Spraying shellac seal coats - cheaply???

You are wiping off the gel stain after it has set for a while aren't you?

If you would like to use an oil modified stain, a product such as Bonakemi's DriFast line of stains allows you can apply finish within 3 to 4 hours and it doesn't raise the grain and it doesn't show lap marks. It's EXCELLENT stuff. I just did a floor with it and yesterday I did an oak desk. It came out beautifully. Had it not been late in the day, I could have applied the finish coat already. Now I need to wait 'til tomorrow since I've been spending much of the day playing with my new toy, a Veritas smoother plane. :)

dave

David S. Day wrote:

Yes and no. I am wiping off the stain pretty quickly after I apply it - and am removing only part of it. The SYP that we are building the bed out of absorbs stains very unevenly and unpredictably. Commonly available stains like Minwax - all varieties, and Olympic are just disasters on SYP, even with ample doses of their conditioners. The Woodkote Jel'd stain is a thick jell that several articles and books say works well on pine because it sits on top of the wood rather than soak in. On our SYP it was better than anything else we found but still it came up blotchy and uneven on about every third piece of wood. I decided to combine the idea of using a shellac wash coat with the Jel'd stain to even further limit it from soaking in too much. That works well. I suppose that in a sense I am glazing as much as I am staining. At any rate, the result is a grain that just shows through the finish and doesn't give the "Zebra" effect that I am trying to get away from. Because I am leaving some of the stain on the wood, it dries to the touch overnight but doesn't really cure for 2-3 days.

Why not check your local area for a Behlen's, Mohawk or similar pro finishing products distributor and go for something that'll work better?

Barry

As I suspected. Well, that is probably most of your problem. The stuff isn't designed to dry like a glaze coat. Perhaps you may have better luck with several coats applied and wiped off rather then layers. If it isn't dry adding shellac on top of the stuff isn't going to help the situation much. I know waiting can be painful but sometimes the only alternative is to do it right. Generally it pays off in the end. That isn't to say you won't get away with it though.

I'm not sure but I may have seen spray shellac at Lowes but no guarantee. Mmmm, I do know they have spray lacquer (Deft). I wonder how that would work.

In any case, good luck. Mike

Home Depot in my area sells Zinsser's "Bulls Eye Shellac" in spray cans. I haven't used this product, but if it is like their non aerosol "Bulls Eye", it contains about 30% wax. Originally David stated his final coat would be water base poly. I would think the wax content in the shellac would cause adhesion problems for the final finish.

Also wouldn't the use of water based poly over lacquer cause blushing?

-- Jack Novak Buffalo, NY - USA (Remove "SPAM" from email address to reply)

I have been spraying shellac with a critter for several years. Works fine.

A good thought but I doubt it as long as we're only talking about a sealer coat

I apply shellac with a folded rag or heavy paper shop towel. Wipe with the grain. Much easier than using a brush.

You might want to try this on a test piece.

I'm not big on using the ROS for the final sanding, as it always seems to leave swirls, even in the finer grits, but if it's working well enough for you, that's fine.

Try putting a coat of the poly on the freshly sanded wood and let it dry.

Get some TransTint dye stain concentrate from Jeff Jewitt (I've seen them at Woodcraft, also).

Put the Transtint into your poly and apply this as a color coat/toner. It's difficult to get an even toner coat with a brush but not impossible and you will still have much more control over the blotching this way than you will with the gel stain on SYP.

If your first coat of toner isn't dark enough (it's best to build up the color gradually) apply a second coat.

You will have to seal in the color coats with clear poly, or the inevitable nicks will show white.

(Christmas is coming. Ask Santa for that HVLP.)

Regards, Tom Thomas J. Watson-Cabinetmaker Gulph Mills, Pennsylvania

Thanks, tonight is Carolina vs Clemson. I will go to Home Depot at half time!

Dave

You're using the "wrong" shellac. If you're going to apply a coat of ???? on top of a coat of shellac, you want the shellac to be de-waxed. You can mix your own from flakes and decant it, or you can purchase Zinsser's "Seal Coat" brand. This is sold as a sanding sealer and is actually a blonde de-waxed shellac in a can. I just used it on a pine cabinet yesterday and it worked great (as usual)

Good luck Rob

Thanks, Rob.

I was brain dead on that one. I have flakes from shellac.net for my garnet shellac but have been using Zinsser's Clear for my wash coats and sealer coats. Fortunately, so far, I haven't had any dissapointing results.

But you seem to be correct - I see no mention of it being "de-waxed" anywhere on the label.

I am almost out of it so I will switch forthwith.

Another poster pointed out that Zinsser sells an aerosol can of clear shellac that might meet my needs for that crucial first wash coat. I went to my Home Depot and that is all they carry. I stained some pieces this morning and applied a sprayed on wash coat this afternoon and so far I have applied two more brushed on coats! I had been having to stain and then wait

My thanks to all who offered their help.

Thanks again.