[chrisg]

scrapers and hand sanding, though an orbital helps on the riser. There's a  lot of satisfaction in rasping out the handle shape, the artist takes over!
chrisg

[Swissbow]

I prefer a good rasp over power tools for shaping out the riser. In my opinion it's much easier to shape the curvy lines by hand. If the wood is not extremely hard i can do it within 20 - 30 minutes. After that is time for sanding paper. I start with 60 grit then move up to 160 and 220. I sand until i'm satisfied, that may take up to one, two, three or more hours. The riser is the first thing one sees if he/she is looking at the bow, so i want to have it as good as possible.

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Andy

[Holm-Made]

Home Depot is carrying a purple colored professional sandpaper by 3M.  I saw it a few weeks ago and bought some to try.  It has cut my sanding time down a bunch.  The grit is sharp and it doesn't clog/wear out nearly as fast as other brands/ types.  The 80 grit in a vibrating palm sander will get rid of file marks in a hurry.  I then hand sand 80, 100, 150, 220.  
Chad