Make your own sanding sticks

Sanding sticks come in very handy. But they can cost the earth if you need them in bulk. You can however make your own at low-cost and to fit whatever size you need.

What you’ll need

1. Paddle-Pop (Popsicle) sticks – available from the craft store. You can also use coffee stirrers, balsa wood, bass wood, pine, or anything else that you have laying about the place.
2. White glue (Buy this by the litre, gallon or whatever – it is cheaper than buying the small bottles – 2 small bottles equal the cost of the litre bottle here in Australia)
3. Your paper of choice – in this case 800 Grit and 1200 Grit Wet-N-Dry paper (purchased from my local car refinishing place)

What to do

1. Take a bunch of paddle-pop sticks and glue up one side only.
2. Place these on your paper of choice (glue side down obviously)
3. Place them as close together as you can,leaving just a small space between each one top, bottom, and on each side
4. Once the entire sheet is as full, find a flat-bottomed weight to hold the sticks to the back of the paper and to stop them from curling up as they dry
5. Let them dry for at least 12 hours, or overnight if you can
6. Finally using a blade to cut around the sticks and
7. Trim any rough paper from them and shape as needed

Image 1: Completed Wet-N-Dry sanding sticks made using the methods above

Suggestions

I write the type of paper and the grit on the back of each of my sanding sticks. This ensures that when you need it you can find exactly what you’ll need. Got some other ideas to share?  Post a comment below to let me know.