Will alcohol dissolve a Polyeurethane finish

[Stephen Hibbs]

I made a cup for a friend's birthday, and he is wondering if alcohol will dissolve the finish on the cup since it is used as a solvent fairly often. While I'm at it, what other kinds of things are likely to wreck a poly finish?

[Mark Singer]

I havent had any extra to test on poly...xcuse me.....I have been testing it on my interior....we are holding up great...woops so far;)

[Gary DeWitt]

Not if it's cured well. Give it a week.
There should be more than one coat on it, though, and watch out for thirsty end grain.
Things that will destroy poly:
Continuous immersion in a liquid (drink fast!)
Cold chisel
Carbide tools
Extreme Heat
Long term exposure to direct sunlight
Serious abrasion (being dragged behind a car down the freeway)
Tactical nuke

In other words, poly is pretty durable.
Some woodworkers don't like it because it's so tough, it's hard to repair.

Some guys have been using thin epoxy for vessels, don't have any long term experience with it.

Have fun!

[Chris Barton]

Hi Steve,

Like Marc, most of my experiments with alcohol have been directed toward examining the anxiolytic effects it seems to have on me after work. However, while poly may not be adversely effected by short term exposure, I would be hesitant to have it as my finish on a food-use item. I think Gary has the right idea, some epoxy thinned lightly with acetone. I also build flyfishing rods and there is a epoxy finish called Flexcoat that we use to coat the windings that I would think would be nearly perfect for this. It is thin to start with and I have rods that are 20+ years old and the Flexcoat is in perfect condition.