I am working on a dresser top which is a veneered panel edge banded with maple and cherry. The vener is Kewazinga which has a large quilted, curly figure pattern. I want to get a deep finish that makes the figure pop along with a high gloss surface. On my first attempt, I used 100% pure tung oil which provided beautiful results on the Kewazinga. The directions said 24 hours was sufficient for the tung oil to dry. I followed the tung oil with a coat of Zinzer dewaxed shellac, followed by several coats of minwax wipe on poly. The finish turned out streaky, and blotchy. I’m guessing I didn’t give enough dry time for the tung oil.
Can anyone offer any suggestions to achieve the same look that the tung oil gave with a faster drying time? Or, if I use tung oil, how long should I expect for a drying time before applying a sealer or topcoat? Is a 50/50 oil/MS blend going to offer the same results that pure oil will and what results might I expect if I were to do three coats of tung oil(hand rubbed) followed by a wipe on poly finish.
Thanks in advance.
Replies
Try mixing the tung oil with equal parts varnish and mineral spirits or turpentine. Then after you wipe the surface with an even coat of oil top coat immediately with shellac. When the shellac gets tacky, after about 10 minutes or so depending on how warm it is, take some 000 or 0000 steel wool and wipe off all the shellac. Make sure to get all of it. Then rub down with a soft cloth. Done.
I read about this technique in Tage Frids book on furnituremaking and finishing. Although he suggests using danish oil I used my own mix and the results were a nice satin oil finish in about 15 minutes.
Of course try this on scrap before you commit to doing it on your piece.
J.P.
Tung oil is quite slow to cure, especially if drying conditions are not ideal. A week or more could be needed. Linseed oil would be a bit faster to cure, but it should still take several days to a week for a workable full cure. A good, conservative test is to smell the surface up close. If you still smell the oil you should wait longer.
Personally, I have only seen marginal extra benefits from using pure oil as a first coat compared to using a oil based wiping varnish. You can use a brushed on varnish, with only the first coat diluted to provide the pop and to be easier to sand. Behlen Rockhard would be a good choice. You could dilute the Rockhard to be a wiping varnish for ease in application, but when you do that it becomes harder to rub out the finish to a high gloss since each coat is so thin that a full schedule of rubbng risks cutting through the top coat to reveal "witness" lines that look like topographic map contours. In any event, after applying 2-3 coats of brushed on varnish or 6 coats of wiped on varnish, you should wait as long as possible to begin rubbing out the finish--a month is OK.
I would not use a polyurethane varnish in any event. It is less clear and rubs out less well than the harder traditional resin varnishes such as the Rockhard. And, unless you plan to walk on the dresser top with your shoes on, the traditional resin varnish will be plenty durable.
Another alternative, is to use linseed oil to pop the figure, and then apply shellac to provide a very high gloss top coat. Shellac is considerably easier to rub out, being harder than varnish, and can be rubbed earlier--after about a week to be conservative. You have to decide whether shellac is durable enough for the particular use. In a dresser the primary risk would be chemical--spills of cologne or nail polish remover coult be disasters with shellac, albeit fairly easy to repair.
I also suggest an oil/varnish mix -- and give it time to dry. You might also consider lightly sanding with 400 grit while the oil is still wet--bubinga has open pores that fill nicely with an oil/sawdust slurry. Just be sure to wipe it dry after 30 minutes or so.
Let it dry well before going to shellac; if you do, you'll get a very nice finish.
What do you think of using General Finish Seal A Cell followed by Arm R Seal. The Seal A Cell sounds like a good blend of oils and driers that can offer a quick dry time with similar results to the tung oil.
I've never used (or heard of) these products, so can offer no advice other than (1) look at the ingredients to see what you are using, and (2) try it on a scrap piece first.Recommending the use of "Hide Signatures" option under "My Preferences" since 2005
I have a small test sample of quilted maple using Seal-a-Cell and Arm-R-Seal and it looks great. This is the second project using this finish process and I am very satisfied with (1) how it pops the grain and figure, (2) ease and simplicity of application, (3) abrasion resistance; it appears their claim to be equal to polyurethane is justified. And David Marks uses it. http://www.djmarks.com/stories/faq/What_is_the_mix_ratio_for_the_Linseed_Oil_Tung_Oil_and_Urethane_46687.asp
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