Tackling dust nibs on final film coat

[mark mcfarlane]

I have a half dozen rough spots on my 2nd and hopefully final coat of satin ARM-R-SEAL on a couple of new mission-style white oak end tables.

I read about using a repeatedly crumpled 12" square from a brown paper bag (after a week of curing) to rub out the finish, but I have no idea where to actually find a brown paper bag :). I do have some seemingly similar brown paper in a roll I use to cover my workbench during finishing steps. There is likely wax in this roll paper.

Any other approaches to knocking off nibs from the final finish coat? Any tips?

I'm doing a third very-thin coat tomorrow morning on the tops, so I could potentially sand and touch up the offending areas on the legs, but I'm not sure if a 'partial touch-up coat' would look OK.

[Steve Eure]

Mark, you can get brown paper bags at Publix grocery. Just ask for paper at checkout. Also some fast food restaurants use brown bags for take-out. You can also use brown paper lunch bags that are found in grocery stores too.

[Robert Cherry]

Take a look at the Konig Metal Planer, it works great for dust nibs.

http://www.konigtouchup.com/BuyNow/metalplaner.html

[mark mcfarlane]

Thanks Steve and Robert. I forgot about lunch bags, brilliant :).

[Bennett Ostroff]

One way to get a super smooth final coat is to sand your second to last coat very smooth with 600/1000 grit. Then on your final coat, wipe off the varnish 5-10 minutes after applying it, depending on temp/humidity. Wipe in the direction of the grain. Almost as if you're wiping off an oil/varnish blend. It will be silky smooth and also leaves a very nice soft luster.

Otherwise I usually just sand with 1000-1500 grit paper, waiting as long as possible after the final coat as to minimize scratches.

[Jim Becker]

Trader Joe's has brown paper bags...and really good things to eat, too. :) But in a pinch...yea...lunch bags.

[Jamie Buxton]

Micro-mesh sand paper. Here's one source -- https://www.amazon.com/SANDING-SHEETS-INTRODUCTORY-Peachtree-Woodworking/dp/B000H6HIK2

What you're doing, even with brown paper bags, is attacking the nibs with really fine abrasive. The abrasive needs to be coarse enough to abrade the nibs fairly quickly, but fine enough to not leave obvious scratches. With one of these assortments, you'll get a feel for what abrasive grade has the right balance for you. I use what they call 1800 grit. The sheets are fabric-based, not paper. For me, one sheet lasts for years.

[mark mcfarlane]

1) Has anyone used both brown paper and micro-mesh sheets? Which did you prefer and why?

2) How long do I wait before trying to rub out the finish? 48 hours? 7 days?

[Bennett Ostroff]

Rubbing out is very different from just smoothing the final coat. I'd wait at least three days after sitting in room temp.