Disappearing Shellac in Figured Maple
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I’m using one & a half pound cut on tiger stripe maple, the streaks just keep soaking in all the shellac, hows the best way to minimize this, should I go with thicker or thinner cuts on first few coats? I’ve put on 3 “heavyish” coats now (using a brush) and can tell will need prob 2/3 more before being able to rub to a nice finish. Any help ?
Replies
I do a lot of finishing with shellac. Just keep adding coats. You will get there. Be patient. I had a similar situation where I was finishing some Baltic Birch plywood with shellac and it sucked in a lot. It got there eventually.
The "stripes" are softer than the surrounding area which is shy is is absorbing more finish. Sanding to a higher grit 220 or higher can burnish these areas to reduce the absorption rate. Of course, you are beyond the sanding stage. I would apply another 1 or 2 coats of undiluted shellac, sanding each coat back. You're not looking for a heavy build of coats here.
Thin coats take a while, as 210490 says above. It's not unusual to do 7 coats or more of thin shellac.
On the plus side, you can do 7 coats in a day. It dries very fast.
A 2 lb cut is as thin as you need. Sometimes repeated applications of very thin shellac acts as a stripper, attacking the surface build. Either put on progressively thicker shellac or pad on a 2lb cut with a drier pad which dries before it has a chance to attack the film.