Anyone here brush on paint for face frame cabinets/raised panels?

[Kevin Perez]

Asking for a friend. Just kidding...

I am building a small built-in bookcase in our house (3' wide by 9' tall) that will have one exposed side that will have raised panels, solid wood shelves, and likely a face frame front that my wife wants to be painted some shade of white. I don't want a crappy looking finish that shows brush marks, and it seems like most everyone on this forum sprays finishes. However, I am reluctant to sink money into a good spray setup since I am just a hobby woodworker and very few pieces of furniture that I make will be painted. Have people here had good/"professional" looking results with a high quality brush and paint? If so, can you share your knowledge with me about equipment, materials, and technique? Thanks!

Kevin

[John Echenrode]

I've had success with Benjamin Moore waterborne Satin Impervo on doors and trim and cabinet in my bathroom. A good quality brush and proper technique are a must for a smooth finish. A foam roller works well on flat surfaces


I've also used the alkyd version of this paint on our kitchen cabinets held up for over 5 years with no chipping or flaking.

[Mel Fulks]

Just want to point out that paint used to be brushed on all jobs and brush marks were a sign of good paint that would hold up well. The brush marks were called "ropyness" and looked great in candlelight. There are still high priced brushed jobs that require brush marks. Don't wait for a "professional kitchen expert" to re-invent this.

[Bill Adamsen]

Kevin:

I used to roll and brush all my millwork including cabinet doors. Often still do.

The Ben Moore Satin Impervo (in Alkyd) was my "goto" finish for thirty years (have never tried the waterborne). It was a fantastic finish ... fairly easy to apply, get a repeatable finish, touch up, and very hard. More recently I have branched out to some of the other Ben Moore paints such as Advance and even Aura (both typically in matte ... sometimes semi-gloss). Sometimes colors are only available in one flavor ... for instance on a recent job the designer specified CSP-85 "Tweed Coat" which was only available in Aura. I used a smooth foam roller and high quality blended brush and it went on and tipped off beautifully. I did add an acrylic extender.

My understanding is that Advance is really a water dispersed alkyd paint with the same properties expected with most alkyds. I have done kitchen cabinet faces, doors, drawers and other millwork with the Advance and it works beautifully. I don't think any of these finishes are KCMA and they do seem less durable than some of the higher tech spray finishes.

[Adam Herman]

We did our whole kitchen with SW proclassic by roller and brush using the roll and tip method. Looks great and is holding up well. It does take a while to dry to full hardness though. don't wash it off for a month or so.

[Jim Becker]

Yes, for things like that which are already installed, I generally brush. For white, I use SW ProClassic Acrylic and for colors I've been using BM Advance. Both finishes brush out nicely for me.

[Jim Morgan]

Has anyone used both BM Advance and BM Aura Grand Entrance? I'm wondering how they compare. I used Grand Entrance on an exterior door a couple of years ago, and it has been outstanding.

Also, with these waterborne alkyds, what's the best extender/retarded to use? Is there an alternative to Floetrol?

[Wayne Lomman]

A good quality waterborne enamel and a good long bristle brush will do the job. The brush marks will not show. Cheers

[Robert Engel]

Well, I think you just about have to spray to get a mark free finish.

That being said, I have painted many with quite acceptable results using oil based paint and high quality brushes. I pretty much always go with oil based paints.

For me, the trick is 2 coats of primer/2 finish coats. Sand lightly between coats with 220. Use a light to check for defects and fill with bondo. Big issue is edges & avoiding those irritating drips and runs.

I've found thinning the paint just a bit helps immensely with a nice flow out, especially true with water based which tend to be quite thick.

I like the BIN or SW oil based interior primer. I REALLY (did I say really) like the Sherwin Williams Pro Classic Satin- no thinning necessary. BIN shellac base primer is great if you have any dark grain or small knots to cover.

Hope this helps.

[Mike Null]

I have long been an advocate of buying the best brushes I could afford. I have a couple that are over twenty years old and almost in new condition. I spend a lot of time cleaning and restoring them after use but the results look professional.

As I look at the brushes at Sherwin Williams and Home Depot I don't see any of the quality I used to buy.

[Doug Hepler]

Kevin

I brush on finishes because getting, storing and maintaining spray equipment (including a booth, respirator, etc) has never seemed to be worth the expense and trouble. I believe that this is true for many serious woodworkers who produce professional (or better) quality work. In my world of one-off furniture and cabinet jobs, spray coating is mostly about speed rather than the quality of the finish. If you worry about technique, brush marks, etc., you can learn to brush well a lot faster than you can learn to spray well.

I will join the others in recommending Impervo.

Doug

[Adam Herman]

Good advise Robert. I sand between and thin my final coat with SW Proclassic as well. Just enough so it will flow out a few min. after i have brushed that spot.

[Bill Adamsen]

Also, with these waterborne alkyds, what's the best extender/retarded to use? Is there an alternative to Floetrol?

BM has their own extender recommended for any of their waterborne premium paints. I've used Xim (a Rustoleum product) with both Advance and Aura with success. I haven't experienced runs/sags with Xim (at least that I can see ).

[Sam Murdoch]

I have been on the search for an answer to this question for years since most paint brands have needed to comply with environmental regs and have reformulated. I have always been a good painter and have achieved car like finishes with the old formula oil based paints. Not so with the current water based acrylic enamels. Because locally the best paints available have been Benjamin Moore I have suffered through too many projects trying to achieve an acceptable hand applied finish on my cabinetry and built-ins. Their ADVANCE was supposed to be the problem solver. NOTTTTT - it is very thin, takes too long to dry - I think they recommend 18 hours between coats. Holy smokes, how can you do that on a job or more specifically, in a work shop. AND, it still needs an extender to help it level in normal 70° F temps and modest humidity.

Finally - I discovered Sherwin Williams PRO CLASSIC. This stuff is light years better than the ADVANCE. No comparison. Applies more easily (less runny), levels out by itself with a fair degree of wet time while applying and dries much faster to recoat (though off hand I don't remember the exact time line). It is a very acceptable hand paint product. I do add an extender to it because - why not - it does help with the leveling and the wet time but it is not really needed.

Be aware that light brush marks are inevitable compared to spray applied. Goes without saying but I say it anyway. No matter - I recommend PRO CLASSIC without reservation compared to BM ADVANCE. The per gallon price will scare you - retail around here is $73.00 per gallon for the PC compared to under $60.00 for the Adavance. I now have a SW account so my price is less than $ 50.00. I would pay the $ 73.00 if I had to. Well worth leaving the frustration and poor results of working with Advance behind. No looking back for me.

[Jim Morgan]

BM has their own extender recommended for any of their waterborne premium paints. I've used Xim (a Rustoleum product) with both Advance and Aura with success. I haven't experienced runs/sags with Xim (at least that I can see ).

Thanks for the info, Bill.