Disaster? Breadbord ends finish question

[Philip Procter]

This fall I built a trestle table for our dinning room. I needed to get it into the house before winter (which prevents any finishing, due to the cold). So, I put one coat of urethane varnish on it (please, no comments about urethane, it's a dining table in a house full of kids, it needs a urethane!), assembled the breadboard ends and brought it in.

Then I had a horrible thought!

When summer comes, I have to add more coats of urethane. How can I do that while preventing the finish from flowing into the gap and freezing up the breadboards. All I can think of is to mask off the wood and force some furniture wax into the slot first. I assume that would keep the slot free to move.

Is there a better way to rescue this one?

Philip

[WebsterSteve]

Don't worry about it. A little finish isn't going to keep the wood from moving.

[Charles Krug]

A thin film of poly resin is just going to break when the wood moves. It's not a structural material by any stretch of the imagination.

I'm doing a coffee table for SWMBO's Christmas present (apron is assembled . . .) I've put several coats of shellac on, but I'm going to cap off the tabletop with Poly after everything thoroughly hardened.

For the wearing qualities it's tough to beat in that application. If you don't over apply, it looks fine.