Painting popular wood questions?

[Josh Goldsmith]

I am making a bunch of picture frames for a friend and i am painting them flat black or semi gloss. I am making the frames out of popular wood then priming them then sanding then some black paint then sand, more paint, more sanding then a final coat of black. This process works but it takes way to long. I was reading on this site that some people use shelac as a primer and i was curious why shelac? They require all of this preping so i get a smooth nice finish. Do you have any faster ways to do this? I can spray with hvlp but prefer aerosol cans cause it is quicker. Any tips would greatly be appreciated. Thanks Josh

[Matt Tawes]

Josh,

Primer, shellac etc. act as a seal coat which seals the grain and makes for a very smooth painting surface. Try spraying some Zinser sealcoat then put your paint on or better yet gloss black lacquer.

[Jim Becker]

Shellac is often considered a "universal barrier layer" and also works well as a sealer/primer. (I only used dewaxed shellac to insure compatibility with "any" finish I would want to put over it.)

You don't mention what kind of paint you are using on your poplar. (not "popular"...that's a prom queen... :) ) That would be helpful to know so folks can better advise you how to get the finish you state you desire.

[Josh Goldsmith]

LOL. I am such a great speller!:D Thanks Jim for pointing that out i didn't even really look at how i spelt that! I am painting the frames black using areosol cans. I was originally using a black laquer but since they ran out of it i switched to kryolon flat black (i probably miss spelled that one also). I was thinking about from know on spraying a matte clear over the black because it scratchs really easy. Do you know of a better paint that covers well and is durable? With the shellac how long before you can sand it. The reason i am going to be sanding the shellac is because i don't want the wood grains showing through. How many coats of shellac do you think i need before i won't see or feel the grain of popular poplar :p . Thanks for your help guys!!!!!!!!

Josh

[Jim Becker]

If you sanded the poplar before you start finishing, you should have a relatively smooth and grain-free surface before applying the shellac. One or two coats should do the job and you can sand it in a couple hours after application in most cases.

BTW, now that you've switched to the Krylon, do NOT go back to the lacquer. And clear coating will help with durability to a certain extend. That said, in the future, consider using one of the excellent acrylics from Target Coatings, Fuhr International, etc., to "paint" your projects. They spray on beautifully, even with an inexpensive HVLP conversion gun and are quite durable. My kitchen is finished in them and it still looks like new after three years of use.