We have this super-solid maple wood (I think) dining table that was in need of some tlc in the form of a strip and refinish so I turned (once again) to our resident woodworking master 
As you can see from the first photo the tabletop looked like hell-on-a-stick but it is a good quality table big enough for the six of us so I saw no reason to get rid of it and buy a new one. Instead, I contacted Silverd on discord with some photos and the question. I do actually do some research before asking so I at least seem like I have a plan.
His response was kinda like this, and I'm paraphrasing here, hand sanding will get you nothing but a sore arm and then how are you going to hold the tweezers to pleasure yourself.
:|
Then he told me about this product called peel away that you slather on then...peel away when it drys. It worked like a charm. I didn't get a picture of the full table as it was outside in the sun when I finished but here is a section.
With that done I did a little sanding to smooth it out and then it was on to the finishing.
The product he recommended was not available in my local store so I had to order it online and wait over a week.
It finally showed up and I was ready to go.
He told me the wood would likely be extremely dry so I should coat it twice before sanding with a 320 grit sanding sponge. Here it is halfway through the first coat.
Then it went like this; 2 coats, sand, then 2 more coats and done.
So once again I just want to say
THANKS @SILVERD510
Not only did your advice save me a ton of useless work, the table looks great!!! Even my perfectionist 16 year old daughter said it looked good, so that's a win!