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Post by maxwellsmart007 on Oct 31, 2009 11:00:44 GMT -6
I've been doing some walnut bottle stoppers, and I can't get a good finish on the walnut.
I've tried every trick i can - burnishing, using skew only, using gouge only, sanding to 320, sanding to 120 only...
I always get this blotchy finish, where it looks very dull, instead of shiny...like the finish is soaking in and then not getting glossy...any ideas?
I've tried lacquer, shellac, acrylic poly, etc...
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Post by TDHofstetter on Oct 31, 2009 11:14:24 GMT -6
You might give it a try with sanding sealer to fill the pores, especially in end grain. If you're getting spots like that anywhere other than end grain, you might have torn fibers from a bowl gouge that's not quite as sharp as it could be. They're the very devil to sand out, but it can be done.
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Post by boodrow on Oct 31, 2009 13:19:39 GMT -6
Max I have turned several walnut bottle stoppers. The only thing ive even had close to making it shine is mylands hi friction polish. Hope this helps
boodrow
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sawduster
Moderator 
The Motley Crew
Posts: 1,831
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Post by sawduster on Oct 31, 2009 16:35:07 GMT -6
You could use a sanding sealer like Tim said, or maybe a coat of dewaxed shellac, then over coat that with poly or lacquer. Another option is to burn in shellac. Put a decent coat of shellac onto the piece then use a piece of cheesecloth or similar with just a dab of shellac on it. Crank the lathe up to high speed and use the cheesecloth with shellac on it to burn in the shellac. You don't want to keep the cheesecloth wet with shellac, but let it dry and get a sort of crust on it. The friction between the work and the applicator will melt the shellac into the wood, not penetrating much past the surface leaving a nice coat on it. I used to use that on pens, but shellac just does not have the staying power that CA or poly etc has. A couple sweaty hands on it and the gloss goes away. Might be good for bottle stoppers, though unless you manage to spill some adult beverage onto the finish.  |
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Post by maxwellsmart007 on Oct 31, 2009 23:04:19 GMT -6
Good tip, Jerry, thanks! I'll try that out tomorrow!
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Doug B
WoW Member
[b]Rescued Firewood[/b]
Posts: 1,938
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Post by Doug B on Nov 3, 2009 2:24:18 GMT -6
Like Jerry, I use de-waxed Shellac on problematic woods (for some reason Walnut is one of those woods even though I never thought of it as all that oily) but then I follow that with a CA or Lacquer finish. Just plain Lacquer usually works for me also, but not when the humidity is too high - then I get the clouding.
In my experience, Shellac or any friction polish will usually look great for a while, then quickly lose their shine.
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Post by TDHofstetter on Nov 3, 2009 7:56:24 GMT -6
I'd noticed that. I used Myland's right at first on my pens - looks FANTASTIC just after applying it, but it dulls up frustratingly fast when the pen's handled. Lacquer is my pen finish of choice; it stands up to even MY kind of abuse.
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Joe Lyddon
WoW Member
Banned.
Sam Maloof & I Dec. 2, 2005
Posts: 2,507
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Post by Joe Lyddon on Nov 3, 2009 13:01:42 GMT -6
Lacquer is what is used on most Brass musical instruments... and it seems, the finish lasts forever!
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tomd
WoW Member
Posts: 36
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Post by tomd on Nov 14, 2009 0:51:24 GMT -6
I use a bit of walnut and the open pores of walnut drink in most finishes leaving a dull or spotted finish. So my method is to use one or two coats of clear shellac sanding sealer, sand lightly when dry then two or more coats of lacquer. The shellac fills the pores and gives a smooth surface for the lacquer.
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