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I was wondering if any fellow Dakka members have used this sandpaper when building kits? As far as I can make out it has a kind of polishing effect on rough areas that have been filled/worked on, leaving supposedly little or no scratches on the surface of models. If you have used it, can you give some opinions on it and what grade I should be looking at?

I'm sure they work exactly as advertised (will wait for someone with actual experience to confirm), but I don't see much draw, even then. $5 can get you a pack of flexible plastic film-backed fine sandpaper (Testors has small, cheap packs) and a manicurist's foam-backed emery board (tri- or quad-grit).

Between those, I can get a near-mirror finish on both plastic and metal. For models, that degree of smoothness is only really necessary for competition-level, high gloss or true metallic (e.g. Alclad) finishes or restoring clear plastic parts. Fine grits of regular sandpaper or emery cloth are cheaper and easier to come by, while providing perfectly satisfactory results (combined with a dip in Future, for the clear plastic). Seems to me that the product addresses an issue most of us, at least, don't have.

I use micromesh on scale models and warhammer alike. We use them in the scale world primarily to buff a canopy on an airplane or smoothing out primer and paint coats between layers of paint. When spending 4-500 dollars on model kits and spending hundreds of hours painting an weathering, the finish is everything. The papers I use are from Alpha Precision Abrasives Inc.. You can most likely find a kit in your local hobby store that sells aircraft, tank and train models. This kit comes with 2400 grit all the way to 12000.

When using them to buff surfaces like clear plastic, ill use all the way from 400-12000, then dip the part in Future Floor Wax. This will give you a shine similar to a brand new clear coat on a vehicle at the dealership.

When using them to smooth large primed or painted surfaces on vehicles, I use 3600 grit and lightly press and sand the entire model. Smooth surfaces not only look better when finished, it also helps apply the next layer of paint. This is of course speaking when using an airbrush. Dusty finishes are common when airbrushing.

If you're looking to smooth and not get too aggressive with high grits, you can get a very desirable finish on raw plastic with a 400-2000 grit wet sand.

As Oadie stated, Alclad is a whole other beast. I can answer your questions if you wish to use Alclad for metallics or high buff products.

Hope this helps, let me know if you have more questions.

^^What the men said.

Fine grade sand paper or boards will produce a very good finish, however it is not important unless you want to make a "museum" grade display model.

Thanks for the replies, guys! I've ordered some to see what they can do. I'll get back to you with the results.