Post #277843 by Tamapoutini on Tue, Jan 9, 2007 9:07 PM

On 2007-01-09 16:58, tikigap wrote:
More questions!

When you go to 400 then 800, is that wet? With water?

When you go with the wet/dry paper, is that wet or dry?

First question first: there are no real rules as to how best approach any particular aspect of jade carving, only preferences which over time you come to call your own. I personally use anything below 800 'wet' (with water) & anything over/including 'dry'... The main difference is that the paper tends to last a little longer when being used wet, as the water helps flush away the dust. Working dry quickly clogs the paper.

I like to go dry when nearing the final grades as it is easier to see where you are going/have been this way & can ensure that all areas are being reached.

At Jade-skool we were taught to go: 180, wet then dry - 240, wet then dry - 360, wet then dry, etc... but this is total overkill on all but the very best stones. *A lot of jade can be 'oversanded', bringing out pitting in the stone(orange-peel) The same can occur if the paper is being used until too blunt - change paper with some frequency (after a few swipes, 400 grit becomes 200, then 100... it wears out pretty quickly).

Experimentation is the best way; simply trying different approaches to see what works best for you.

Good luck! Tama