Unpopular opinion: sanding between paint coats is a waste of time

I spent like 10 years sanding every single coat of paint on my trim work because every tutorial online swears you have to. Last spring I was painting my kitchen cabinets and got lazy after the primer coat. I just threw on the second coat without sanding and the finish came out perfectly smooth. My buddy who does this for a living told me modern paint bonds fine without sanding as long as the surface is clean. Now I only sand if there's actual drips or dust stuck in the paint. Has anyone else ditched sanding and still gotten good results?

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3 Comments

elliotadams4mo ago

Read an article from a paint chemist a while back that said modern latex paints have enough adhesion to grip the surface without roughing it up. They tested it on clean primed drywall and the bond was just as strong with or without sanding between coats. If your surface is already smooth and dust-free, skipping the sanding step saves time without hurting the final look.

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hayden4664mo ago

Gotta agree with this. It's part of that whole thing where old rules don't apply anymore. Same with cars and oil changes - people still do it every 3000 miles but modern synthetic oil lasts way longer. My buddy runs a detail shop and says the same about modern clear coats. Don't need to wax as often. We just keep doing what our dads did without checking if it's still needed. Saves time and money when you stop.

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wrenh654mo ago

Yeah but sanding also knocks down dust nibs lol

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