I'm planning on putting three coats of blonde shellac on a Huntboard table. How many coats are needed for the inside areas of the table (cabinet and drawers) areas? Is one coat enough for the insides and bottom of the table top?
Otoe
It would actually depend on how thick you apply the material. And since everyone is a little different in their application style and methods (thinned, unthinned, sprayed, brushed, padded, etc.) I would just apply until it was well sealed. Drawers are incredibly hard to get cleaned out for refinishing after they have been used for a while.
If you are happy with shellac, good. It is a really underrated finish. But I would caution you that on wear surfaces such as the inside of drawers you may not find it to be satisfactory because if its low abrasion resistance.
Personally, I would seal with the shellac as planned, but on the inside of the drawers I would top coat with a couple of coats of a good lacquer.
Robert
Nailshooter is right, but also consider the film you build will depend also on the "cut" of the shellac. Reallizing the number of coats determines the amount of tint you get, anything after a good film is a matter of choice.
If I were going to use shellac on this piece I would finish with enough shellac to build a nice film, inside and out. Then "lightly" buff with a good 0000 steel wool and apply a couple of coats of good wax (Briwax is my wax of choice). The wax will reduce the wear by reducing the friction and is easily repairable, as is the shellac under it.
Deb
I was planning to use only furniture wax on the insides and external sides of the drawers; only shellacing the front of the drawers. I'm also planning to use the furniture wax on the rails and bottom edges of the drawers.
I'm using a 2lb cut of shellac with a brush.
I'm interested in the number of coats needed for the insides of the tables carcass. Does't the bottom of the top and table insides need the same amount of shellac as the table top and external sides/legs?
Appreciate the insight,
Otoe
Does the insides of the table need the buffing and waxing too? The table has two drawers in the center and cabinet storage on each side of the drawers.
Otoe
Three is quickest. Three well-cut coats will do for the inside and will take less time overall (assuming moderately warm weather) than trying to get an even finish in just one and thus having to use a heavier coat.
Tight well-sanded timber might get away with two, but let it dry well afterwards then look and feel to make sure you're happy with it.
Finishes are quick to apply, slow to apply _carefully_. For shellac a thinner cut is so much quicker to work with that you save time overall.
My preference is 2 coats of 1-lb cut inside an out for the drawers. That's enough for a good seal with almost no "build". Wax applied with fine steel wool after that will leave you with a very silky feel.
I agree with the others, thinned coats go in much fewer flaws
I prefer a small scrap of cotton cloth; IMO, brushes are for paint.
It should be the same all around.... as many coats as it takes to get the build that looks right to you.
Practice (test) on scrap that has been subjected to the same snading schedule as the real thing.
Personally, I love to use shellac as a sealer but not as a top coat. The fact that it dries so fast and sands well is great for a sealer. But, since it dries to fast I find it diffcult to avoid any lap marks that show up in a final coat. (yeah , I hear you.... leave a wet edge....for me that's apparently easier said than done.) I find a wipable varnish like Waterlox to be much easier/forgiving/self-leveling.
-Steve
** Posted from
One thing we have not addressed, and it just dawned on me that you were asking it, is "Don't you need the same number of coats on both sides of the wood?" With shellac, no. It is not like a varnish of an oil that soaks into the wood and then can shrink over time and cause you problems. It does soak into the wood, but it forms a film. In fact, it really does not matter how many coats you put on, you will only have one layer of film. It will be thicker or thinner, depending on the number of coats, but it will be only one layer. The reason is that each coat disolves the one under it, just a bit, and the two fuse into one layer.
As for wear, you are going to wear away any finish you put on the wear surfaces of your drawers. Sealing them with shellac and then using a good wax, will, in the long run, serve as well as any other and is easily renewable with a coat of fresh wax.
Deb
Dr. Deb wrote: ...
...
While the last is true, the previous isn't or is at least misleading.
Applying more shellac makes a thicker film--how could it not? The material doesn't just disappear and the volume applied is still larger whether the two coats "fuse" or one lays on top of the other.
The problem of treating both sides of a piece the same isn't owing to the finish that "can shrink over time" but that the finish slows (doesn't stop, merely slows) the rate of moisture exchange to/from the piece. Hence, more finish on one side leads to preferential moisture exchange on the other. This differential in moisture is the primary cause of the problems when one side is finished and another isn't.
--
I started out using 2 lb cut with a brush but quickly found that it was a PITA and 1/2 lb cut was my friend.
Quick to apply with minimum regard to technique.
Quick recoat cycle which makes life simple.
Used 3-4 coats to seal EVERY surface inside on a chest of drawers.
No need to sand interior, it was for sealing purposes
6-8 coats on exterior with 24 hours between coats.Quick wipe with a ScotchBrite between exterior coats, nothing fussy.
Allowed to cure 30 days followed by 400 grit, 0000 wool and hand rubbed wax job.
Worked for me, but I'm not all that fussy.
Lew
A lot of useful info and you finally nailed my question.
Thank you,
Otoe
Steve, I had the same problem with shellac until I started padding on very thin coats. The problem went away. I don't even sand between coats, just the final coat after a week or two tobe sure it's really dry.
Shellac dries (not really, but you know what I mean) so fast I can put on the first 2-4 coats, depending on the wood species, without any wait in between. Eight coats in a day is easy and I usually only put on 5 or 6.
And shellac slows moisture exchange more than any other common finish - epoxy excepted.
I've made some small boxes and put several coates of orange shellac on them. When the shellac didn't harden as quickly as I wanted, I put the boxes outside in the bright sun on a table for a few hours. The sun hardened up the shellac really well.
Charley
"Charley" wrote
What is this sun you speak of?
Reported to be a big orange ball in the sky during part of the day.
Here in L/A we haven't seen it in a week because of the "Marine Layer", a massive cloud bank the sun simply can not burn thru in one day.
Lew
"Lew Hodgett" wrote
On shellac, I just use the old cabinetmaker's trick of brown paper (cut up grocery bags) between coats, and as a final buff after a few weeks of curing (and before waxing, if I wax at all).
... epitome of "less fussy". :)
"Swingman" wrote
Kinda like your out of a can Cajun recipes?
Anything that leaves more time for another margarita ...
Mikey likes it.
Lew
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