In the middle of finishing and stuck

[Joseph Skoler]

I had counter-top made out of recycled barn pine.

It was far from flat.

I made it a little less non-flat.

I then used West epoxy resin and 207 clear hardener.

It took about 8 coats and still wasn't flat.

I said 'aw heck

I applied Behlen Rock Hard by brush -- 4 coats.

I just sanded it through to 1000 grit.

What I have is nice and smooth areas and lots of little shiny low areas.

Other than sanding/planing the piece to flat (which at this point just doesn't work for me), how should I proceed?

Here's some pics:

296498296499

Thank you!

[glenn bradley]

I'm going to reach on this one and say rub out the shiny spots with some 0000 steel wool to try to blend it in. this wil be difficult because now that you know where to look, any small anomaly will stick out like a sore thumb . . . to you. Not to anyone else but, to you ;-)

[Prashun Patel]

I'm unclear. Was the entire counter gloss? Did the shiny spots remain after attempting to level/rub the surface? Do you WANT it satin or gloss?

If you want it satin, skip the rub out and apply a coat of satin varnish as your final coat.

If you want gloss, wipe on a couple thinned coats of gloss and let it me.

If you want it flat and gloss or satin, you can just apply more coats of varnish and rub out; it will eventually level.

[Joseph Skoler]

I'm going to reach on this one and say rub out the shiny spots with some 0000 steel wool to try to blend it in. this wil be difficult because now that you know where to look, any small anomaly will stick out like a sore thumb . . . to you. Not to anyone else but, to you ;-)

I suspect that no matter what I do, I'll still know where the imperfections are.

But I'll be happy if others casually looking at it don't see them.

Do I rub the shiny spots with 0000 to dull them so they don't stand out?

Thank you!

[Joseph Skoler]

I'm unclear. Was the entire counter gloss? Did the shiny spots remain after attempting to level/rub the surface? Do you WANT it satin or gloss?

If you want it satin, skip the rub out and apply a coat of satin varnish as your final coat.

If you want gloss, wipe on a couple thinned coats of gloss and let it me.

If you want it flat and gloss or satin, you can just apply more coats of varnish and rub out; it will eventually level.

The varnish is gloss, and the surface was glossy after the last coat applied. It also had various imperfections -- dust points, thicker/higher areas, a wrinkly area when I must have picked up the brush wrong, etc.

I used a ROS with 320, 600, 1000 grit (all wet) and the picture shows what I got -- plenty of smooth & dull areas, but also plenty of shiny areas.

I'm confused about the way more varnish layers can make the surface more flat. I thought they they keep building and the un-flatness of it grows.

If I continue to put coats on, the un-flatness of it will decrease?

I'd like it gloss, and the idea of wiping a couple thinned coats on sounds good. But I'm concerned that I'll mess it up and the gloss surface won't be nice and smooth (compared to a rubbed out surface).

Thank you!

[Prashun Patel]

More coats will self-level to an extent. They will flow to the low points. Eventually, the divots will fill in. It just may be a lot of work, but it will work.

There is an easier way, though: thin your varnish with an appropriate thinner and wipe on the last couple coats. Gloss is so much easier to wipe than satin.. After a good rubbing, it may take 2 - 3 wiped coats until you get an acceptable surface, but the result will be a surface that has not collected dust as a brushed one does. The most you may need is a little gentle denubbing with 1000+ grit - and that's just for feel - not for looks.

[Joseph Skoler]

More coats will self-level to an extent. They will flow to the low points. Eventually, the divots will fill in. It just may be a lot of work, but it will work.

There is an easier way, though: thin your varnish with an appropriate thinner and wipe on the last couple coats. Gloss is so much easier to wipe than satin.. After a good rubbing, it may take 2 - 3 wiped coats until you get an acceptable surface, but the result will be a surface that has not collected dust as a brushed one does. The most you may need is a little gentle denubbing with 1000+ grit - and that's just for feel - not for looks.

More coats, regardless of sanding between coats or will it self-level only with sanding between coats?

I just steel wooled the top and sure enough the shiny areas are gone and it looks much better. But, it's not glossy.

So, I'll try wiping on thinned varnish. How thinned (50/50; 20% thinner/80% varnish, etc.)?

Should I wipe and then wet wipe 2 more times while still tacky?

[Leo Graywacz]

Should have kept going with the epoxy till it was flat. Now you can use the varnish to flatten, gonna take a few coats.

[Jim Becker]

Since it's a beautiful piece made from recycled barnwood...which by definition is going to exhibit a lot of imperfections. AND...it's going to be a countertop that presumably will get used. Perhaps you might consider not worrying about the finish being perfect since it will get 'less perfect' relatively soon from use. It's the imperfections that make this counter so valuable!

[Kent A Bathurst]

Should have kept going with the epoxy till it was flat. Now you can use the varnish to flatten, gonna take a few coats.

Bingo. You keep adding layers of varnish until you can sand it all flat without cutting through the varnish.

TO avoid doing this at the varnish stage, you have to get it flat before varnishing, as Leo correctly notes.

More varnish, more sanding - don't bother getting near 1000 until you have it leveled and the shiny spots are gone. I would not go past 320 - 400. Brush it on, not wipe - the brushed coat = 2- 3 wipe on coats. Thin only the least amount needed to get a good flow - something like 15% - 20%. You need to build the varnish thickness, so you can level it all. Then, go back to one or 2 final wipe-on coats and walk away.

BTW - welcome to the club. The membership list on this exact issue is miles long, so don't get too frustrated. YOu will only be in this predicament once. Trust me.

[Joseph Skoler]

Since it's a beautiful piece made from recycled barnwood...which by definition is going to exhibit a lot of imperfections. AND...it's going to be a countertop that presumably will get used. Perhaps you might consider not worrying about the finish being perfect since it will get 'less perfect' relatively soon from use. It's the imperfections that make this counter so valuable!

I love it -- you are absolutely right. And my wife thinks so too.

I wiped on 3 wipe-coats already. I can feel and see the slight imperfections, but I'll give it a long while to cure while I let the "FIX IT; IT SHOULD BE PERFECT" mantra in my mind fades.

Thank you!

[Joseph Skoler]

Bingo. You keep adding layers of varnish until you can sand it all flat without cutting through the varnish.

TO avoid doing this at the varnish stage, you have to get it flat before varnishing, as Leo correctly notes.

More varnish, more sanding - don't bother getting near 1000 until you have it leveled and the shiny spots are gone. I would not go past 320 - 400. Brush it on, not wipe - the brushed coat = 2- 3 wipe on coats. Thin only the least amount needed to get a good flow - something like 15% - 20%. You need to build the varnish thickness, so you can level it all. Then, go back to one or 2 final wipe-on coats and walk away.

BTW - welcome to the club. The membership list on this exact issue is miles long, so don't get too frustrated. YOu will only be in this predicament once. Trust me.

It's amazing how with each new project there's a tremendous amount to learn (i.e., tremendous amount I don't know).

I think I've learned the hard way enough times already that if it's not flat when I start to varnish, it won't be flat after the varnish goes on. Now I know that I could put more and more coats on until it does get flat.

I still don't get how that works with a very non-flat piece like mine: some of the counter top boards are concave and some are convex, plenty have little nicks, holes, grooves, etc. If I use a hard backer I'd cut through to the wood for sure. If I use a soft backer, then the sanding will sand the same amount off on each spot, keeping the un-flatness.

[John TenEyck]

As Jim said, celebrate the defects and don't worry about trying to make it dead flat. That's just out of character with the material you are using. Get the sheen uniform and move on to something else. In a few weeks or months it's going to get all dinged up anyway.

John

[Kent A Bathurst]

I still don't get how that works with a very non-flat piece like mine: some of the counter top boards are concave and some are convex, plenty have little nicks, holes, grooves, etc. If I use a hard backer I'd cut through to the wood for sure. If I use a soft backer, then the sanding will sand the same amount off on each spot, keeping the un-flatness.

Oh - it would take some work to get you piece flat - no doubt. The nicks, holes, grooves will fill in, not go away.

You would use a cork sanding block, or even an ROS. You want to sand down the high spots only. Realize, of course, that if you do cut through the high spots to the wood, it really won't matter - you are going to keep adding varnish anyway. You end up with "enough" coats on the high areas, and "more than enough" coats filling in the low spots.

You really aren't dealing with a good example of wood where you want to use varnish to level it............would want to get it closer to level before you start the varnish.