Old Nick wrote:

When I have faired, I used a home-made board (3 m long board! That's
something to throw back and forth all day!). I made it of plywood,
with the thickness made up of several thinner sheets, to give
flexibility. I had a few actually, of different sizes and numbers of
layers etc, for different jobs. To attach sandpaper, I bought great
rolls of painter's sandpaper or belt sander paper, in the half-sheet
width (probably 4.5"/115 mm). I then used a staple tacker to tack the
paper to the tops of the ends of the board, in a sort of primitive
version of how am orbital works. Handle position was a matter of
experiment, to avoid digging the ends in vs not bending the board etc.
Worked for me, and a heap cheaper than any pre-hooked stuff. I found
that I was able to follow the rule that you should discard paper quite
quickly, as it blunts fast (even the good stuff), and you are simply
making work for yourself by hanging on to old stuff.

I did much the same, buying 4" wide fabric backed #40 grit in 50yd
rolls from Klingspore. Instead of staples, I used a spray adhesive
and three boards of different thicknesses. I found that having the
fabric well attached to the board was important and you really need at
least three boards. Spreading what ever you are fairing with using a
notched spreader rather than putting it on flat and then going lightly
with the boards, makes the job a lot easier and faster. I still had
to buy new sportcoats when I was through. The old ones were too tight
through the shoulders!

Al Gunther, Kingston, WA ---- 47° 48.1'N, 122° 30.0'W
http://agunther.home.donobi.net