Anyone ever had problems removing residual shellac dust after light sanding (up to 600 grit) of a sprayed-on shellac finish? I waited 4 weeks to let the shellac cure, and as Jeff Jewitt’s book recommends, used a cloth dampened with mineral spirits to remove the residue; thats the way i’ve always done it, with good results. However, on this project, after the wiping-off i get a whitish, filmy, haze as though the mineral spirits just moved the dust around and then dried. This is a very dark mahogany finish so the haze really stands out. Ive wiped the piece down twice and only some of the film disappears. Do i continue to wipe with MS? I’m afraid that too much MS may damage the finish. Is there a better method and/or chemical to remove this residue? Thank, John
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Replies
John,
I also get the haze, but another coat of shellac will remove/cover it. If you're not planing an additional coat, then continuing to wipe it down with MS won't hurt a thing; I use MS as a lubricant when rubbing out a shellac finish and it has never harmed the finish. On my shellac finishes, I sand to 400 grit and then switch to 4/0 steel wool charged with mineral oil and 4F pumice. This leaves behind a very nice luster. I clean the oil off with warm soapy water ( which doesn't harm the finish either).
Rob Millard
http://www.americanfederalperiod.com
Rob: Thanks for the info. I was thinking of wiping on a really light cut of shellac. John
I've gotten that whitish haze when refinishing old furniture, with no sanding involved. Always speculated it was just something in the MS that was doing it.
Forestgirl: So how did you address/solve the problem? John
I'm not sure I ever totally figured it out. This was around 13 years ago, and my memory is very foggy about it. I think I tried buying a new can of mineral spirits, that might have helped. I'm noticing just the other day that some MS are touted as being more "refined" than others, the oderless kind, for instance. Wonder if that would make a difference??forestgirl -- you can take the girl out of the forest, but you can't take the forest out of the girl ;-)
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