I am applying a new coat(s) of MinWax wipe on satin poly. I roughed up the old original coat and am sanding between coats. There are fish eyes in the finish from years and years of waxing, cleaning, etc.. Is there anything I can do to cover these blemishes short of stripping the table down to the wood. My brother in law told me that doing this might not solve the problem, there could be wax or silicone in the wood and the fish eyes will still be there.
I would try sanding to bare wood, putting down a coat of shellac and then your varnish of choice excluding the MinWax brand.
apply DEWAXED shellac to the bare wood and don't sand with sterated sandpaper.
Dave
Fish eye can sometimes be bridged - and sometimes not. It's worth trying. If it's silicone, you can have your work cut out for you. That stuff does not know how to quit. Scruff the surface with a 3M pad and try layering on another coat. If you are brushing it on, do not work the area with the brush - layer it on in one direction as smoothly as you can and don't touch it again. It might not hurt to wipe the surface down with mineral spirits after you scruff it. If it's silicone the mineral spirits won't touch the stuff, but if it's some other contaminate you might have more luck. If you get immediate fish eye again when you try to apply a bridging coat, then you're going to have to sand or scruff more and perhaps try a stronger solvent like lacquer thinner - very carefully.
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