: This is the first time I have ever seen anyone suggest to wet down the raw
: wood before final sanding. It seems like a good idea to me, but is there
: not a risk of softening the glue (I am picturing watching a hull slowly
: deform then end up as a pile of sticks at my feet). Do you use waterproof
: glue? When you say WET are you suggesting that I take the hull out and
: hose it down, or take a rag and wipe down the hull as if washing a car? I
: am very intrigued by the "closing of staple holes" More info
: would be great.

: Thanks,
: JJ

I use a big kayak bailer type sponge to wet my hull/deck wood after rough
sanding with 60 grit on a ROS.

If you sanded with 60 grit and did not wet the wood down to raise the grain
you would need to sand much more aggresively to remove the depth of the
60 grit cut marks. You'd have to use 80 grit to get out the 60 grit cut.
Wetting down the wood eliminates this and lets you start finishing with 120 grit.

The sponge is wet, but not dripping. I go over the wood quickly getting it
wet and do have some water dripping off as the sponge is compressed. I squeeze
extra water over any staple holes which makes them totally close. The cut end grain
of the staple will still show up as a dark mark, so this does not make the staple holes
invisible. Closing up the staple holes is a help when you glass the interior of your boat
because open staple holes tend to blow bubbles in your resin even with dropping
temperatures to prevent off-gassing of the air in the wood cells.

I use staples below the waterline on my boats and hot glue to work stapleless above the
waterline and deck.

The is only so much water that the wood can absorb in the brief pass of the wet sponge.
It's far less than you would imagine and is not enough to cause problems with wood
expansion or glue lines. The surface is usually ready to sand in an hour.
Wetting the wood will reveal the consistency of the sanded surface,
show any missed glue blotches and any deep scar/bruises in the wood that would be
otherwise invisible. This gives you the chance to fix them before you move on to finish
sanding and glass wet-out.

If you soaked the wood for a long period of time, that would be very different and would cause problems.

I use Tie-Bond II glue which is waterproof, but not because it is waterproof. I use Tie-Bond II
because it has the highest temperature rating of all the "carpenter's" glues which means it can take more
heat from the sun on your finished boat and not soften and shift.

All the best,
Rob Macks
Laughing Loon CC&K
www.laughingloon.com