When I learned how to spray it was from a guy who felt anything other than nitrocellulose lacquer deserved a adjective. as in G.D. Acrylic. or Fxxxing ….

    Anyway he really knew his stuff.. Back then there were many, many, lacquer thinners available from what ever paint supplier you selected.   They varied from ones for cool conditions to hot plus all sorts of humidity conditions and combinations.. In addition you could select varieties from other paint suppliers to get thinners that offered a more oily finish, more dry  finish and other conditions..

  He taught me why each was needed.. He painted in a western suburb of San Diego, and taught me to watch for the Bloom in the flash point in the finish.  Use that to determine which one or combination of thinners to use..

 I painted at the Navy Base on North Island in San Diego and he taught me how to adjust for the different humidity, temp,  and air quality. Believe it or not you adjusted for the oil in the air from the jet exhausts.

    The last time I bought lacquer thinners I was surprised  at how few choices there were.  Plus it seemed different brands no longer were that different.    I can  no longer see the bloom in the flash point.. Maybe it’s there but my old eyes can’t see it, maybe it’s no longer a feature of modern paints, who knows.

 I just had to go by how things finished and I didn’t like that.  Anyway my point is there are many permutations and variety of conditions that affect finishing..I’ve read many of the books currently available and probably gained a little something from each.  None of them seemed to completely allow for all the permutations and conditions that exists..

      I’ve had serious debates with others about shellac.. often the differences we debate so vigorously about are relatively trivial. 1/2 pound of shellac or a modest percentage of alcohol..

 One person seemed to feel that the 2% of ingredients used to denature alcohol put it in the hazardous material category. Another felt that his experience required  absolute adherence to his methods..

  The truth is they are all right!

      For them..

  You see I can’t possibly experience everything they’ve experienced and the conditions they work under..

  Frankly I offered something that seemed different to them and they fought strongly against me..

   I won!   My intent was to bring awareness to the joy and wonder of shellac..

  Based on the response I’ve seen from several, shellac is given more serious consideration.. That’s a good thing.. 

 Do what you want,,  my method, their method, your own method. Any combination  that works for you..

 Shellac is better that most wipe on products and the results can be spectacular. plus it is extremely easy to use and fix goofs.