Being new to body work what types of sanding blocks do you recommend. I searched previous posts and cant seem to picture the 5 gallon paint stick method. Most of the car is bare metal and will be applying body filler. I've been looking at eastwoods selection but they have too many choices.

I have the style about 12" long 3" wide with the wooden handle, what else do I need?

Thanks

I personaly use a half moon shaped "cheese grator" file to shape the bondo before it gets hard. The shavings are easier to clean up after then the bondo dust. 18" x 3" board & air board.
The tool that gets me through is a paint stick. I use a normal size one and fold a sheet of wet dry paper over & over on it on it for wet sanding primer over the body work. A stiff piece of 3" round foam is useful to handle different contours.
I hope some of these will work for you.
Roger

Chris,
what ever the surface shape is you need to use a block that closely matches the surface. If the surface is concave in shape you need a block with a nice round shape to it. Using a flat sander in that area will just dig into the panel leaving you with waves. Ive used everything from heater hose to pvc pipe.
Also something to remember the longer the block the straighter the panel!!!! Remember that

http://www.chevelles.com/showroom/blocksanders11.jpg
This photo shows just a few of my personal blocks at home. At work I do have more.
Sander 1 is called a cycolac plastic sander. This sander has some flew to it, perfect for shaping filler on convex shapes, as it bends or flows with the shape. It fact I prefer this file over the standard wood file.

Sander 2 is your standard wood long board. Same concept as #1 but has NO flex to it. It comes in sizes from 5-17in. I have all three.

Sander 3 is a hard plastic that is 9in long. I mainly use this sander for wet sanding. Sander 4 is the same but only 5in, I have roughly 8 of those 5in blocks.

Sander 5 is a home made sander that I stole from work :eek: What it is a door moulding off a 99 chrylser concorde. This moulding has a nice round shape to it perfect for those concave shapes. Notice the hood has curve to it where they lay, thats the perfect area for those sander! If you notice there are 2 #5, those moulding were hollow so what I did to make them bend easier was to grind out the middle on the backside. Now they bend fairly easy.

Sander 6 is a soft foam block made by 3M. It perfect for sanding those real irregular shapes as it flows great with the bends. But not useful on long or short flat areas.

Sanders 7 Are blocks made by a guy in MINN by the name of John Wheeler, called adjustable flex sanders. They are the coolest thing. They have removable rods that allow the block to go from stiff like block 2 to very flexible like block 6. Notice in the shortest block you can see the rods sticking out. Removing makes them flex. They are by far in my book the ultimate block sander for blocking primer and smoothing out that last coat of filler. They come anywhere in sizes from 5in to 3ft. They are costly, a set of 5 sanders is around 130 bucks, I have 2, one at work one at home. I also do have the 3ft model on order which set me back 120 i believe. But remember the longer the block the straighter the panel.

So theres more blocks then just a paint stick. Chose them wisely...Eric

I always liked a foam paint roller in some areas. The secret I was tought is if you are crushing a paint roller you are pressing to hard.
I had a 2"x12" dowel for some areas but like Eric said SIZE MATTERS.

thanks to all, the pictures are just what I needed

chris

Eric did the trick, a photo!

Like the others have said, you use anything, rubber hoses, paint sticks, broom handles, etc. But those are freebes you pick up around the house when you need it. As far as starting your tool inventory, start with number 1, 3, and 4 in erics photo. I use those probably about 95% of time doing this stuff everyday.

DO NOT buy the cheap stuff!!! Cheap rubber blocks are hard, they are lumpy and just plain JUNK.

The HIGH END (They sell some retail junk too) 3M for the rubber blocks and I personally like a wood "long board" 9 (number 1) Huthins makes the best I have found.

I think I am gonna order a number 1 here in a minute. Could you give me the part number for sander #6 please? Also, you said number one Flexes, so can I start at the door jamb and go from left to right for maybe 6-8 inches and have that filler come out super straight? And also where the filler is over the weld under the trim studs..... do I let the original body lines guide the sander? I let the sander do the work, right?

http://www.sjdiscounttools.com/hut5501.html

Eric,
Can you recommend somewhere to buy the Flexible (#7) type block that you said are made by John Wheeler. The long one is just what I need for a roof that I'm doing.

Thanks, Lance

Never mind I found his website smile.gif

http://www.adjustflexsand.com/about.html

Lance I bought my two sets from John himself at a show in Minn. I see that eastwood sells them but very spendy!! I bought a 5piece set for like 100 bucks

This site has both the number 1 sander for you Yenko and the number 7 for you Lance. Len is a stand up guy to deal with!!!
http://autobodystore.net/Merchant2/merchant.mvc?Screen=CTGY&Category_Code=TFSL

Yenko am not sure of the part number of that number 6 block, its a VERY soft sponge like thing. I wouldnt use it for filler work, its meant for wetsanding those really irregular shapes. Basically its a step above using your bare hand.

Yenko the good blocks to buy would be number 1 either in the plastic form like I have or the wood block. The next best would be 3 and 4, they are just good ole blocks. Dont get me wrong I LOVE my flex sanders but not everyone can justify the price tag either.

Let the sander do the work, dont force it. You force it you mess the filler up it digs in, floats over but doesnt LEVEL it. Use just enough pressure to keep the sander in contact with the surface.
Picture it as holding a baby bird, hold tight enough so it wont fly away but loose enough that you dont pop its eyes out either!

Dont be afraid to use or go throu sandpaper. Sandpaper is cheap is makes for less work and a nice new sheet will cut it level faster and better. Use the good stuff like 3M, the cheap autobody master stuff is nothing more then wasting your money!!!

A real sweet tool to use to help perfect filler work is 3M's dry guide coat. It really highlights those lows that you miss. Great stuff, also the BEST stuff to use when blocking out your primer. 3M part number 05861 In my book its a MUST have for the beginner and for the everyday pro. Just one of those great tools that makes life a tad easier, worth every single penny graemlins/thumbsup.gif

That same sander you showed me..... I linked to it up above. It's 18.71 there. just in case anyone wants one. Damn shipping is $15


However YOUR site, has shipping for 7 bucks. I went with your site.

Lots of good info here on blocks so far. Some of the rubber and plastic blocks are not completely straight and flat and will create headaches if you don't tune them up. When I buy a new block I usually stick a few pieces of adhesive backed 80grit on a flat surface and run the block over it untill it's completely flat then I round the corners and edges just alittle. Sharp edges on a block tend to dig and cut grooves and rounded edges are more forgiving. You can also make your own out of various materials, automotive mouldings were already mentioned, plastic tubing, rubber hoses. One of my favorites is a 32" board I made out of 1/8" alluminum with an oak handle. It accepts two 18" pieces of adhesive type board paper butted together in the middle--sure makes quick work out of straightening long panels. Use the longest practical block for the particlular area you are working and results will be straight. Happy sanding graemlins/beers.gif

I got the #1 sander shown in Eric's photo per his recommendation. A great tool for $20 graemlins/thumbsup.gif

They make that number one in plastic which flexes a little, then all wood and also wood handle with an aluminum "shoe" for the paper. Personally, I have owned and used them all, I like the wood handle with aluminum shoe. However, that is one of those things you just don't know without using them a little. I still have all of them and will grab the plastic one for certian jobs. But I like the totally firm aluminum shoe the best.

bad bob show us a picture of your homemade 32 inch long board. i might try making one for myself. storm

Pretty good topic, the guys have alot of good ideas for blocks the one I agree with is the LONGER the block the straighter the panel. I seen guys use a 6" block on an 8' bed, I don't know why, but the end results were not very good. Body lines are tough and the only for those to be right are practice and patience. I think a paint stick or a long block works great. Masking tape and guide coat work great for shaping the lines also. I hope some of these help you good luck.

Storm here is a link to photo of sanding block, I have no idea how to attach a photo directly to this post.

http://community.webshots.com/album/149237971qrCJKD?404

These are the blocks I use most often, the thin one with rounded edges I find very handy for small areas. Made by 3M, about 3/8" thick X 6" long and designed for use with 6" DA paper. It is comfortable to use and puts your hand close to the work, the rubber blocks is use mostly for wet sanding, the 18" clamp on boards are mostly used for wetsanding with 18" wet or dry board paper. The 32" board is used for long straight areas and when I block an entire side of the car for completely flush panel fit. The yellow plastic board is used for dry sanding, and the white board is used for both wet and dry with clamp style attachment. The tubes are used for concave areas.
Blocks and boards can be made of most anything, at 15 years old I used a 2X4 for most of my work :D

I looked at your other photos there, is that your work on the bikes? Nice stuff. smile.gif

Thanks, bikes are fun to work on.

Bob great looking stuff with the bikes, very cool graemlins/thumbsup.gif