Hot take: sanding my workbench smooth was a mistake

I spent last summer sanding my maple bench top down to 400 grit, looked beautiful for about 3 months. Now stuff slides everywhere when I try to chisel or plane a board, never had that problem with the rougher surface. Anyone else regret making their bench too slick?

3 comments

3 Comments

evab521mo ago

Oh man, did you wax it too? I gotta ask - how many times have you boned your knuckles on something sliding away since then?

angela4328d ago

That rough bench trick is genius honestly. I've got a beat up old work table that I intentionally left with that 80 grit finish too, stuff doesn't slide around at all even when I'm really pushing on it. Saves a lot of cussing and bleeding for sure.

burns.fiona1mo ago

Got a bench in my shop that I purposely left rough for that reason. Started with 80 grit and stopped, stuff stays put just fine.