Replies

1. 
   Don_Stephan | Aug 21, 2000 02:45am | #1

   *
   The latest issue of Fine Woodworking has a in depth article on the various types of wood filler.

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   Clint_Davis | Oct 01, 2000 11:12am | #2

   *I have some 'FAMOWOOD' brand wood filler, and have a hard time keeping it moist. I tried Mineral Spirits and it just makes it worthless. Any ideas?

1. 
   Brent_Ward | Oct 02, 2000 05:12pm | #3

   *I used Behelen's Water Based Wood filler and have mixed feelings about it, largely because I'm still learning to use it properly. Here was my first experience with it.I was finishing mahogany. I first put on a wash coat of the water based lacquer I was using (Crystalac Water Borne Lacquer from Stewart McDonald). This stiffened up the grain and is supposed to reduce the amount of wood filler needed to fill in the grain. Then I put black filler on the mahogany, and left it there until it got sort of tacky. Then I squeegeed it off with a a credit card. I then wiped across the grain with a moist sponge and then gently, went with the grain to remove the streaks. Unfortunately, when I tried putting lacquer over it, it never got smooth -- the dips in the grain were still there.I think the flaw in my process has to do with how paranoid all the articles (including the one in Fine Woodworking mentioned above) made me. They said water-based filler was hard to get off and it needs to be removed within 5 minutes or its a sanding nightmare. I don't think it was hard enough after five minutes, so my sponging removed it all. I tested it later on, on another piece of scrap mahogany and left it for 15 minutes before squeegeeing and sponging it, and the results were much better. So my conclusion is that one needs to pay strick attention to how long the stuff is left to harden.Next time I test it, I think I'm going to put a couple wash coats on the mahogany before putting on the wood filler so it doesn't soak up so much, and I'm going to err on the side of leaving the paste on too long before the squeegee/sponge, rather than erring on the side of removing it too quickly. Who cares if I have to really sand a lot so long as I get the smooth surface I want. Sure beats living with a rippled finish as a result of not waiting long enough.

1. 
   Rob_Millard | Oct 04, 2000 02:40am | #4

   *I have not filled any walnut, because I use Mahogany almost exclusively, but I can’t see how the process is different with walnut. I have had excellent results with Constantines oil based grain fillers. They are very thick, and need to be thinned down to a consistency like thick oil based paint, use mineral spirits for slower set naphtha for a faster set. I have never applied the filler to bare wood, and I would not recommend it. I first seal the wood with a thin coat of dewaxed shellac. After this dries I scuff sand, vacuum the dust off, and slop the filler on. It is a messy process any way you go about it (I hate it, but love the results) I let it get slightly dull, then scrape it off with a squeegee, then let it dry few minutes longer, and I wipe across the grain with burlap. Practice to see how long you can let it set. Then I go with the grain very lightly with cheesecloth. I repeat this process with out the seal coat, with one day drying time in between. Then after the second coat has dried for three days, I sand very very lightly with 320 grit paper, this is why I wipe with the chesse cloth it removes the slight streaking that is left after wiping with the burlap, otherwise you’d have to sand it off, and risk cutting through. Then I use whatever topcoat I want, which for me is Shellac or Behlen Rock Hard Table Top Varnish. I doubt that water based coating would work, but I have no experience to back this up.