Hello all. I feel like I am having some real issues sanding bowls that hopefully someone can suggest some solutions to. I am power sanding using a regular old Craftsman hand drill (tried one of the HF close quarters drill and did not like how it felt in my hand) most recently using Vince's stuff from 80-400.
On some recent bowls in particular (maple, probably sugar maple), I am getting abrasive streaks on the surface, especially after sanding with the finer grits. The streaks end up being whiter than the surrounding wood. The streaking is also more prominent on the outside of the bowl. Unfortunately, after a few coats of finish, I think some of these streaks are being highlighted by the finishing process.
My best guess is that I am sanding at too high of a speed with the drill and baking the surface of the wood from sanding heat. The areas around the streaks are suffering from surface hardening maybe? That would presumably be from the drill rather than the lathe since I am running the lathe at the slowest speed I can when I sand.
I also tend to get crease lines and even some pitting on the inside of the bowls on the sides. I tend to turn bowls with somewhat steep sides so far and I often get a crease line right where the side meets the bottom which the sanding is creating. It looks like the soft pad underneath the sanding disc is contorting itself into that curve well when I sand but I often get a difficult to remove crease anyway.
The problem with that is that the drill I have has too touchy of a trigger and it is very difficult to lightly depress it to keep the RPMs down at a low level. I would much rather have a drill that either had a trigger that was easy to depress and hold lightly or one that I could lock in at a very low speed, say 150-200 RPM.
I did buy one of those Sorby inertia sanders but haven't found a way to use it on the inside of bowls yet that I am comfortable with.
If anyone can help me diagnose/confirm the causes of my problems and/or suggest a different drill that meets my needs I would greatly appreciate it.