Sheets of sandpaper with different grits (40, 80, 150, 240, 600).

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Sandpaper, also known as glasspaper,^[1] is a heavy paper with abrasive material attached to its surface.

Sandpaper is part of the "coated abrasives" family of abrasive products. It is used to remove small amounts of material from surfaces, either to make them smoother (painting and wood finishing), to remove a layer of material (e.g. old paint), or sometimes to make the surface rougher (e.g. as a preparation to gluing).

History[link]

The first recorded instance of sandpaper was in 13th century China when crushed shells, seeds, and sand were bonded to parchment using natural gum.

Shark skin was also used as a sandpaper. The rough scales of the living fossil Coelacanth are used by the natives of Comoros as sandpaper.^[2]

Boiled and dried, the rough horsetail is used in Japan as a traditional polishing material, finer than sandpaper.

Sandpaper was originally known as glass paper, as it used particles of glass. Glass frit has sharp-edged particles and cuts well, sand grains are smoothed down and did not work well like sandpaper made from glass. Cheap counterfeit sandpaper has long been passed off as true glass paper; Stalker and Parker cautioned against it in the 17th century.^[3]

Glass paper was manufactured by John Oakey's company in London by 1833, who had developed new adhesive techniques and processes, enabling mass production. A process for making sandpaper was patented in the United States on June 14, 1834 by Isaac Fischer, Jr., of Springfield, Vermont.

In 1921, 3M invented a sandpaper with a waterproof backing, known as Wet and dry. This allowed use with water, which would serve as a lubricant to carry away particles that would otherwise clog the grit. Its first application was automotive paint refinishing.^[4]

Types[link]

320 grit silicon carbide sandpaper, with close-up view.

There are many varieties of sandpaper, with variations in the paper or backing, the material used for the grit, grit size, and the bond.

Backing[link]

In addition to paper, backing for sandpaper includes cloth (cotton, polyester, rayon), PET film, and "fibre", or rubber. Cloth backing is used for sandpaper discs and belts, while mylar is used as backing for extremely fine grits. Fibre or vulcanized fibre is a strong backing material consisting of many layers of polymer impregnated paper. The weight of the backing is usually designated by a letter. For paper backings, the weight ratings range from "A" to "F," with A designating the lightest and F the heaviest. Letter nomenclature follows a different system for cloth backings, with the weight of the backing rated J, X, Y, T, and M, from lightest to heaviest. A flexible backing allows sandpaper to follow irregular contours of a workpiece; relatively inflexible backing is optimal for regular rounded or flat surfaces. Sandpaper backings may be glued to the paper or form a separate support structure for moving sandpaper, such as used in sanding belts and discs. Stronger paper or backing increases the ease of sanding wood, so good quality sand paper is much better than low quality sandpaper. The harder the backing material, the faster the sanding, the faster the wear of the paper and the rougher the sanded surface.

Material[link]

Materials used for the abrading particles are:

• flint: no longer commonly used
• garnet: commonly used in woodworking
• emery: commonly used to abrade or polish metal
• aluminium oxide: The most common in widest variety of grits, lowest unit cost; can be used on metal (i.e. body shops) or wood
• silicon carbide: available in very coarse grits all the way through to microgrits, common in wet applications
• alumina-zirconia: (an aluminium oxide–zirconium oxide alloy), used for machine grinding applications
• Chromium(III) oxide: used in extremely fine micron grit (micrometre level) papers
• ceramic aluminum oxide: used in high pressure applications, used in both coated abrasives, as well as in bonded abrasives.

Sandpaper may be "stearated" where a dry lubricant is loaded to the abrasive. Stearated papers are useful in sanding coats of finish and paint as the stearate "soap" prevents clogging and increases the useful life of the sandpaper.

The harder the grit material, the easier the sanding of surfaces like wood. The grit material for polishing granite slab must be harder than granite.

Later abrading surfaces include long-life stainless steel sanding discs.

Bonds[link]

Different adhesives are used to bond the abrasive to the paper. Hide glue is still used, but this glue often cannot withstand the heat generated during machine sanding and is not waterproof. Waterproof or wet/dry sandpapers use a resin bond and a waterproof backing.

Sandpapers can also be open coat, where the particles are separated from each other and the sandpaper is more flexible. This helps prevent clogging of the sandpaper. The wet and dry sandpaper is best^{[citation needed]} used when wet.

Shapes[link]

Sanding sponge

Sandpaper comes in a number of different shapes and sizes:

• sheet: usually 9 by 11 inches, but other sizes may be available
• belt: usually cloth backed, comes in different sizes to fit different belt sanders.
• disk: made to fit different models of disc and random orbit sanders. May be perforated for some models of sanders. Attachment includes pressure sensitive adhesive (PSA) and "hook-and-loop" (similar to velcro).
• rolls: known as "shag rolls" by many contractors
• sponge: for tight places

Grit sizes[link]

Grit size refers to the size of the particles of abrading materials embedded in the sandpaper. Several different standards have been established for grit size. These standards establish not only the average grit size, but also the allowable variation from the average. The two most common are the United States CAMI (Coated Abrasive Manufacturers Institute, now part of the Unified Abrasives Manufacturers' Association) and the European FEPA (Federation of European Producers of Abrasives) "P" grade. The FEPA system is the same as the ISO 6344 standard. Other systems used in sandpaper include the Japanese Industrial Standards Committee (JIS), the micron grade (generally used for very fine grits). The "ought" system ({0, 00, 000, ...} aka {1/0, 2/0, 3/0, ...}) was used in the past in the US. Cheaper sandpapers sometimes use nomenclature such as "Coarse", "Medium" and "Fine", but it is unclear to what standards these names refer.

Grit size table[link]

The following table, compiled from the references at the bottom, compares the CAMI and "P" designations with the average grit size in micrometres (µm).

See also[link]

• Belt sander
• Dremel
• Emery (mineral)
• Grinding machine
• Particle size (grain size)
• Polishing
• Sander
• Sanding block
• Emery cloth
• Crocus cloth
• Grind

References[link]

Further reading[link]

• Michael Dresdner (1992). The Woodfinishing Book. Taunton Press. ISBN 1-56158-037-6

External links[link]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Sandpaper

• Federation of European Producers of Abrasives
• sizes.com on sandpaper

M. Shadows
M. Shadows in 2011
Background information
Birth name	Matthew Charles Sanders
Also known as	M. Shadows, Shadows
Born	(1981-07-31) July 31, 1981 (age 30)
Origin	Huntington Beach, California
Genres	Hard rock, hardcore punk, metalcore, heavy metal
Occupations	Musician, Vocalist
Instruments	Vocals, piano, keyboards, guitar, bass guitar
Years active	1999–present
Labels	Warner Bros., Good Life Recordings, Hopeless Records
Associated acts	Avenged Sevenfold, Good Charlotte, Steel Panther, Cowboy Troy, Death by Stereo, Bleeding Through, Dream Theater, Slash, Hell Or Highwater

Matthew Charles Sanders (born July 31, 1981), better known by his stage name M. Shadows, is the lead vocalist, songwriter, and founding member for the American rock band Avenged Sevenfold. Shadows possesses the voice type of a high baritone, and is well known for his gritty singing style as well as occasional screaming.

Early life and musical beginnings[link]

Shadows began singing at an early age, but his interest in rock music grew as he became older and began to play the guitar.^[1] Shadows links this early musical experience with the piano as a major factor in developing his skills with the guitar and his voice.^[1] He attended Huntington Beach High School, where he played for a brief stint in a punk band named "Successful Failure".^[1] Following this, Shadows formed Avenged Sevenfold in 1999 along with high school friends Zacky Vengeance, Jimmy "The Rev" Sullivan, and Johnny Christ .^[1] Soon after, Sullivan's friend Synyster Gates joined Avenged Sevenfold as the lead guitarist.

In the DVD "All Excess," Shadows claims that everyone in the band had been assigned to come up with a list of names, but that only he had followed through. The name Avenged Sevenfold, a reference to the Book of Genesis, was chosen over Lips of Deceit, another Biblical reference.^[2]

Stage name[link]

Shadows, like the other members of Avenged Sevenfold, uses a stage name. In an interview, Shadows says that he chose "M. Shadows" as his stage name because he thought of himself as "the darker character in the group,".^[3] The M is in place of his first name, Matthew, which he did not want to be in his stage name because of the way it sounded.^[3] He also added that he and the band took stage names because many other successful musicians that they were influenced by had them (e.g. Slash of Guns N' Roses and Munky of Korn).^[3]

Vocal style[link]

Shadows' vocal style has evolved significantly over the years. On the band's first full-length record, Sounding the Seventh Trumpet, he features a harsh, metalcore-style scream, with limited instances of clean vocals.^[4] The release of Waking the Fallen in 2003 showed his progression towards more melodic vocal lines, but his voice still demonstrated a strong metalcore influence. The most important change, however, came with the release of the bands major label debut, City of Evil, in 2005. The album featured no screaming and much more defined vocal melodies,^[5] with an increased emphasis on vocal hooks. This style has remained prevalent on every record the band has released since that time, with the exception of the song "God Hates Us" on their album Nightmare, and newer released song "Not Ready To Die", which both return to the metalcore sound of earlier releases.

Rumors began to spread that Shadows had lost his ability to scream due to throat surgery he had needed after Warped Tour 2003.^[6] However, this is not true. Producer Andrew Murdock put down these rumors by saying "When I met the band after Sounding the Seventh Trumpet...Matt handed me the CD, and he said to me, 'This record's screaming. The record we want to make...is going to be half-screaming and half-singing. I don't want to scream anymore...the record after that is going to be all singing.'"^[7] Later on the album Nightmare M. Shadows screams on the track "God Hates Us" by returning back to harsh, metalcore-style scream.

Influences[link]

Shadows draws his singing and performing style heavily from classic metal bands. He cited Guns N' Roses as his biggest influence in an interview, commenting that "I love that band. You can compare us all you want — they're a huge reason why I'm even in a band and even write music."^[8] Shadows also commented that he was heavily influenced by Metallica, Megadeth, Slayer, Ozzy Osbourne, and Pantera.^[8] Megadeth and Metallica, Shadows says, are the reason why Avenged Sevenfold try to infuse a classic metal sound into their music. "Metalheads are so bitter, they're like, 'Why doesn't a super-extreme band have all the success that Avenged Sevenfold is having?'," said Shadows in an interview, "It's 'cause we have that traditional classic sound that bands like Metallica and Megadeth paved the way for a while ago. That sound crosses over and the extreme metal doesn't," he added. He also stated later in that interview that guitar expert Scott Taylor taught him how to play guitar.^[8]

Musical career[link]

Avenged Sevenfold[link]

Shadows was one of the founding members of Avenged Sevenfold, along with The Rev and Zacky Vengeance in 1999. In 2001, the band released their first studio album, Sounding The Seventh Trumpet.^[9] The self-produced album, which was in the metalcore style, gained mixed to positive reviews from critics.^[10] Following the success of their first album, the band released a second album, Waking the Fallen, in 2003.^[11] Later in 2003, Shadows and Avenged Sevenfold played in the Vans Warped Tour.^[12]

Other projects[link]

Shadows has made guest appearances on numerous albums by various artists. He is featured on the Steel Panther album Feel the Steel and sings a verse of "Turn Out the Lights." He also produced The Confession's 2007 album, Requiem, which, according to an interview, was one of the first steps which led to Avenged Sevenfold self-producing their 2007 self-titled album.

Discography[link]

With Avenged Sevenfold[link]

Featured guest appearances[link]

2002:
"Savior, Saint, Salvation" (with Synyster Gates) | Bleeding Through - Portrait of the Goddess
2005:
"Entombed We Collide" | Death By Stereo - Death for Life
"This Is Not The End" | Death By Stereo - Death for Life
2007:
"The River" (with Synyster Gates) | Good Charlotte - Good Morning Revival
"The End Is Near" | The Confession - Requiem
"Buffalo Stampede" | Cowboy Troy - Black in the Saddle
"Like Always" | Kisses for Kings - Demo
2009:
"Turn Out the Lights" | Steel Panther - Feel the Steel
2010:
"Nothing To Say" | Slash - Slash
"Check the Level (remix)" (with Slash) | The Dirty Heads - Any Port in a Storm (Special Edition)
2011:
"Go Alone" | Hell or Highwater - Begin Again

References[link]

Martina Topley-Bird
Performing at Fri-Son, Fribourg, Switzerland (photo 6 November 2008)
Background information
Birth name	Martina Gillian Topley
Born	(1975-05-07) 7 May 1975 (age 37) St. Pancras, London, England
Genres	Pop, trip hop
Instruments	Vocals, keyboards, guitar, ukulele
Years active	1993–present
Labels	Independiente Honest Jon's
Associated acts	Tricky Massive Attack
Website	Official website

Performing at Rough Trade East, Brick Lane, London
(photo July 2010)

Martina Topley-Bird (born 7 May 1975, St. Pancras, London) is an English vocalist and songwriter who first gained fame as the featured female vocalist on trip hop pioneer Tricky's debut album, Maxinquaye (a printing error credited her as "Martine"). She worked with him on his follow-up albums and, in 2003, released her own solo album, Quixotic.

Biography[link]

The daughter of a well known advertising executive, Drayton Bird,Topley-Bird was educated at Clifton College where she sang in the choir.^[1] It was while she was a teenager at the school that she met trip hop pioneer Tricky, with whom she worked on his first album Maxinquaye.^[2] She continued her collaboration with Tricky on his follow-up albums Nearly God, Pre-Millennium Tension and Angels with Dirty Faces.

Following a falling-out of their professional and personal relationship in 1998, she began pursuing a solo career. It was not until 2003 that she released her debut album, Quixotic (Independiente Records), mainly produced by Topley-Bird and production team AMP9 (Alex McGowan, Steve Crittall, Nick Bird) at Space Eko Recording Studios London. Upon its release, it received positive reviews from critics and was a finalist for the 2003 Mercury Music Prize. The song "Sandpaper Kisses" from the album was featured in the video game, Fahrenheit (released in North America as Indigo Prophecy).

The album finally saw a limited release in the United States in July 2004 when the Palm Pictures label released a re-designed and re-sequenced version with a new title (Anything), a trimmed-down tracklisting and all-new cover art.

The following year she appeared on the Starbucks compilation album, Sweetheart 2005: Love Songs, which features contemporary musicians covering classic love songs. She sang "I Only Have Eyes for You", a song originally by composer Harry Warren and lyricist Al Dubin.

Her second solo album, The Blue God, was released in May 2008. The track "Carnies" was released as the first single on 3 March 2008^[3] and reached No.20 on the UK Indie Charts.^[4] "Poison" was released as the second single^[5] and reached No.9 on the Indie Charts.^[4]

In 2010, Topley-Bird appeared on the album Heligoland by Massive Attack, lending her voice on the tracks "Psyche" and "Babel". She also toured with Massive Attack as their support act and providing guest vocals. Topley-Bird's third album, Some Place Simple, was released in July 2010. It contained stripped-down versions of songs from her first two releases, along with four new songs.

Topley-Bird performed Maxinquaye live at the Sundance Festival, London, in April 2012.^[6]

Discography[link]

Albums[link]

• Quixotic (2003, Independiente) - UK #70,^[7] FR #58
• Anything (2004, Palm Pictures)
• The Blue God (2008, Independiente) - UK #88, FR #149
• Some Place Simple (2010, Honest Jon's) - SWI #60

Singles[link]

• 2003 "Need One"
• 2003 "Anything"
• 2003 "I Still Feel"
• 2004 "Soul Food"
• 2008 "Carnies"
• 2008 "Poison"
• 2008 "Baby Blue"

Collaborations[link]

• Topley-Bird is credited as a vocalist on "Conversing Among Misfits", a song from 1998 debut (self-titled) album by Earthlings?. Her performance is hard to hear in the final mix however.
• In 1999, she contributed vocals to "Dirty Drowning Man" and "Coattails of a Dead Man" on Primus's album Antipop.
• In 2000, Topley-Bird appeared on David Holmes's album Bow Down to the Exit Sign.
• In 2004, Topley-Bird appeared on "Into the Sun", a track from Diplo's album Florida.
• In 2004, Topley-Bird contributed vocals to "Spoiled", on the Blues Explosion's album Damage.
• In 2005, she made a guest appearance (alongside Roots Manuva) on the Gorillaz track "All Alone", on the album Demon Days. She also was featured in the unreleased Gorillaz song, "Snakes and Ladders", also with Roots Manuva.
• In 2005/2006,^[which?] Topley-Bird sang vocals for "Can't Be Serious" from A Mountain of One's debut 12" EP, later included on the group's 2007 Collected Works compilation.
• In 2006, Topley-Bird appeared on the song "Devil Take My Soul" on the Son of Dave record 02.
• Topley-Bird appears on the songs "Why Should I?" and "Deflect" on Leila's 2008 album, Blood, Looms and Blooms. "Deflect" was also the lead track on the pre-album EP Deflect.
• She contributes vocals on the Saturnalia album by The Gutter Twins ("The Body") (2008)
• In 2008, on her single "Poison", she collaborates again with Roots Manuva and Gorillaz on the B-side track "Soldier Boy".
• She makes an appearance on rapper Common's album Universal Mind Control, on a song entitled "Everywhere".
• In 2009, she sang and co-wrote "Psyche" and "Babel" by Massive Attack, for their 2010 album Heligoland
• In 2012, Topley-Bird appeared on "Open" and "Secret", two tracks from Clark's Iradelphic album.

Song appearances[link]

• "Need One" appears on the CSI: Miami episode "Blood Brothers" in 2003.
• "Need One" was used in a television advertisement for Toyota's Corolla Verso in 2004.
• "Sandpaper Kisses" appears on the soundtrack of the 2005 videogame Fahrenheit.
• In 2007, her song "Da Da Da Da" was used in the film Virgin Territory.
• "Need One" was featured in an advertisement for H&M on Swedish and Dutch television during autumn of 2008.
• "Ilya" was used in "Lap Dance", an episode from The L Word's second season.
• "Soul Food" was used in 2009 in the film Obsessed.
• "Sandpaper Kisses" was sampled by The Weeknd in The Birds Part 2, which is included in his second mixtape "Thursday"

References[link]

External links[link]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Martina Topley-Bird

• Official website
• Moon Palace (German fansite)
• "Girl interrupted" from The Observer Magazine, 25 May 2003
• Space Eko Recording Studio on Myspace
• Anything @ Palm Pictures