Polyacrylic

[Keith Hooks]

My timing is a bit poor since I've already used it on a recent project, but I was wondering what experience people have had with polyacrylic. I just finished a small box with it and am pretty happy with the results. I was able to wipe it on pretty easily, it dries pretty fast, and it cleans up with water. To date my experience with finishing is limited to BLO, polyurathane, and shellac.

[Jim Becker]

I don't normally use Minwax products all that much, but have used the Polycrylic when I needed something waterbourne I could source "locally". It brushed fine and sprayed well without problems...which I find true about any of the acrylics I've used. This one just happens to have some of the "evil polyurethane" resin in it, too... ;) I've only used the satin version, however.

[Bill Arnold]

Because of its faster drying time and easy clean-up, I tried Polycrylic a few years ago. I liked the overall process, but not the resulting "look" of the finish -- it didn't have the depth that an oil-rub and solvent-based topcoat gives a piece.

Regards,

[Steve Schoene]

Regardless of the reason PolyAcrylic is one of the finishes that gives poly the reputation of "plastic" looking. I did a direct comparison on cherry with PolyAcrylic compared to Behlen Rock Hard varnish and to Pratt & Lambert "38". I liked both the natural resin varnishes, which differed in that the Rock Hard imparted more amber tone, but the PolyAcrylic just let the cherry lay there with zero excitement. Nothing exactly wrong with the PolyAcrylic but.... BTW, all samples were rubbed out in the same way after two weeks (If I remember this part correctly) to a soft "rottenstone" gloss.

[Howard Acheson]

It's true that waterborne finishes do little to "pop" the grain. They add no color and it is the amber color in linseed oil that causes oil based finishes to highlight the grain more. Many waterborne poly floor finishes contain an amber dye so they "pop" the grain in a similar manner to oil based finishes.

A number of the finisher's I know would either apply an amber dye first or dissolve some amber dye in the first coat of waterborne. When you do this you get very similar results to oil based products.

That said, I prefer oil based finishes to waterborne in almost all cases. Waterborne is excellent if you don't want to add color. Some like it to maintain the white color of maple for example.

[Keith Hooks]

It's been about 3 weeks now since I "finished" a box with BLO and polyacrylic. I'm concerned because the finish still smells and it's a bit sticky. I let the last coat of BLO dry for 48 hrs before I applied the polyacrylic. Perhaps I didn't let the PA dry long enough between coats. Any ideas where I went wrong? I feel like it should be plenty dry by now.

[Bob Noles]

It's been about 3 weeks now since I "finished" a box with BLO and polyacrylic. I'm concerned because the finish still smells and it's a bit sticky. I let the last coat of BLO dry for 48 hrs before I applied the polyacrylic. Perhaps I didn't let the PA dry long enough between coats. Any ideas where I went wrong? I feel like it should be plenty dry by now.

Keith,

I have been playing around with the smelly (BLO) stuff a little and have found that if you use too much of it that it will become sticky and the smell will linger twice as bad too. A reading of the notes on the can does refer to a sticky finish if too much is applied and not wiped off in the alotted time. I have found that a very light, single coat and wiping off the excess within 15 minues is about all that is needed for the BLO. My guess is that you may have possibly applied your poly before the BLO was fully cured. Sometimes it takes many days if not a week to cure out enough before the finish coat.

[John Hemenway]

Three weeks and still sticky? My guess is the BLO wasn't completly cured before the Poly. The usual recommendation is to wait till BLO has no odor and use a barrier coat of shellac (dewaxed) like Zinssner Seal Coat ( http://www.zinsser.com/product_detail.asp?ProductID=72 )

[Jim Becker]

BLO takes far more time than 48 hours to cure fully before coating with a waterbourne finish! At least a week, if not more...unless you do as John mentions and seal the oil with shellac before moving on to your next finishing step.

[Keith Hooks]

I think I'll probably sand it and redo it. I may not even add the polyacrylic this time. I'll put on a single coat of BLO and see how that looks. The feedback is MUCH appreciated.

[Jim Becker]

Seriously consider learning the joys of shellac for these kind of projects as a top-coat over the oil. But I'll admit that I often just use BLO and wax on decorative items as I love the look and it's "quick and easy".

[Keith Hooks]

I'll admit I was looking for an easy finish this time around. I wanted something I could wipe on with little mess. In fact, it was a pretty easy application. This time around, I'm going to apply some wax instead of the polyacrylic.

[Howard Acheson]

Just want to understand what product we are discussing here. Minwax makes a waterborne acrylic polyurethane called "Polycrylic". General Finishes makes a waterborne acrylic polyurethane called "PolyAcrylic".

I've used both and the General Finishes PolyAcrylic tends to flow out better when brushing than the Minwax Polycrylic.