Denibbing

[morpheus83uk]

Hello,

I have heard that denibbing is a good thing to do after each coat of finish so I wanted to get some advice on where to get the pads from and what sort of grits?

I am looking at using a coloured version of this Osmo Wood Wax.

As I havent done this before I presume that you just run a cloth or pad of sorts over the finish gently to give the silky smooth finish?

Thanks

James

 

[John15]

I use 000 grade wire wool.

John

 

[Steve Maskery]

There are lots of things you can use.
I use 0000 (four-noughts) wire wool (that's a grade finer than John, above) for applying the wax, but you can use a pan scourer (the green or white matty things, not Brillo pads, they are too coarse).
For denibbing BETWEEN coats you may be better with P320 or P400 Abranet.
I don't know why I am answering a thread on Finishing, my Finishing usually leaves a lot to be desired!

 

[woodbloke66]

I use 600g Abranet to de-nib between coats, but it has been known for me to use very worn 320g sandpaper as well - Rob

 

[sunnybob]

This is a subject that laves me confused (to say the least).
I've tried de nibbing several times, only to find I'm back to bare wood in 2 seconds flat.

I even strike base with 0000 wool. Am I applying too much pressure even at my lowest power setting? or not enough poly in the first place?

 

[John15]

There are lots of things you can use.
I use 0000 (four-noughts) wire wool (that's a grade finer than John, above) for applying the wax, but you can use a pan scourer (the green or white matty things, not Brillo pads, they are too coarse).
For denibbing BETWEEN coats you may be better with P320 or P400 Abranet.
I don't know why I am answering a thread on Finishing, my Finishing usually leaves a lot to be desired!

Correction, I missed a '0' off - I use this grade as Steve with great success.

John

 

[Mrs C]

I just wipe over Osmo with a very fine foam sanding sponge. ‘Wipe’ is very often all it seems to need to remove the rough feeling.

 

[AndyT]

This is a subject that laves me confused (to say the least).
I've tried de nibbing several times, only to find I'm back to bare wood in 2 seconds flat.

I even strike base with 0000 wool. Am I applying too much pressure even at my lowest power setting? or not enough poly in the first place?

I think there's a clue in the words "power setting".

De-nibbing needs just light hand pressure, so you only remove the nibs, not all the finish. Feel the rough surface, wipe across with the abrasive, feel the surface again, and if it's smooth, stop.
Not a job for a power tool, in my opinion.

 

[AES]

I've done very little oil finishing, but with paint and varnish of any sort, on wood or metal, I find 600 grit wet n dry (maybe used wet, maybe dry, depends on the parent material) by hand wrapped around a cork block the way to go. And go VERY gently on any corners/edges, etc.

Use of 600 grit is for the first coat (when fully dry), even finer grit, or very worn 600 grit for the second coat, final coat 4x0 wire wool. Quite difficult to find here, but I find that 3M wet & dry is by far and away the best.

I find it's vital that the paint/varnish is really dry (i.e. hard), and have never used a power tool for this.

Basic purpose is to remove/flatten any minute specs of dust, etc, that were airborne and have settled while the finish was drying, and/or any specs of rubbish that were in the liquid finish as you applied it (though you do strain your material through a coffee filter and old pair of ladies tights before EVERY use, don't you?)!

And not sure about oil, but for paint and varnish, use a tack cloth before every coat/after denibbing (though I have heard that they can leave a residue that affects some finishes, though personally I've never noticed that).

HTH

Edit for P.S. Above I wrote, "Basic purpose is to ..... ". To which I should have added "and in the case of a wooden item, to re-flatten any grain that may have been raised during the application of the paint/varnish".

 

[John Brown]

Seems to me that using "numbers" like 000, 0000 to indicate the grade is asking for trouble and confusion.

 

[sunnybob]

This is a subject that laves me confused (to say the least).
I've tried de nibbing several times, only to find I'm back to bare wood in 2 seconds flat.

I even strike base with 0000 wool. Am I applying too much pressure even at my lowest power setting? or not enough poly in the first place?

I think there's a clue in the words "power setting".

De-nibbing needs just light hand pressure, so you only remove the nibs, not all the finish. Feel the rough surface, wipe across with the abrasive, feel the surface again, and if it's smooth, stop.
Not a job for a power tool, in my opinion.

Andy, sorry... my use of the word power was misleading, i just meant how much effort i use. Even I'm not as silly as that :shock: #-o 8)

 

[Nelsun]

One lesson I learned about steel wool is not to use it in conjunction with water based finishes. Any bits that come off and aren't removed will rust into the next coat #-o Thankfully I learned the hard way finishing a scratching post and not on anything more important. And I don't care how many ways there are to clean down the surface after denibbing, little bits get missed or thrown up into the air only to resettle when your back's turned :|

I like the finest of the paint sanding sponges as they'll handle eased edges, curves and flat surfaces.

 

[Phil Pascoe]

This is a subject that laves me confused (to say the least).
I've tried de nibbing several times, only to find I'm back to bare wood in 2 seconds flat.

I even strike base with 0000 wool. Am I applying too much pressure even at my lowest power setting? or not enough poly in the first place?[/quote

It only takes a wipe.

 

[AndyT]

Sorry Bob. I know you prefer power tools but shouldn't have jumped to conclusions.

 

[sunnybob]

if there was a power tool for this job, trust me I would buy it :lol: :lol: =D> =D>

 

[woodbloke66]

This is a subject that laves me confused (to say the least).
I've tried de nibbing several times, only to find I'm back to bare wood in 2 seconds flat.

I even strike base with 0000 wool. Am I applying too much pressure even at my lowest power setting? or not enough poly in the first place?

I think there's a clue in the words "power setting".

De-nibbing needs just light hand pressure, so you only remove the nibs, not all the finish. Feel the rough surface, wipe across with the abrasive, feel the surface again, and if it's smooth, stop.
Not a job for a power tool, in my opinion.

Yep, just the very lightest wipe over with worn, very fine paper to dislodge the nibbs. Definitely not a job for any sort of powered sander - Rob

 

[CHJ]

I use Nyweb for denibbing once the surface has 'cured' prior to additional coats. Either the orange or the white 'no abrasives' versions.
It's no more than a hand wipe over the surface
I find it less prone to leaving abrasive debris behind for tack cloth to remove.

Says he currently none too patiently waiting for oil to dry so that I can get another coat on today.

 

[custard]

Lots of professional finishers de-nib with just a coarse rag like Hessian, or use a bit of scrunched up brown paper. It really depends of what type of de-nibbing you're doing, if it's specks of dust trapped in Osmo or Danish Oil or a wiping varnish then that's all you need. But if it's removing raised wood fibres from a water based finish or stain then a tiny bit more abrasion is helpful.

0000 wire wool was the traditional solution, but wire wool is falling out of favour in many workshops. It's flammable and requires special storage in commercial workshops, much of it is now made in the far East and is poor quality and thick with oil, and on tannin rich timbers like Oak any swarf trapped in the grain will eventually turn the timber black. For these reasons artificial wire wool, like the 3M plastic version, is becoming more widely used. Alternatively well worn 240 or 320 grit paper also gets the job done.

 

[morpheus83uk]

Thank you all for your quick and detailed replies.

It looks like 0000 steel wool or Abranet fine grain is going to be the best option. I have since read the instruction for the wood wax I will be using which says to have sanded the bare wood to 120 grit for maximum absorption into the wood. Would this apply to each coat as well? In other words use the Abranet 120 grit to gently denib the initial coat and any other coats then apply say a 600 grit after the final coat for the better finish?

Also I presume I would need to get a sanding block for the Abranet pads too as I currently just have a sander and nothing to do hand sanding with apart from my hands. Does anyone have any recommendations on one which is comfortable to use? I have also been told that soft sanding pads are good as well I presume these are the same as the Abranet pads?

Thanks

James

 

[AndyT]

If you are going to buy something for hand sanding with Abranet you may as well shell out for their proper hand sanding block. It looks expensive and is dearer than when I bought mine on special at Screwfix, but it gives you a slightly cushioned velcro pad sized to the sheets (choice of two sizes) and a connection for a vacuum cleaner hose. Used with a vac, it gives totally dust free, efficient hand sanding. Practical for the whole job, not just for knocking back the finish.