Anti-Crack Tips for Sandpaper
Ways to keep sandpaper from cracking when you fold it. October 26, 2007
Question
My sandpaper keeps cracking and all the grit keeps falling off every time I have to crease or fold it. This is such a pain in the butt! Does it really matter what kind of sandpaper I use, or are they all the same? There has got to be something better!
Forum Responses
(Finishing Forum)
From contributor J:
Have you tried a fabric-backed sandpaper? Like what is used for sanding belts? I think the paper-backed will always crack.
From contributor P:
Yes, there are huge differences in various sandpapers. Try switching to a better brand. Some brands that come to mind are Indasa, 3M, Mirka, and Klingspor. Sounds like the paper you have has too heavy a backing and the adhesive isn't very good.
From contributor F:
In the old days, finishers would do the following to alleviate your problem. This was before the premium papers were out, like 3M and Mirka, Norton, etc.
Take the sheet of sandpaper and place it towards the edge of your bench or table. Position one corner about 1-2" off the edge and grip it with one hand while holding the other part flat with your other hand. Roll the corner down about 45 degrees and pull it. Do it once and then again, holding one of the other corners (but not the one opposite from the first). This pre-flexes the adhesive a little so it's less likely to crack.
From contributor D:
This most often occurs with old sandpaper and is particularly a problem with wet-or-dry sandpapers. The problem is that the glue gets inflexible.
From contributor K:
I back my sandpaper with masking tape. It lasts a lot longer and no cracks. And by the way, I use Klingspor paper.
From contributor D:
Thanks for the tip. I even tried this on cheap paper and it seems to work.
