Canned Shellac or Flakes?

[Chris Padilla]

It is real tempting to pick up a can of Bulls Eye on the shelf of my local h/w store but I wonder about how fresh it is. I guess I could pick some out and test it and see.

Or, I could go the flake route for the freshest shellac.

If I need to dewax it (I may wish to put a coat of varnish on top of it), what then? I may have to wait a while or can filtering it work?

Thanks...

[glenn bradley]

Zinsser's puts the date on their cans in plain English. I keep an eye on the BORGs because they have had 2 year old stock on the shelf. I have bought cans that were almost a year old as I knew I would use them within the next year. Never a problem. The shelf life on Seal Coat is 3 years at appropriate temps. Once opened and re-opened I imagine this window shrinks.

I keep all my shellac products in my office in the house when not in use. My rule of thumb is that if I'm comfy, its comfy. The exception that makes the rule; I found a jar of a pretty thin cut that I had forgotten on a shelf for . . . well, a long time. I used it to re-coat some jigs and such that were aesthetically unimportant . . . . fooled me . .. worked fine.

[Chris Padilla]

Thanks, Glenn. I guess I need to stare at the can more closely and find the date!

[Jim Becker]

If you buy SealCoat, you'll not have to de-wax, either. I pretty much use that as my standard shellac unless I "need" something darker which is rare. Easy, Fast, Cheap. They even have it in spray bombs for little projects.

[Brad Wood]

Thanks, Glenn. I guess I need to stare at the can more closely and find the date!

focus on the top, it is right there is big print

I picked some up from blue borg recently, the date was only three months prior to purchase.

[John McClanahan]

OK, question from a new guy. What happens to an unopened can when it gets old?

John

[Neal Clayton]

it won't dry correctly, or ever, and if it does dry the finish will be very easily damaged by fingerprints and scratching.

if it takes more than 5 minutes to dry to the touch i would say the can is too old.

[Chris Padilla]

From what I've read, to test the freshness of shellac, put some on the lid of the can or other non-porous surface...come back 24 hours and see if you can dig your nail into it. If you can, toss it...if it is hard...you're good to go.

[Chris Padilla]

If you buy SealCoat, you'll not have to de-wax, either. I pretty much use that as my standard shellac unless I "need" something darker which is rare. Easy, Fast, Cheap. They even have it in spray bombs for little projects.

Great...I'll go for that.

[Stephen Musial]

As others have said, the date is stamped right on the can. I've used the original Paddylac flakes and Bullseye and to be honest - unless you're after a special color (garnet, lemon, buttonlac, etc.) there's no real good reason to mix your own. The Bullseye comes in a 3lb cut and it's easy enough to change the strength with some alcohol - as a matter of fact, you don't want to use it right out of the can unless you're sealing knotholes or something before you paint. It's easier to get into trouble with a thicker coats than thinner ones. If you haven't seen it already, here's a good resource (not sure who owns it anymore but I'm pretty sure Paddy got rid of it some time ago)

http://shellac.net/