I recently made a couple pieces from Sapele and loved the wood until I got to the finishing.
Even though I sealed it prior to filling the poors, and left it for over a week to dry, I have tried using shellac, and lacquer and both wont go on right.
I get tiny bubbles coming up from the poors. When I first spray it, theres few few, but as the piece sits you literally can see this pin hole sized bubbles appear…..
I have never experienced anything like this.
I also tried Fish Eye blow out, which didn’t help either.
Has anyone else experienced this and if so what did you do to resolve the problem?
Replies
Have your tried a product called flash off, its by mohawk. It help the flow out of laquer.
What are you cleaning it with?
What method specifically did you use to fill the pores, (brand names might be helpful) and what did you use to seal the wood before filling? What was the first top coat that you sprayed over the filler. Was it a full wet coat, or light dry misting?
What made you think fisheye? The problem with using fisheye eliminator is that you are stuck with it. (Most forms are basically silicone compounds that contaminates finish, so that it will stick on an already contaminated surface.) It may be necessary, but I'd prefer to keep it a last resort.
I've had this happen with sapele, and it's not easy to overcome. The best way is to spray a base coat that is dry almost as soon as it hits the wood. Sacrifice the self-leveling in order to get a closed coat over those pores, sand it down hard, repeat if necessary, then go on.
About 2 years ago our shop had a very large commission of sapele furniture and doors (thousands of sq. ft) that needed a high gloss mirror-like finish. This was a situation where even 1 pinhole like you mention would spoil an entire surface. The only way we eventually solved the problem was by using a clear polyester undercoat followed by aggressive sanding to get a blemish-free surface for the lacquer. I don't recommend this unless you've got professional facilities.
David Ring
http://www.touchwood.co.il/?lang=e&id=1
This forum post is now archived. Commenting has been disabled