Still working on my desktop, but I was away for the weekend and didn't get anything done (except the application of what should be the last coat). I've now got 5 coats of MinWax poly on it, the first one Semi and the rest Satin.
It *looks* pretty decent; a satin finish as would be expected. But I can still feel some little nibs. So what to do next?
Someone here suggested pumice and rottenstone. I did a little reading and I think I may try out those abrasives on something (smaller) sometime soon. But I read an article last night that suggested that the nibs I'm feeling could be smoothed out with 600 grit paper and paraffin oil. He wrote that if a Satin finish was what was desired, one could stop there, or proceed to finer abrasives.
Satin is what I'm looking for (I think), so it sounds like a good idea.
Except...
He says that poly tends to remain as separate layers; sanding through the top one leaves difficult-to-remove "witness marks". There are another couple of concepts in the article that seem fuzzy to me as well.
He doesn't mention how long to wait before starting the 600 grit work. Someone here suggested a month. The last coat went on on Saturday morning. I have plenty more work to do on the rest of the desk, so waiting shouldn't be too agonizing.
He says to fold a quarter sheet in thirds. I assume this means to use that little folded piece by hand, without a block. I guess I could do that, but it sounds like a pretty small bit to keep a grip on, and might be difficult to do an even job with as well. Could I use a bigger piece, or at least some sort of soft block?
He also says I'll need to remove the oil and dust periodically to see how I'm doing, which seems logical enough, but doesn't say how to do it. Just wipe? Use a chemical?
I'm thinking of giving the process a try on my test piece, which only has three coats of poly on it, but it's had a few weeks to cure. Are three coats too few? Any advice would be appreciated, including different methods entirely.