Wanted to show you guys what a 'flat' paint job actually means. Sanding paint 'flat' is where all high spots and low spots in the paint or panel have been sanded even. The images below are during sanding, the high spots appear dull and uniform, whereas the low spots are untouched by the dander and hence are still glossy.
This is the process used to remove the visible grain in the wood, and given I've had to sand through in places, I'll be spraying another coat or two over these panels and repeating the sand process, but with 1200g and upwards. I've used a 400g through this process.
This one side has taken me about an hour to do, so yep, it's a great deal of work, and if restorers are going to this length to restore a cabinet, you can understand why they charge whatever they do.
