For those who poly finish your pieces....

[sachbvn]

What are your steps?

Do you use just regular Minwax wipe on poly?

Applied on the lathe? While running? Mine will only go down to about 600 rpm, is that too fast? Mine is also a PITA to turn by hand and try to apply finish.

How long between coats?

How many coats?

What is your SOP for sanding between coats or for the final coat.

hmmm..... I think that's it....for now!


Thanks guys!
Zac

[fredbelknap]

Zac I like wipe on poly. Biggest drawback in my mind is the time it consumes. I get tired of fooling around with it (impatient). I like to put on 5 or 6 coats but sometimes quit on 3 or 4. I use like 320 sandpaper after every other coat very lightly, just enough to rough up the surface a little bit. Sometimes I use 0000 steel wool but it leaves little thingies that need to be cleaned off. The last step is to use the Beal buffing on it. It gives a nice finish. On larger things I like lacquer, don't take as long.

[boodrow]

Zac I love the poly finish , but like Fred had to add , tis a long dryin process unless tis warm with low humidity outside. Ive had it take a couple days to not be tacky anymore between coats. They say its one of the most durable finishes there is. And ive never put it on with the lathe runnin. I dont think that would be a good idea. On bottle stoppers i leave it on the mandrel but turn it by hand when I apply the poly. I generally go for 3 coats and use 0000 steel wool tween ever coat. But as Fred stated he likes to use more coats and that will make even shine more like a new babies arse.
Boodrow

[boodrow]

Zac one other thing I forgot , u gotta wait till the next day to apply the next coat. If u have plenty of mandrels u can spin off and on the lathe that isnt a prob. Just dont get impatient.
Boodrow

[sachbvn]

I will try the poly finish - if it goes well and gives me good results, I may invest in a couple more mandrel, really at 10 bucks it isn't a bad investment. How many routers do some guys own???

Thanks guys!

Zac

[maverick31]

zac boodrow got me going on the wipe on poly and i love it. the only down side has been addressed. I usually do the wipe on poly inside my house(luckily my wife has been cool about it so far) I usually will do 2-3 wipe on coats then wet sand with 1200 then do 2-3 more. If it looks like not a lot of trash between 2-3 coats then I will use 0000 steel wool. but most of the time there is crap in finish so I just wet sand. after about 5-6 coats you are basically just fixing what you mess up trying to get it perfect. I have noticed it doesn't work well for oily woods either. for those I use the laquer dip method.

[Doug B]

The time factor is the killer for using Poly for me. I only tried it once on a pen. And I put it on while still on the lathe but turning it by hand. My lathe slowest speed is 600 RPM just like yours and I think that might be too fast for poly.

I used wipe on gloss poly and the first 2 coats went on fine, but the third coat did not cure very quickly and after a couple days I quit checking it. Several weeks later I saw the blanks still hanging where I left them and they were rock hard cured. Made a real nice pen, but I just don't have the patience to wait that long.

I much prefer the Lacquer dipping, which I have done several times now both on pens and on bottle stoppers. I use it for the woods that I have problems with when I use CA on them like Cocobolo, Ebony, Black and White Ebony, Bubinga, etc.

[Mark]

Zac,

I'm a wipe-on poly user. I apply BLO first to get some contrast to the grain, and to do a sort of fill coat. Then sometimes shellac, if I want a really "deep" finish, usually about three coats. Then three coats of poly for durability. With all of that, it's obvious I must have developed the patience of Job, but I've gotten really good results from it. I'll do a dressing with 320 or 400 grit after each couple coats, depending on how it's lookin' when it's cured. Generally at least a day or two to cure the poly at moderate "garage" temps in the Pac NW.

I've also recently, at least on bottle stoppers, started applying the poly while the lathe spins at lowest speed - 580 I think. I keep the applicator wet, and apply light stokes. I then let the lathe turn for awhile to distribute the coating evenly across the surface, and expel any micro-bubbles. The trick is finding just the right amount to apply, so that you don't end-up with a thick ridge of finish on every bead on your piece due to centrifical force. Wet applicator, light touch, and continuous movement across the piece seem to work for me.

Thanks,
Mark

[jb34]

I would rather use wipe on poly when I can get away with it. Makes a nice even coat, easy to apply, and dries quickly. But you have to expect multiple coats. Regular poly is messy and you have to really watch how you spread and keep going back to clean up the drips as it dries. Dpends how glossy and thick you want on which I use. I have very limited experience with pens and just haven't felt the need yet to get real into them. But I have found the wipe on stuff works great for them. I never really thought regular can poly was much of an option for them.

[sdb777]

I PM'd Les in Red Deer, and he was kind enough to email me a copy of his .pdf file. Wish it could be uploaded to the forum as a tutorial...but, oh well.

I will not say that I've seen everyone's work, but his finish is the best I've seen so far using wipe-on Poly.




Scott (I feel awful today) B