Hi Larry, you can't go wrong following advise from Rehd and Bobby. I'll just add my two cents. Here's what I did: Do as much fairing as you can with the block plane; plane-off any ridges/glue lines. Then go ahead and sand across grain with the fairing board at about 45deg; working your way down the hull. I wouldn't go below 100 or even 120 grit for fear of deep scratches. Once you get it fair then go up to 180 or 220 with your board, ROS or palm sander going with the grain. The scratches will disappear from the softwood without too much effort.

Any scratches you leave will show but, still, it's not the same finish you would try to achieve on a piece of fine furniture. I hope this helps.

- Chip
http://www.ChipSandresky.com