Varnishing and Clear Coat Process -

Rod conducted the informational part of the evening by instructing the group on finishing techniques using varnishes. In typical “Roderian fashion”, our president again exposed more secrets of the woodworking/wood finishing industry. He told us how much money we wasted on purchasing miracle finishes from exclusive retailers of our craft when all you needed to do was just go to Home Depot and purchase Minwax products. Yes, that’s right, Home Depot--the home of the “your baby is ugly” imposter/cheap knock-off birch plywood that we all have in our shops. Remember, this imposter wood needs to be removed prior to a surprise inspection by our president.

The following is a summary of Rod’s varnishing process. If I didn’t get it quite right, Rod will again review the process at the October meeting.

• Before you stain or otherwise finish your project, you can check for planer marks and sanding inconsistencies by wiping the wood surfaces with mineral spirits or naptha, which is even faster. If you don’t have any woodworking projects ready to go, you can always use the mineral spirits and a bag of nachos for an enlightened evening. Note: Do not attempt to try these acts at home without the advice and direction from a professional.

• Types of polyurethane varnishes

• Satin finish – Provides the weakest finish
• Semi-gloss finish - Provides a stronger finish than satin but less than gloss
• Gloss finish – Provides the hardest finish
• Wipe-on polyurethane finish – varnish plus mineral spirits. You can experiment on your own and reformulate your own “secret finish” by mixing odorless mineral spirits plus semi-gloss polyurethane in any combination that you desire.
• To get a really reflective finish, use Butcher’s Wax (orange can) over the final coat of polyurethane.

• In comparing polyurethane finishes with oil finishes, it will take 10 coats of oil to equal one coat of polyurethane. The downside to oil is that it takes a long time (days) for the oil to dry between coats. It will tack up if the second coat of oil is applied over the first one that is not yet dry. The polyurethane finishes dry very quickly.

• For larger projects, use a short nape roller to apply the finish or a paint brush suitable for polyurethane finishes or a foam applicator pad. 
• A good tip was presented for the re-use of the foam applicator pads. Place the used pad in a plastic bag and pop it into your freezer, then thaw and re-use when needed. 

• Before I review Rod’s process for finishing, I need to make a statement about polyurethane and some of life’s time honored truisms. 
• It took hundreds of years for the human race to believe that the world was indeed round and not flat. The discovery of new lands was inhibited by the reality of the day that you would sail off the flat “horizon” into the abyss and that would be the end of it. It was hard for me to believe that Rod, at our meeting, completely expanded the reality of all of the members and, for others like myself, dispelled forever a time-honored belief: HE SHOOK THE CAN OF POLYURETHANE.  Not a simple accidental shake, this was a truly “I’m going to shake your friggin head off shake”. It was deliberate, man, and it was over before I could have taken him to the ground and tried to wrest the can from his death grip.
• MY GOD MAN!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! What about the BUBBLES!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! His technique is, like, right out of a James Bond movie….the martini shaken, not stirred……and in the end……NO BUBBLES on the wood. WOW!!!!!!! What a guy, truly the Indiana Jones of polyurethane finishes.
• You can clearly see why you cannot miss a single action-packed meeting. There is really “cutting edge stuff” going on each month. It can literally shake your beliefs and your world.
• The finishing process:
• If using an oil finish, sand your work using a six-inch random orbital sander loaded with 80 grit, then 120, then Norton sandpaper 150 grit, using a sanding block and sanding with the grain and then 220 grit. Sanding to 220 will get the wood fibers down so you don’t have to use a large quantity of oil to get the layers of finish built up.
• If using the polyurethane finish, sand the wood with 80 grit, then 120 grit and you are ready to apply the first coat. Note: After the second coat of polyurethane, you are no longer on the surface of the wood but will be adding additional layers to the plastic layer. 
• After applying the first coat of poly, you do not have to sand before applying the second coat.
• After the second coat of poly, sand the finish with automotive grade 320 grit sandpaper, using a sanding block and sanding with the grain.
• Apply a third coat of poly, then sand with 1,000 grit automotive sandpaper. Use a little water with the sandpaper to provide for lubrication and to carry particles away from the surface of the work.
• For the final coat of poly, use wipe-on polyurethane which is made up of one-half clear gloss polyurethane and one-half clear satin polyurethane finish.
• For the final finish you can use Butcher’s Wax, (orange can) for a nice reflective finish.
• Other tips for finishing:
• Dust management:
• The faster the finish dries, the less dust you can get on it.

• Apply the finish to the individual pieces of your project before gluing. If during the gluing process you should drip glue onto your project, the glue can be more easily wiped off the finished piece than it could the unfinished piece.

• After sanding the work, vacuum it before applying the next coats of finish.

• After applying the finish, hang the piece in a vertical position. This will not allow as much dust to rain down on it.

• If you are working with a larger piece where hanging would not be feasible, cover it with a piece of cardboard supported by blocks. This will allow any dust to fall on the cardboard and not your work.

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