I sanded a repair by hand instead of using a DA and got better results

I had this dent on a 2017 silver Civic near the rear quarter panel that was driving me crazy. Everyone swears by dual action sanders for feathering, but I tried doing it by hand with 400 grit after my DA stripped too much clear too fast. The blend came out smoother with less burn-through on the edges, and the primer laid down flat. Has anyone else ditched power tools for a hand sanding approach on tricky spots?

2 comments

2 Comments

miles_perez3d ago

Did you try wet sanding by hand too? I used a wet sponge as a sanding block on a tricky metallic blue once and the finish came out glassy.

lane.joel3d ago

Yeah, that "glassy finish" part really caught my attention... I tried wet sanding by hand once and ended up with a finish that looked more like a frosted window than glass. My problem is I get too impatient and start sanding like I'm trying to erase a bad drawing instead of taking it slow and gentle like you're supposed to. That sponge trick sounds genius though, I've only ever used sandpaper and my own clumsy fingers which is probably why I keep messing up. Next time I'm definitely stealing your method, even if my hands look like I got in a fight with a cheese grater afterwards.