Wtf - Wood Turners Finish

[Wally Wenzel]

It seems a lot of people are using wtf, I am wondering what is the prefered way of applying it? I have some but have not tried it yet.
Thanks Wally

[James Combs]

Ditto what Wally said. I will be interested in this thread.

[Marty Eargle]

General Woodturner's Finish. A popular semi-new finish a lot of the Creekers are using these days

http://www.generalfinishes.com/retail-products/water-base-top-coats-sanding-sealers/wood-turners-finish

[Roger Chandler]

I like to use a piece of t-shirt material.........I like it better than paper towels. I apply to the piece while still on the lathe at a low rpm, like 50...........usually after I have applied a seal coat of dewaxed shellac to pop the grain.

One can apply a coat about every 5 minutes........if you use a heat gun on low setting or a hair dryer, perhaps every 3 minutes or so, depending on humidity levels............after about 3 or 4 coats it builds to a fine satin finish, and after fully cured for a day or so will take light buffing which will cause a glossy finish.

[Bernie Weishapl]

I use a small piece of t-shirt and I also like to airbrush it on. Like Roger said I can put on 10 to 12 coats in about 35 to 40 minutes using a hair dryer on low heat.

[John Keeton]

I apply it with a paper shop towel, and if I am outside, with humidity below 40%, I can apply a coat per minute. After 7-10 coats, I will level the finish with 600, and apply a few more coats, level again with 600, then 1200, and then buff. I only wait about 30 minutes to sand and buff.

[Dennis Ford]

I ordered some this weekend and will be joining the parade trying this stuff. It sounds too good to be true but I have been seeing lots of pictures showing the great finish. I think John's "Blue on Blue" pushed me over the edge to try this.

[Russell Eaton]

+1 on the shop towels. I cut the whole roll into 4 pieces on the bandsaw, then roll off one section at a time. It will last a long time with a lot less waste.

[Alan Trout]

I use paper towel.

Alan

[Tim Rinehart]

Yep, paper towel. Love it love it love it!
Once you try WTF...you'll end up pitching out WOP products and a host of other sprays likely as well.

[Dale Bright]

WTF will airbrush on without thinning and clean up is just soap and water. You can put the lathe on real slow and airbrush on a very smooth finish in just minutes. I am also going to get an old turn table, set it on 33rpm and give that a try for off the lathe.

Here is a link (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=keG6jpexRqk) to a video of airbrushing with WTF.

Dale

[Larry Pickering]

Pretty much like every one else, with one exception. My 3M rep dropped off a sample of 5000 grit Trizact polishing disk, a few passes with my DA sander, light buff with a liquid compound= mirror finish

[John King]

Tim - What's WOP mean? Why not spell it out? What's up with all the abbreviations? - John

[John Keeton]

John, acronyms are, unfortunately, an integral part of the cyber world. WOP is wipe on poly. Here is a link (http://www.sawmillcreek.org/showthread.php?56320-List-Of-Acronyms-Updated-4-17-2007) to "a list" of acronyms commonly used on the creek. You may find it helpful. My guess is, this is one of those unfortunate times you will be unable to affect change and it may be easier to just "join 'em!"

[Bill Wyko]

After reading John's post I picked some up myself. Here in our heat you only have about a minute to work with it. I'm in the process of playing musical lathes today and tomorrow but when I'm done I'll be putting it to use right away.

[Jason Ritchie]

I'm about to give up on this stuff. I can't get a decent finish no matter what. I can get a much better finish using water based poly. Maybe I have a bad batch or something with all the praise this stuff is getting. My issue is that if I put on on thick enough to have a smooth surface I get runs. If I put it on thinner then I get lines in the finish. I have tried paper towel, tee-shirt material ad shop towel. I do like how quickly it dries but I have to spend way too much time sanding it back to level it out.

[Mike Cruz]

Jason, ultra thin coats seem to be the way to go. Think of it this way... When you use poly, you are tempted to put it on thick because of the wait time between coats. And sometimes you can get away with that. But with WTF, you can recoat so fast that ultra thin coats work out just fine. Keep at it. The finish really is nice.

[John Keeton]

To add to what Mike said, don't sand each coat. Build a finish of 7-8 coats, then level it with 600. That should be a fairly quick process. Then add additional coats (2-5) and level again with 600, then 1200, then 0000, then buff. If the humidity is right, I can completely finish and buff a piece in an hour, perhaps 1.5 hours if the piece is larger.

[Jamie Donaldson]

I do most of my finishing off the lathe, and apply finishes and dyes with small squares of 1/2" thick carpet padding, the yellow foam that neighbors toss to the curb when installing new carpet.