Lacquer getting too glossy

[Alan Lightstone]

I'm just finishing my sofa table, and spraying the last coats of pre-cat lacquer on the legs and apron.

There are probably about 6 coats of lacquer on the table, although several were thinned toner coats.

I'm going for a satin look (which my dealer says is a 40 gloss in the Varicure line I'm using.)

When I sprayed the 20 gloss, low gloss lacquer - it was still a little too glossy. I tried the flat (0 gloss), and that's a little too dead looking. Even tried mixing flat and low gloss (should be 10 gloss), and that looks too shiny. I think this may be due to the greater than normal # of coats on the piece.

Any suggestions how to get the low gloss, but not totally flat look I'm trying to get?

[Mike Henderson]

I rub the surface with steel wool and mineral oil. That will take a gloss down to about any satin level you want.

Mike

[Alan Lightstone]

Is that an issue if I need to refinish any scratches, etc. in the future? Sort of how wax can be an issue?

[Mike Henderson]

Is that an issue if I need to refinish any scratches, etc. in the future? Sort of how wax can be an issue?
I assume you mean is the mineral oil a problem in the future. No, mineral oil is just used as a lubricant and evaporates away. Wipe off all you can, but the remainder will evaporate. Mineral oil is petroleum oil - long ago petroleum was called mineral.

BTW, you can find mineral oil at the drug store. It's also used as a laxative (people drink it).

Mike

[I use 0000 steel wool. Try it out on a piece of offcut that you sprayed or somewhere on the project where it won't show - to make sure you like the effect.]

[Alan Lightstone]

Do I need to raise the gloss on the flat pieces with a quick coat of the low gloss lacquer?

In other words, will the steel wool raise the gloss of the flat pieces, or just lower the gloss of the overly glossy pieces?

And yes, Mike, thanks. I meant the mineral oil.

[Tony Joyce]

I think this may be due to the greater than normal # of coats on the piece.

Any suggestions how to get the low gloss, but not totally flat look I'm trying to get?

You are correct about the number of coats. The more coats the glossier it will get.
No help on flattening, Sorry. Mike's idea sounds like the best solution.

Tony

[Mike Henderson]

Do I need to raise the gloss on the flat pieces with a quick coat of the low gloss lacquer?

In other words, will the steel wool raise the gloss of the flat pieces, or just lower the gloss of the overly glossy pieces?

And yes, Mike, thanks. I meant the mineral oil.
Nope, steel wool will not raise the gloss on a flat finish. It only knocks down the gloss.

BTW, most experienced finishers recommend using gloss as the first coat(s) and then finishing with whatever level of gloss you want. The reason is that flat or satin has material in it to reduce the gloss but that also hurts the clarity.

Mike

[Alan Lightstone]

Thanks. I actually did start with gloss and switched to low gloss. But the tone was so far off I needed to do a significant amount of toning. This added several layers of lacquer, and, I think, got me where I am.

I'll try the 0000 steel wool approach. I have some Behlen's wool lube sitting around. I tried it instead of mineral oil on a test piece. Kind of a pain to remove (gets soapy). I really dislike mineral oil, due to some issues I've had in the past getting it everywhere while rubbing down a piece. Wanted to avoid it, if possible.

Is it too risky to just use dry 0000 Liberon steel wool?

[Mike Henderson]

Thanks. I actually did start with gloss and switched to low gloss. But the tone was so far off I needed to do a significant amount of toning. This added several layers of lacquer, and, I think, got me where I am.

I'll try the 0000 steel wool approach. I have some Behlen's wool lube sitting around. I tried it instead of mineral oil on a test piece. Kind of a pain to remove (gets soapy). I really dislike mineral oil, due to some issues I've had in the past getting it everywhere while rubbing down a piece. Wanted to avoid it, if possible.

Is it too risky to just use dry 0000 Liberon steel wool?

I never tried it dry but it should work. Just do a test piece.

Mike

[Alan Lightstone]

Never responded to close the loop and thank everyone. I took your advice, Mike and used the 0000 steel wool with the Behlen's wood lube (diluted with water, the stuff really wasn't that awesome by itself - left too much residue.)

After several quick sessions, the gloss became just where I needed it to be. Worked out quite nicely. Thanks again everyone.

270165

[Sam Murdoch]

Did you build that table Alan or is this just a thread showing your finish work? I am prepared to be struck with awe.
The finish looks great.

[Howard Acheson]

Mineral oil will not evaporate. You can easily test it yourself. Wet your finger with some mineral oil and then spread a thin coat on a flat surface like a sheet of glass or smooth plastic. You will see that it remains exactly like it was when you spread it. Check it for a few weeks. Not all petroleum based oils are evaporative. Motor oil, for example. In fact, no oil is truly evaporative. Some will dry/cure (linseed oil, tung oil), but they don't evaporate.

[Alan Lightstone]

Did you build that table Alan or is this just a thread showing your finish work? I am prepared to be struck with awe.
The finish looks great.
I built it Sam. Took way too long, but came out pretty nice. The top has a number of inlays in it, so I got to learn how to do those too. And a boatload of convex and concave curves. And I won't even get into the turning and reeds in the legs.

A nice learning project.

270235

[Sam Murdoch]

That is one very nice piece of work.