Top coat for white oak & brass?

[Edward Morimoto]

I may be seeking the impossible, but here it goes . . .

I’m making a wagon for my son that will have picket sides made of stained/dyed white oak and brass. The joinery will make pre-finishing the oak & brass separately difficult/impossible and given the irregular shape, something sprayable would be my preference.

Any ideas? I was thinking of a spar varnish but I would worry about adhesion/flaking on the brass, although it will probably have a sanded (not polished) surface and wouldn’t experience too much handling.

Oh, and as a wagon, a finish that is good for outdoors and/or easy to refresh is a plus (although not mandatory - as is probably clear, this is a bit of a fancy wagon so it will probably get “garaged” indoors most of the time)

Thanks in advance,

EM

[Mel Fulks]

I would not put it on the brass. Easier to put a little brass polish on occasionally than scrape off the varnish off when it’s scratched up and
needing another coat.
And kids love to see demonstrations of new (to them) products. I don’t think the polish ,carefully applied, will hurt the finish.

[John TenEyck]

Automotive clear coat seems like the right choice to me.

John