New forum member and new project build

[Mike_ Smith]

Hello to all of you, I have been trolling this site for a while now to gather insight and education as I prepare for my Man Cave Bar build and hopefully not waste my money by messing up this project. As I now start the countertop portion of the project I figured it was time to create an account and ask some questions.

Just to give some back story, here is a link to the photobucket album I've been placing my construction photos in.

http://s174.photobucket.com/user/KineKilla/slideshow/Tico/Man%20Cave

My Man Cave is a 630sf room in my detached garage that started as an empty shell and is now turning out nicely. This weekend I hope to begin the build of my walnut plank countertops and hopefully turn this pile of lumber into a beautiful top.

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I have some friends that are cabinet makers and I myself am fairly good at construction and wood working so I feel I can handle this project myself. The wood will obviously be planed and squared before I start joining the pieces together. My desired end result is something similar to this, except I will use 2" strips of the walnut to make the edge instead of a router:

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The construction of the top itself seems fairly straight forward to me...I'll use a kreg jig and glue to join the pieces, seal the bottom prior to install then begin final prep for finishing. That is where you good folks come in. My plan was to use Orignal Waterlox straight on the raw wood (after proper sanding, cleaning of course) for as many coats as it takes to get the look I want. I have toyed with the idea of dying the wood to help blend the sapwood but since the room itself is being built in a rustic type theme I'm also thinking of not dying it and just letting the sapwood be what it is. I'm not sure if I'll need to dampen the wood to raise the grain then knock it back down or if Waterlox can be applied over dyed wood, etc. Please send me your suggestions (dye or don't dye, and if so what colors/brand/type?, raise then knock down grain? fill the grain? etc.)but please dumb them down for a guy that is still learning the terminology and acronyms. Oh and yes I of course will do several test pieces before I make a final choice and start on the top itself.

I look forward to a future full of insightful and educational discussions!

[Scott Holmes]

Dye is a personal choice for color. Remember walnut is one of the few woods that lightens with age it does not darken as most other woods.


As far as durable high quality finishes go... IMHO you have picked the best finish for this project. I will guess 3-6 brushed coats then let it cure for a month before you rub out the finish.

FYI: High gloss will HIGHLIGHT every FLAW.
Satin will hide most flaws.

[Mike_ Smith]

Thanks, I don't want a high gloss so I'm leaning towards their original or satin and mostly the original so I can get a semi-gloss sheen. Whatever I do on the countertops will likely be repeated later on the bar top.

Is it better to brush, wipe or spray Waterlox or is that a personal preference affected by skill level? I'm actually quite good with a paint sprayer (I was a commercial painter at one time) but I only have slightly better than novice experience with an HVLP sprayer. My instinct is to either use a wide foam brush or rag of some type (lambs wool, cotton wrapped in a nylon, etc.) but with this being a fairly large piece (52 sf + 24 sf of edging) and not being familiar with the application or drying times I need to find the method that will allow me to work the Waterlox adequately without it setting up halfway through. What would be recommended?