Preparing wood for burning

[saclark]

How smooth do wood rounds need to be to transfer a pattern and burn it. My husband cuts the wood into 1 1/2 " rounds with a chain saw, but our belt sander takes forever to get it smooth. Any suggestions??Jester

[Pyrographer]

I think I answered this for you on another forum already but here goes again. I use an orbital sander initially then everything else is hand sanded....I start with 220 then go to 400 then 600 and finish with 800. My goal is to get the wood as smmooth as a babie's b....

Be sure to remove all sawdust before burning. I've had a lot of carvers take my classes and thought I was nuts when I said this but once they tried it they never said another word!!!

[Claude]

Since he cuts the wood with a chain saw, you likely need to run it through a surface planer before you even start to sand it. The progress up from 80, 220, 400...however smooth you want it.

If you aren't sure what a surface planer is, take a look at this one (there are many manufacturers out there - this is only an example):

http://www.woodcraft.com/family.aspx?FamilyID=7584

Claude

[Hi_Ho_Sliver]

If your belt sander is taking forever, you need to start with a lower grit, like 80 and progress up ....a belt sander doesn't "take forever" it likes to eat wood! lolCowboy

[saclark]

Claude,I borrowed a planner from a neighbor and it worked great. Thanks for the help.Smile