Wash coat and grain filling - best sequence

[RogerS]

Wash coat first followed by grain filler and stain....

or...

grain fill first followed by wash coat and stain.

Seems to be two schools of thought out there.

 

[Sgian Dubh]

There aren't really two schools. It depends what you want to achieve.

If you grain fill before applying a sealing coat of polish you will both fill the grain and to some extent colour the wood surrounding the open pores .

If you apply a coat of polish (perhaps over dye or stain both of which which will changes the wood's colour) then grain fill, the grain filler will lodge in the open pores and have little effect on the background colour.

In the example below you are looking at American white oak that was treated with ferrous sulphate giving the blue/grey background followed by a barrier coat of polish. Next, the grain was partially filled using water based paint. Finally, the whole job was sealed with polish. If the barrier coat of polish had been omitted the green paint would have coloured the wood either side of the open mores much more. Granted, this is an extreme example in that the grain filling is meant to stand out and reveal the open pores, whereas in most cases the grain filling is done with a filler slightly darker than the main body of colour so that it tends to blend into the background and be less in your face. Slainte.

 

[RogerS]

Thanks Richard.

 

[rafezetter]

Sgian Dubh: By polish you mean shellac or something else?

 

[marcros]

rafezetter, the full article is on Richard's website and is well worth a read.

 

[Sgian Dubh]

Sgian Dubh: By polish you mean shellac or something else?

Basically almost all clear film forming finishes applied to wooden furniture items (or similar) are "polish" as far as trade terminology is concerned. This includes shellac, post-cat lacquer, pre-cat lacquer, epoxy finishes, water based finishes, even oil based varnish, et cetera. You might indicate to me, for example, that you're going to polish a piece, to which I might respond with something like, "What are you going to polish it with?" And you might answer, "Oh, I'm going to apply oil based varnish over a dye or stain." In other words "polish" is a non-specific term until you define which actual polish you intend to use. Shellac prepared ready to apply to wood is just liquid in a container until you use it to polish a project. The same applies to all the other finishes. Slainte.