valspar wb lacquer ?

[Tim Reagan]

Looking for a sprayable topcoat for cherry cabinets I'm starting now. I know target coatings has a good reputation, but has anyone have experience with enviro + wb "lacquer"? I can get it locally which is easier. I'm also looking for a red (?garnet) shellac as a seal coat, what local suppliers would sell this? I'm not terribly close to any rockler/woodcraft stores.
thanks.

[Scott Holmes]

Water-borne "lacquer" is a marketing term it's an acrylic. Very high quality but acrylic just the same.

Nothing lacquer about it.

[Jim Becker]

Water-borne "lacquer" is a marketing term it's an acrylic. Very high quality but acrylic just the same.

Nothing lacquer about it.

True, but Target Coatings EM6000 was developed to mimic one of the most endearing qualities of solvent-based lacquers...burn-in. I'm not personally aware of any other water borne that does that, although I'm hardly an expert on what's out there.

[Scott Holmes]

Jim I'm going to expand on this, if you don’t mind... here's my thought process:

It does adhere well, because the glycol ether in the new coat softens the previous coat and allows the new coat to coalesce with the old. No witness lines; which is a very good feature.

This is not burn in; which I would describe as the solvent in the new coat dissolves the previous coat to made one coat, albeit thicker. e.g. Shellac and NC lacquer; the only two evaporative finishes.

What do you think? Too picky?

[glenn bradley]

Tim, Rockler has free shipping through 8/23/09 so get whatever shellac you want. Use code V9783 when you order online to get the free shipping. I have no affiliation, I just watch for free shipping offers to pickup things that I would not normally pay the cost of shipping for . . . like shellac.

As to "burn in"; all science aside, "burn in" is what Target calls that property on their site. I take that the same way I call a "tissue" a "Kleenex". I know what they mean ;-)

[Jim Becker]

Scott, I don't inherently have a problem with your explanation, but to me "...the new coat softens the previous coat and allows the new coat to coalesce with the old" with previous coats doesn't sound a whole lot different to me than "...he new coat dissolves the previous coat to made one coat...", but I'm not a chemist nor do I play one on the Internet. Target, as Glenn mentions, promotes the property as "burn in" for EM6000 and it's predicessors, Oxford USL and Oxford PSL. Jeff Weiss specifically talked about it in that way with me at a trade show while back, too.

[Neal Clayton]

also tim, i would not use garnet shellac as a sealer. it's not a little red, it's a lot red. it can have the same result as a stain over a non-sealed board... splotchy absorption.

amber is light enough to be used as a sealer and will give it a bit of reddish brown in the seal coat, so i'd go that route instead. if you want the color of garnet that's fine, but use a clear seal coat and then put the garnet coats down after until you get the red hue you're shooting for. the first few coats will be orange-ish. the next few will start to develop a reddish brown, if you put more than 6 or 7 you'll get that deep red associated with 'cherry' finishes.

edit: i previously posted some thing in the projects forum finished with garnet, here's what 4-5 coats of garnet sprayed over cypress looks like, with an amber seal coat underneath...

http://www.sawmillcreek.org/showthread.php?t=105726

your cherry being darker to start with, the result would be darker too.

[Tim Reagan]

thanks for the help. I think I've settled for a BLO coat, followed by 2 Zinnser Sealcoat. If after this I need more red, was thinking of using transtint dye in the first coat or tow of my topcoat.

So my original question; sounds like no one has used or heard about the Valspar water based clear top coat (Enviro +)??

Any suggestions for the transtint color?