Durable finish for exterior carved wood sign – paint and bare?
user-7771666
| Posted in Finishing on
Hello – looking to finish a carved wood sign and have never finished both bare and painted wood on the same piece before. Sign will be exterior, with carved letters painted and the rest of the sign bare wood, using redwood. Looking for a very durable finish.
Plan is to use Total Boat wood sealer, then their Gleam spar varnish, oil based paint on incised lettering only (over the varnish), then another layer of varnish. Does that make sense? Overkill?
thanks for the help
Replies
It sounds to me like a good plan. But, for better information, I suggest that you go to a boating forum with your question (although there might be some boaters here). I've seen pictures of boats with both clear and paint finishes.
I'd reach out to the folks at Epifanes. They make finishes for yachts and offer excellent tech support.
I recently refinished a mahogany front door with TotalBoat Gleam and can offer a few insights that may be of use to you:
- You’ll get much better results if you are able to lay the sign horizontally to eliminate sags and runs — Gleam has a relatively low viscosity.
- Use a good quality natural bristle brush. Foam brushes tend to introduce air bubbles.
- Plan on numerous coats — I applied 5 coats (3 gloss plus 2 satin) on a door that already had varnish on it. I haven’t used TB Wood Sealer and can’t say how well it works, but the UV protection of the varnish comes from the build-up of multiple coats.
- The varnish will impart a golden amber tone to the painted surfaces, especially as it settles into deeper parts of the incised lettering. I would apply the paint as the very last coat and not varnish over it.
Good luck and let us know how it turns out.
Jamestown Distributors supplies the marine industry with a broad line of finishing products and is a good source of technical information. A quick call to their counter staff might make quick work in finding a solution. I‘ve been pleased with their support.
Excellent! Thanks all. I appreciate the help.