In recent email from Fine Woodworking, there is a link to a video “Frame and Panel Door with Mike Pekovich” (it might just on part of a series of videos covering some project or other.
In the video, around 7:00, Mike applies some finish to the inside of the newly assemble door to determine if he “wants to seal the piece with shellac first”. He says that sealing with shellac can obscure so of the figure. He give a good explanation of the difference between figure and blotch (with figure, a dark patch with change to light as you tilt the piece, but blotch with stay dark).
Questions:
What is he using to test the piece?
What does he typically finish with?
I assume its not shellac, but he uses shellac to seal the piece first if…if what? Sap bleed-through? What “bad” is testing for that he does not see in the test that tells him its OK to fore-go a shellac sealing?
Will shellac obscure figure such as fiddle-back, or is he chiefly referring only to figure that presents as patches, such as quilting in quilted maple?
I’m guessing the answers to these questions, “Mike’s preferences on finishes” are somewhere in other articles or videos; if you know any, could you point me to them?
Thanks,
Ethan
Replies
Shellac will bring out the best of figured woods.
https://www.finewoodworking.com/2020/04/14/ep-19-simple-shellac-and-wax-finish
I think shellac really makes the figure pop.
But, all shellac is not the same. The least refined shellac is extremely dark. Almost like a stain in varnish type of deal. There are many degrees of refinement, ending up with a very clear shellac.
Is that what Mike Pekovich is referring to? I don't know that video, so I can't say.
He's using Waterlox to finish the inside if the panel, then checking for blotch. If it looks blotchy, he will seal the outside outside face of the panel with shellac before finishing with Waterlox. If no blotch, he will go straight to the Waterlox which he believes will enhance the grain more.
Thanks. Exactly what I wanted to know.
My interpretation of what he is saying is that by applying the sealer (shellac) first, you may get less penetration of the oil portion of the Waterlox oil/varnish finish on the entire panel and the grain and color may not stand out as much as it otherwise would. If you have blotchy areas he feels the need to use a sealer to even out the Waterlox oil penetration into the wood. Blotchy areas usually absorb more and stand out. I could be wrong, but that's what I took from his comment on this in the video on building the Shaker chimney cupboard out of cherry.
Interestingly, Christian Becksvoort in one of his videos said there is no such thing as blotch on cherry and those areas are really figure that was not properly sanded. I think it was one of the videos on building the Shaker candle stand table.
Becksvoort sands his cherry to an unusually high grit I believe 400 before finishing and feels that is the secret. I've tried it with Maple without success.
" ... an unusually high grit ... "? In my experience with building electric guitars, bases, etc, as well as with acoustics, 400 grit is considered "Usual", not out of the ordinary. We'll even go to 600 grit of wet/dry paper dry sanding the bare wood. However, when wet sanding the finish we always use lemon oil, not water on the lacquer between coats with the same grits. Yes it is labor intensive and time consuming, but the results are well worth it.
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