Secret Recipe

[Don]

Hey, Guys. Everybody in wood has a favorite finish that they use. What's yours?

Are you a wipe it down with Danish oil guy? Or are you a sanding sealer and lacquer finisher. You might be a hardcore epoxy finish on my boat kind of guy.

What finishes have you used and what kind of luck did you have?

All the best, Don

Welcome to WoodworkingBuzz.com, the newest Woodworking forum and community. Use this area of the discussion forum to post about wood finishing.

[Dagster]

I'll give you two of my favorite techniques.

The quick route, easy and great results when I'm not in the mood for hand rubbing:

• 6 - 8 coats of sprayed lacquer rubbed slightly to a satin sheen with rotten stone finish polish.

When I'm feeling the need to be at one with the wood... er, not what you are thinking :)

• 4 coats of 50 50 blend boiled linseed oil and naptha rubbed in followed by 20 or so coats of 50 50 blend poly and naptha. Rubbed on with 0000 steel wool which ends in a nice satin sheen that feels like buttah! This one is fool proof as it isn't possible to get any runs or drips, it just takes dedication.

[Don]

You're a sick puppy, no one puts that much effort into a finish.

[Dagster]

Well, I only do the second one on special pieces which are few and far between. I prefer the sprayed lacquer because it is do darn easy.

[Jerry]

Ok, promise not to laugh. I like to use wiping varnish made with 50% urethane and 50% naptha as a spot refinish for hardwood floors that are scratched but not down to bare wood. I break the sheen from the surface and use the blue shop towels for the applicator. The layers go on so thin that it blends with the existing finish very well. Works great by doorways and under chairs.

[Don]

We're not laughing. If it gets the job done, lasts a long time, satisfies the customer and makes a couple of bucks it has merit.

dawjr

[Dagster]

I use the same recipe for touching up cabinetry, right down to the blue shop towel :D. Works great.

[thekl0wn]

Eggshell black. :eek:

I, personally, don't do too much with the stained, or grained... Most of my stuff either ends up flat/eggshell black, or covered in automotive paint. Now dad on the other hand uses a lot of sand & sealer and Spar Varnish on his projects.

[mmwood_1]

Depends on the piece. If it's kitchen or bathroom cabinets, I use a satin polyurethane, sprayed on. It's the best finish I've seen for its ability to hold up to hard use and water. On furniture pieces, I sometimes use either watco, or tung oil, straight from the can. Occasionally, I use a 4 part finish recipe which I got from a Seattle furniture shop. It's 4 equal parts of boiled linseed oil, tung oil, satin spar varnish, and lacquer thinner. Rub it on, wipe off the excess, then let it dry. Next day, do it again. I prefer to wet sand it with 400 or 600 grit paper. After it's dry, it can stand alone, or take a coat of paste wax. It gives a rich, satin lustre, and as Sam Maloof once said, it invites you to caress it.

[woodman43]

Depends on the piece. If it's kitchen or bathroom cabinets, I use a satin polyurethane, sprayed on. It's the best finish I've seen for its ability to hold up to hard use and water. On furniture pieces, I sometimes use either watco, or tung oil, straight from the can. Occasionally, I use a 4 part finish recipe which I got from a Seattle furniture shop. It's 4 equal parts of boiled linseed oil, tung oil, satin spar varnish, and lacquer thinner. Rub it on, wipe off the excess, then let it dry. Next day, do it again. I prefer to wet sand it with 400 or 600 grit paper. After it's dry, it can stand alone, or take a coat of paste wax. It gives a rich, satin lustre, and as Sam Maloof once said, it invites you to caress it.


If I may ask, what do you use to spray on your polyurethane?

[mmwood_1]

If I may ask, what do you use to spray on your polyurethane?

I use an hvlp sprayer at 35-40 psi. I thin the poly about 10 % with thinnner. I use a satin polyurethane. It works very well. Of course, you still have the 24 hour drying time between coats, and sanding between coats, so it's not fast, as is lacquer. But it produces a beautiful finish, and if you're careful, you don't get drips, runs, or sags. And it holds up to water WAY BETTER than lacquer.

[woodman43]

Cool, I will start looking for a hvlp sparayer. May still have to sand and wait, but it's gotta beat the heck out brushing it on.
I usually use Minwax stains rubbed in with t-shirt. Minwax polys brushed on.
I just purchased a can of Fornsby's tung oil to try out. Have never used it before.
Finishing is not one of my favorite things to do but I am learning.

[Cocobolove]

First off I have to say, I HATE POLYURETHANE!!!!! Maybe I'm just too much of a perfectionist, but I am still working on that stupid douglas fir door. Soon I will be stripping it all the way down to bare wood again, and painting the dang thing brown.

On my knife handles I like to rub in about 10 coats of tung oil, then a good coat of car wax. You might laugh, but it works pretty dang good. Especially since I'm new to woodworking, but have been a motorhead my whole life. I've got that stuff everywhere.

[toddj99]

For the mahogany that I've used as a base for a few cheval mirrors that I've made, I'll finish it with watco dark walnut danish oil. I sand it down to 240, end grain to 320. Flood it with the oil, let it soak, then flood it again and wet sand it in with 320 wet/dry sp. wipe it off, let it sit overnight. do it again with 500 grit wet/dry sp. wipe it off as the oil seeps out. It really brings out the grain and the oil/sawdust combo fills the pores and gives it a smooth sheen.