Leave it to me to re-invent my own wheels. I got all the holes drilled in the top plate of the new linestage and began taking out all the nicks and dings in the oh-so-soft Aluminium.The last stage I did was with 600 wet/dry and it plugged up the paper fairly fast dry. So to the sink, little bit of dish soap and warm water. Paper cut for something like 4x as long and finish was better. Going to do a last run with 800 or 1200 grit. It ought to be pretty smooth and shiny.
You'd think I'd remember more from my youth spend prepping cars for paint in a body shop...maybe the solvent got through the mask more than I thought.
regards,
Douglas