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James Terry
07-22-2010, 5:46 PM
My only 'production' tool is the laser and I dont currently have much space to work. So far the pre-finished laser strips have been uber wonderful for what I am doing. My question though is this: for projects where I have unfinished wood that I run through the laser, what is the easiest way to have the ability to seal it. Most of my things are thin ornament gadgets and there isnt much desire for a thick paintbrush kind of coating. Can I keep some laquer stored in a small air sprayer so all i have to do is connect it and spray? Should I just look for some spray cans from Home Depot...? What is/are the typical clear sealers used on laserables and how might I go about making this quick and easy for myself?

Dee Gallo
07-22-2010, 7:40 PM
James,

There are lots of kinds of sealer/finish coats you can get in spray cans (lacquer, polyurethane, shellac).

Under NO circumstances should you put any sealer in your airbrush and leave it there unless you plan to throw the airbrush away. You can buy a glass jar with a siphon top for your airbrush which can be closed with a regular top, then you clean the siphon and airbrush. To me, that's the same as pouring it back into the can.

After I spray wood with sealer, I hand sand a few light swipes with a no-fill 400 grit sandpaper (Norton makes a good one). This gives me a perfectly smooth surface.

cheers, dee

Terry Swift
07-22-2010, 8:04 PM
To me, if you're not going to do a lot of sealing - then an aerosol spray can may be the easiest way (probably not the cheapest) to go. If you do quite a bit, I'd go with Dee and do the air sprayer (Harbor Freight or one of those places) method and clean up; but I hate all that cleaning and making sure it's just so-so. Not to mention all the different solvents and stuff you need as well. Wal-Mart is probably the cheapest as well, especially over a hobby shop or even home improvement places.

Bill Cunningham
07-22-2010, 9:39 PM
Rattlecan lacquer.. One coat, light sanding, second light coat, done.. Laser, then other coats as needed with a light sanding between each coat, and you will get a smooth shiny surface..
Usually the house brand lacquer from the larger hardware stores works well.. In Canada, Home Hardware Beautytone brand works fine..

Joe Pelonio
07-22-2010, 9:49 PM
If you are selling these items for $5-10 then don't spend a lot of time
and money on a finish. For things like ornaments I just spray them with
Krylon Satin Clear. Many of the wood thins for indoors I do I just leave unfinished.

Dee Gallo
07-22-2010, 10:01 PM
BTW - just so nobody gets the wrong idea, I use rattlecan lacquer all the time for wood sealing. It's fast easy and efficient.

Spraying lacquer with an airbrush is okay, but cleaning with lacquer thinner is really noxious and finicky because lacquer dries so fast. I only do it when I need to do some real painting, like airbrushing fishing lures with fishscale or frog patterns. hahaha I used to do illustrative motorcycle tanks, but that got old fast.

:) dee