FTR, I only suggested steel wool because I thought you were already using it in your build process, but reading back through, I must have confused it with someone else's thread.

I haven't used steel wool on a guitar (or any woodworking) in over 15 years, and normally try to dissuade anyone from using it for the exact reasons Simon mentioned. The little steel fibres are near impossible to keep out of anything, be it pickups, control cavities or wet finish.

My preferred sanding method (apart from standard paper) are the synthetic sanding pads like these:
https://www.thesandpaperman.com.au/b...-sanding-pads/

The Norton brand actually call them "synthetic steel wool" as do many users.

I use Micro-Mesh strictly for wet sanding, but apparently they can be used dry as well.