Replies

1. 
   joeh | Jan 17, 2004 07:12am | #1

   Bondo is good for copying stuff like that.

   Any auto parts store has it.

   Joe H

1. 
   WWGC_Miami | Jan 17, 2004 07:15am | #2

   Thanks.  Had that idea but didnt think I could get the adhesive back paper to conform to the tight details.

1. 
   donpapenburg | Jan 17, 2004 07:26am | #4

   Wax your moldings before applying  the bondo . Self stick is probably the best type of paper to use in this case . pre crease the tightest bends before sticking .

2. 
   WorkshopJon | Jan 17, 2004 07:25am | #3

   "A customer of mine recently purchased a new house that has miles of painted moldings.  All of which was painted with cheap latex and no primer.  I want to sand all of the molding but dont want to loose the detail."

   Walter,

   What is your goal?

   Jon

1. 
   WWGC_Miami | Jan 17, 2004 07:38am | #5

   Smooth out the horrible finish enough to prime over.  Not enough money in the budget to strip or replace the molding.

1. 
   Homewright | Jan 17, 2004 03:53pm | #6

   If it were me, past client or not, I'd have passed on the job.  This sounds like one of those jobs that gets on top of you and just stays there until you either slog through it losing your shirt or have a problem which ends up unpleasant.  With money an issue, I'd opt to do a training session for the client and suggest they do it themselves and call you in to do the painting correctly.

3. 
   VaTom | Jan 17, 2004 03:57pm | #7

   I want to sand all of the molding but dont want to loose the detail. 

   Are you familiar with cabinet scrapers?  I'd be thinking about making an appropriate scraper profile from an old handsaw.  Much faster than sanding and plenty smooth enough to paint over.

   PAHS Designer/Builder- Bury it!

4. 
   NickNukeEm | Jan 17, 2004 05:39pm | #8

   I've had excellent success making custom blocks as follows:

   Take a piece of the molding and place it face up over a scrap piece of plywood.  The molding should be several feet long, at least.  Cover the molding with blue painters tape, running the tape length-wise, making sure to force the tape deep into the profile, and don't overlap the edges, that will transmit lines into the foam profile.  (I usually run the tape about 12 inches, that gives me 2 blocks about 6 inches long.) Apply at least two layers of tape to compensate for the sandpaper.  The tape should overlap onto the plywood by several inches.

   With the tape in place, use Great Stuff or similar expanding foam and apply a thin layer over the taped portion of the molding.  Lay the stuff down in thin beads the length of the tape.  After it's covered, tap the plywood base under the molding to settle the stuff into the crevices.  Set the plywood and molding aside, letting it cure for about 24 hours.

   Remove the foam from the molding.  If possible, try to leave a layer of tape on the foam.  (I make the second layer of tape shorter that the first and provide a tab on the edges to facilitate easier removal.)  With the foam removed, saw it, sand it, do wahtever you need to do to make it work.  I usually make several blocks out of it.

   If a layer of tape is left on the block, you can use thin sandpaper and apply it to the tape.  Otherwise, remove all pieces of tape and use a spray adhesive to glue the paper to the block.

   All that being said, I'm not sure there's enough foam in the local HD to create enough blocks for the job at hand, nor can you produce all the elbow grease that will be required.  I guess the foam block method is more for finish sanding, or at least that's what I use it for.

   BTW, the above method can be found in one of Sandor Nagysz??? book on sanding.

   I never met a tool I didn't like!
1. 
   jimblodgett | Jan 17, 2004 06:13pm | #9

   That's a great tip, Nick.  Thanks for posting that.  I generally try to machine the reverse profile of whatever I'm sanding, but that seems like it would work beautifully. 

   Anyway, thanks for the idea.  And thank you Sandor.

   Edited 1/17/2004 10:14:24 AM ET by jim blodgett

5. 
   jarcolio | Jan 17, 2004 07:03pm | #10

   There is a special paint that is put on a rough wall that smooths things out before wall paper is pasted on - I'd lightly sand to create the "tooth" and then apply this stuff as a first coast and then the final -- the stuff is like watered down joint compound but is smooth as your cheek when dry and very hard

6. 
   ian | Jan 18, 2004 03:27am | #11

   If you have a lot you may want to check out the Festo linear sander.  I bit spendy (like $290 including the custom profile pad) but almost certainly worth it for the scale of job you describe.   look for Linear sander Duplex at http://www.festool-usa.com/  I've got one, teamed with a Festo vac, and where there's lots of profile to sand it can't be beat.  I'd describe the vac as essential if you don't want to spend most of the day changing paper.  BTW, I recommend you go with the pre cut Festo paper

1. 
   WWGC_Miami | Jan 18, 2004 03:45am | #12

   Thank You for the suggestion.  I'll check it out.