Help regarding Lacquer Finishes

[SawDust]

I'm trying to get some info for a friend.

He has made a wood dash board for an old spitfire (car). Look like he used 1/2" veneer ply. He has stained it, then top coat with Lacquer.

I don't know anything about lacquer. It looks like a decent job although it more than likely came out of a spray can. Looks thin too me.

Is this sufficient as a top coat. Are there any environmental factors to be concerned with since this is more or less an exterior type of application. Should he lacquer both sides of the ply to seal it. What else should he do.?

Any suggestions would be appreciated. He's put a lot of effort into this project, and would like to catch any mistakes now, rather than later.

Pat

[Mike Marlow]

That won't matter - spray can or spray gun - they both shoot lacquer.

Very sufficient top coat. No environmental concerns as long as you don't eat the dashboard. If you do, slivers become a topmost concern. Lacquer is both an interior and an exterior finish. Look inside an older car sometime - at the amount of painted surface in there. As far as lacquering both sides, it's always adviseable to finish all sides of a piece of wood that is going to be subjected to weather and the effects of weather. It helps to keep the wood more consistent (stable) in its reaction to that weather.

I think I would have gone with a solid wood piece and an oil finish, but to each his own. Ply will be as stable as it gets, and as long as it isn't exposed to lots of moisture - rain - then it will probably hold up fine.

[Andy Dingley]

Neither do I - it's too broad a term "Lacquer" could be absolutely anything.

Also you didn't say where he lives. Spitfires are convertibles - now I use french polish on dashboards for the Vitesse or Herald convertible, but then I live in the UK where there's no sun. If he's in California though, you need good UV resistance.

"Weather" resistance isn't needed for car dashboards, because you keep it off with garages, tonneau covers or tarpaulins. UV resistance is useful though. In general, I'd expect to refinish every few years, which is why I prefer shellac - I can repolish the dash and door cappings on the Herald in an afternoon.

Last dashboard I did was for a boat and this was going to be stored uncovered. I used an acid-cure formaldehyde floor finish for this - so far it's holding up well (two winters).

For a Spitfire you should also keep the ignition key on its own, maybe with a soft keyfob. Don't keep it on a large heavy ring with other keys. The ignition switch is in the dashboard, and heavy keys will scratch the finish. His may be a late US model, where they had a column mounted switch - ours had them moved to the gearbox anyway.

[SawDust]

Gee, I spent an entire summer in Glasgow and there was plenty of sun. Long time ago. Keep wanting to go back for a visit.

We generally have the same climate in Canada. Summers too short and winters too long, rain and freezing rain in between.

I guess I'll have to do some searches and learn a bit about lacquer and pass it along. From what I have read, he's basically going to have to stick with it, and recoat as necesary. That seems to be the easiest and safest route to take.

There is compatibility issues between lacquer and some other top coats, they won't bond to one another.

He's not a wood worker. But he did a darn good job with making the dash. Nice holes with crisp rebates for the instruments to sit into. He did a good job with the stain and lacquer finish, it looks good.

I passed along the ignition info as well. I'm sure it's a US version.

Pat

[Andy Dingley]