Best way to sand 5 1/2" curved molding

[RonMiller]

I have just primed 150 linear feet of poplar crown molding. Now I want to sand it before painting. It's basically a 5 1/2" slightly oblong curve and two edges. The edges are easy since I have the DTS and an ETS 150. But I'd like to avoid hand sanding those miles of gentle curves. Is there a good way to do this with any of the Festool sanders?

 

[tbellemare]

You might want to take a look at the LS 130. It has a Do-it-Yourself Sanding Pad Kit that allows you to make a custom pad to fit your shape. It's well suited for that sort of task.

Tom

 

[AlexThePalex]

I doubt that using an LS130 is cost effective for this. If you'd go the path of making a custom pad you'd need at least two on a 5 1/5 inch piece.  

Since you got an ETS150, I would use that. It's perfectly suitable for the job. Just keep the sander moving, let the pad touch the wood partially and work your way along the surface. My only RO sander is the RO150 and I would use that with great ease. I would also sand by hand. 150 feet sounds like a lot but if the wood is new and in good condition it's not such a hard job at all. I would do this in less than 2 hours I bet. I sand a lot more by hand on an average paint job.

 

[tbellemare]

You are both right. An interface pad and Brilliant (for flexibility) should work fine.

The custom-made pad is a little over 3" so it wouldn't be ideal.

Tom

 

[Tim Sproul]

I have just primed 150 linear feet of poplar crown molding. Now I want to sand it before painting. It's basically a 5 1/2" slightly oblong curve and two edges. The edges are easy since I have the DTS and an ETS 150. But I'd like to avoid hand sanding those miles of gentle curves. Is there a good way to do this with any of the Festool sanders?

I've found that using Target USL (EM6000 these days) or Target's primer (EM2000?) works fine underneath water-based paints.  This works only if the water-based paint has good coverage.  The benefit is that you can spray the primer and hence no need to sand between primer and paint....

The other route is to spray dewaxed shellac as your primer.

IME, spraying produces better results, faster compared to brushing.  I'm assuming you're brushing since you're looking to sand the primer.

 

[RonMiller]

Thanks, these suggestions, esp about using a flexible pad underneath makes sense. The curve is large enough that the 150 should be easy to move around. Its so smooth, love using it.