Finishing my Iroko TV Cabinet

[cutting42]

Hi All

I have been making a TV cabinet from reclaimed Iroko (school science tables), post here and am approaching the later stages of the build and need some advice on finishing.

I would prefer little or no darkening of the wood and a satin finish. The indoor authorities have stipulated it needs to be tough, resiliant and up to the odd coffee cup being placed on it. Routine waxing/maint is not wanted, so a finish I can put on and forget would be ideal. I have no spraying equipment (at least for this size of item) so any finish must be wipe or brush on.

All suggestions welcome.

 

[Derek Willis.]

This seems to be my stock answer these days, if you want to avoid marking with cups glasses etc. you really must go for Rustins Plastic Coating, as it seems that it cannot be ruined, I use it on so many projects now and am completely satisfied with it, read up on it on Rustins website.
Derek.

 

[wizer]

I would use a Waterbased varnish if you want it as clear as possible. Rustin's Plastic Coating looks, well plastic. I'm not keen on it. I've been playing with General Finished Water based finished recently. There's a knack to applying it (foam brush, don't shake the can or load brush too much) but once you get it, I think it's really rather nice.

Other than that, Lacquer.

 

[Derek Willis.]

Water based finishes are all very fine, but, have you seen how they mark?
derek.

 

[cutting42]

Thanks for the comments so far. The plastic coating sounds interesting and I will have a read about it.

Wizer, when you say laquer, what exactly do you mean?

 

[Mikey R]

I would use a Waterbased varnish if you want it as clear as possible. Rustin's Plastic Coating looks, well plastic. I'm not keen on it. I've been playing with General Finished Water based finished recently. There's a knack to applying it (foam brush, don't shake the can or load brush too much) but once you get it, I think it's really rather nice.

Other than that, Lacquer.

WiZeR, in your experiments, have you noticed any difference between the oil based and water based PU varnishes from General Finishes? Do either of them amber slightly, and which is the tougher?

Thanks!
Mike

 

[wizer]

I have a few test boards using this stuff. I've put it on some Ash, Iroko and Oak. All of the boards, including the Ash, darkened much the same as a wipe of white spirit. I've jus gone and checked them again and, actually, the Iroko has a very very light blue tinge to it at certain angles. So it may not be good for dark woods. I've not put them into sunlight yet. My main reason for the testing was for technique and to gauge what level of sheen I wanted. I'll probably go for the semi-gloss as the satin was a little flat. I want to do another Ash board (now I'm used to the application technique) and leave it in a sunny room for the rest of summer and see how the UV protection is on it.

In short it offers very little amber\warmth. That's desirable to me.

 

[wizer]

oh and Derek, I haven't notice marking yet, but I haven't really beaten them up. Might have to test that too.

 

[yetloh]

The Fine Woodworking test showed the GF finish to be one of the best for marking resistance but it still has the same problem as all the other WB finishes whish is a lack of true clarity, so it obscures lustre. I doubt that it will yellow - most don't.

Jim

 

[Sgian Dubh]

One way to help warm up and reduce the tendency to
blueness that many water based finishes suffer from is to apply a coat of clear/super blonde/bleached dewaxed shellac as a first coat. This 'warms' up the wood and water based finishes will adhere to this base.

The key to success here is in using dewaxed shellac for water based finishes are very sensitive to impurities beneath them, therefore regular waxy shellac usually leads to failure. Slainte.

 

[woodbloke]

I use a matt acrylic now and have had no problems with water marks, though if you want something that's better try the old polyurethane varnish but not the gloss variety better to go for the satin or better still, matt. Thin the first couple of coats down 50/50 with some white spirit and cut back with worn 320g paper 'twixt coats. The last coat can go on neat. It can be burnished afterwards to a smooth finish with an appropriate cream...or use 'T' Cut
The only draw back with the stuff is the time between coats :evil:
The other alternative is matt Osmo Poly-X which is dead easy to put on (just a few very thin coats, followed by buffing with soft duster) I use that now for all my pieces and if it's waxed afterwards the finish comes up to a soft, satin lustre - Rob

 

[Mikey R]

Going back to the General Finished products:

http://www.generalfinishes.co.uk/index. ... ore&CID=38

Our water based High Performance Top Coat and oil based Arm-R-Seal are excellent floor finishes. High Performance is fast drying and preserves the wood colour so ideal for light woods or where stain applied. Arm-R-Seal imparts an attractive golden / honey tone to the wood. You can optionally pre-treat either finish with Seal-A-Cell to give a warmer colour.

It seems you can either have transparent finish with a little amber, or clear, maybe a blue tint, but with less lustre. So theres tradeoffs either way.

Thanks to WiZeR and Jim!