gloss finish on lathe

[jeff oldham]

I know i have gotten on here before and asked the same question,,but can anyone tell me what i need to do to get a gloss finish on woodturnings that looks good,,,I have tried captain eddies shine juice and the deft lacquor and thinner and they are ok,,,and they have a product called shell wax that does a good job but it is so expensive for the amount you get,,,, can any one help

[Wally Dickerman]

The Beall system.....Comes with three buffing wheels. Buff with Tripoli, white diamond and for a high gloss, carnuba wax. I seldom use the wax myself.

[Brian Brown]

I use Cabot Lacquer. I like it because it seems to have so much solids vs solvent. I spray my piece with the lathe turning at a slow speed, to help get it even and control the sagging and dripping. I spray a few coats until it looks even, let it dry 24 hours, and use 0000 steel wool to remove any nibs or rough spots. Then I use the Beall buffs, tripoly and white diamond, to buff. My turnings were so glossy, they looked like plastic, so I actually started using semi gloss lacquer. They are still very glossy, but do not look like plastic now. Like Wally, I don't use the wax buff. I must do it wrong, because it seems to take the high gloss look away.

[Pete Copeland]

Another vote for the Beall system. When I want a gloss finish these days I spray on about a dozen thin coats of lacquer. Then wait at least a week. Then all three parts of the buffing system.

[jeff oldham]

just to make sure I understand this,,i need the tripoly bar and the white diamond and carnuba wax bar,,,i take it I start with the tripoly then the white diamond and then finish up with carnuba wax,,,and using the beall buffing system,,

[Mike Null]

That is the correct order.

[Wally Dickerman]

just to make sure I understand this,,i need the tripoly bar and the white diamond and carnuba wax bar,,,i take it I start with the tripoly then the white diamond and then finish up with carnuba wax,,,and using the beall buffing system,,

Check it out https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P5nSTIiExSE

[Kyle Iwamoto]

How many coats of finish are you applying? When using Deft Lacquer, I run maybe 8 or 10 coats of finish with sanding between some of them. May be more. If you want a high gloss finish, I think you have to apply many coats of finish. With Wipe on Poly I can get qway with maybe 6.

[carl mesaros]

I use Cabot Lacquer. I like it because it seems to have so much solids vs solvent. I spray my piece with the lathe turning at a slow speed, to help get it even and control the sagging and dripping. I spray a few coats until it looks even, let it dry 24 hours, and use 0000 steel wool to remove any nibs or rough spots. Then I use the Beall buffs, tripoly and white diamond, to buff. My turnings were so glossy, they looked like plastic, so I actually started using semi gloss lacquer. They are still very glossy, but do not look like plastic now. Like Wally, I don't use the wax buff. I must do it wrong, because it seems to take the high gloss look away.

Another vote for Cabot. I like to finish small items with this also. Great for ornaments. It must be the high solids content that makes it look so deep.

[Steve Huffman]

Jeff, I would say that if your not thrilled with the finishes you mentioned, I would recommend either a wipe on poly, or lacquer system. If your not to good with spraying lacquer or have that set up, you can also use the brush on method as well. I also just used the "Shine Juice" method and didn't quite get what I was looking for. It was nice and shinny when I set it out to dry, but the next day it looked like satin finish. I then went with the Tung oil and got what I was looking for.

[robert baccus]

NC lacquer requires many coats to give a thick enough coat to rub down. Switched to Mohawk precatalized lacquer which is sprayed without thinning and 2 coats gives a good heavy coat . I often wet sand lightly and buff with auto compounds on the lathe. This is over SS naturally. After rubbing to a good gloss, a rub with fine steel wool and wax will bring a semi-gloss or flat finish if desired.

[John Sincerbeaux]

A "gloss" finish is always a fun debate in most woodworking circles. I think it is also a finish that is a slippery slope. That being said, I love a glass like, crystal clear, PERFECT finish on large hollow forms. And in my experience, so do most potential buyers of your work.
But no one has mentioned surface prep. If you want a gloss finish, you have to have a surface that is like glass and that means you have to get every pore perfectly filled and sanded/burnished. If you have a gloss finish on a poorly prepared surface, you end up just highlighting a poorly prepared surface😳

[Steve Estabrooks]

I have found when using the Beall system with lacquer you have to watch how much pressure you put on the wood. I was buffing a hollow form and must have pushed a little too hard and the lacquer started coming off and I had to start all over. For gloss, I have had pretty good success with wipe on poly.

[Alan Trout]

If anyone wants a glass like finish on the lathe the only practical way IMHO is to use CA. For those that have not seen my pieces or my demonstrations doing this it is simple with enough practice. Very durable, very clear and very fast to do compared to spray finishes to get the end product. Nothing looks worse than a poor quality gloss finish and nothing looks better than a good quality one. By the way the Blue piece called "Simplicity" is almost 16" tall.

Alan

[Bob Bachynsky]

If anyone wants a glass like finish on the lathe the only practical way IMHO is to use CA. For those that have not seen my pieces or my demonstrations doing this it is simple with enough practice. Very durable, very clear and very fast to do compared to spray finishes to get the end product. Nothing looks worse than a poor quality gloss finish and nothing looks better than a good quality one. By the way the Blue piece called "Simplicity" is almost 16" tall.

Alan

Hey Alan, what is CA?

[Alan Trout]

Hey Alan, what is CA?

Superglue, and CA is short for Cyanoacrylate.

[Fred Belknap]

That looks terrific Alan, do you have a You-tube video on the process?? I have used CA on pens and it mostly did good, had a few failures.

[Doug Ladendorf]

Oh my Alan, those are stunning. I had to go find your site to look at more and realized I had been there a while back to look at your hollowing system. Beautiful finish you get. If you have more info about your process I would be interested too.

Doug