In an effort to finish the "finishing" of my first wooden kayak, I've been reading all the posts I can find on the BBS regarding varnishing. I've already sanded the hull and applied one coat of varnish and am planning to sand tonight and varnish tommorrow morning. Having gone out and purchased wet sanding paper in grits from 300 to 1200 I was a bit chagrined to read that most of you folks have found that wet sanding beyond 220 would probably be overkill for a kayak that wouldn't be hanging from a museum wall. I also found it interesting that quite a few people recommeded using a powered sander as opposed to sanding by hand.

Here is what I am wondering. I have access to a makita b4150 finish sander (not random obital) and a dremel 6000 contour sander with a large diamond shaped pad for flat sanding. The Dremel is also meant for finish sanding (I'm checking to see if it is truly a random orbital sander). Do any of you folks have experience with either and what do you think would be the best use of tools for finish prep between varnish coats?

I'm thinking of using one of the powered sanders with 220 grit paper to smooth out between coats and, if necessary, wet sand by hand with 300 grit.

Ideally, I'd like to have the first 3 coats of varnish on by April 26th so I can get back to paddling. I got a chance to paddle the boat late last summer as I waited for the epoxy to cure and had such a blast that I want to get back to it soon. I have noticed that there has been a little bit of clouding/discoloration in some of the spots that were exposed to sunlight shortly after the first cure and don't want to risk any more UV damage.