Sanding Blocks

I made these sanding blocks from some small pieces of lumber. They have Purpleheart base with Chechen on the sides and Goncalo Alves for the top. The dimensions are for 1/4 sheet sandpaper. I glued some 1/16” cork on the bottom to give a little softer sanding feel.

I wanted to use brass hardware but I was unable to find any when I was making them so I used stainless steel instead. I basicly glued up a 20” long piece of Purpleheart that was 5/8” thick and 2 1/4” wide and I glued Chechen that was 1/4” thick and 3/4” wide on each side. The Goncalo Alves was 5/4 thick and 2 1/8” wide. I drilled 1/4” hole through all of the pieces and used a dowell to hold them as I cut them on the chop saw at 4 1/4” long. This allows the 4 1/2” paper to overhang the ends a little to assist in sanding inside curves.

The plan or these sanders were from a Wood magazine called WoodExtra in a failed attempt at an electronic magazine. I signed up for 1 year (6 issues) and maybe got 3 before the project was canceled.

They are also in a Wood magazine book of small projects. I have the book but it is in hiding somewhere, so I don’t have the exact name. Found it Wood Magazines Best Ever Woodworking Jigs, Homemade tools and shop Organizers. 2006 The label says display until Sept 12, 2006.

-- Karson Southern Delaware karson_morrison@bigfoot.com