help on clear finish

[Larry Crim]

I am completing my dining table and want to finish it to a high gloss without the plastic look of poly, I am not much of a finisher and have no spray equipment and do not think I will get up to speed on spraying for this project but here was my plan and a few questions.
The table is cherry and I plan to use BLO applied with sanding and then after dry use Behlens rock hard table varnish applied thined for the first two coats sanded between coats then 3 to 4 more coats or as needed with little or no thinning and sanding between. I plan to buff it after about 5 to 7 weeks of drying to achieve the gloss I am looking for.
One of the questions I have is does the rock hard varnish have any UV protection ( checked the behlen home page but no info), it's not required but I would like to minimize the amount of darkening of the wood over the years. I love the rich color of cherry but dislike it when it has darkened too much. Also will the rock hard varnish yellow with age or will it stay clear?
Any suggestions are much appriciated.
Thanks
Larry

[Brian Hale]

Larry, cherry will darken with time, you can't stop it.

As for a high gloss finish, let the finish cure completely (several weeks if possible) and work the finish with automotive polishing compounds. I start with McGuire's swirl remover and then work through each step in their product line. They number them so it's easy to follow. You can also order them from Highland Woodworking if need be.

The only caveat with the above is that I've never used rock hard varnish so i can't say for sure if it's possible to rub through the layers of your finish and leave witness lines. Others will clarify this I'm sure.

Brian :)

[john whittaker]

Larry, I don't know about UV inhibitors but ....the finishing schedule you outlined for using Rock Hard seems very reasonable. You can rub it out with fine papers and liquid fine abrasives. Waiting for the final cure is important and I would give it a min of 4 weeks.

One caution...While I find the Rock Hard varnish very clear as compared to poly, I remember it having an amber color which may not be what you want considering your comments about dark cherry. Check it out because I going from memory here...which is getting old.:p

I also can say I was very pleased with Rock Hard wiped on. All my coats were thinned with mineral spirits and the finish came out clear and smooth. I used a ratio of 3:2 on the first few coats and 3:1 on the next few and then 3:2 again on the last two.

[Steve Schoene]

Rockhard doesn't have UV protection.

You should also be aware that BLO has relatively more darkening impact than the varnish just by itself. Rockhard will need a bit of thinning--about 10% in my experience. It seems thicker now than it used to be, undoubtedly due to VOC regulations. (It's these regulations that cause manufacturers to lie about not needing to thin there products.)

For a lighter varnish, you could consider Pratt & Lambert 38. But both alkyd and phenolic resins will darken and yellow over time. This generally looks quite good along with the inevitable natural darkening of the cherry. By the way, for the first 6 months or so don't leave a centerpiece, or placemats in one place on the top, or you will notice a "tan line".

[Larry Crim]

John, Brian and Steve
Thanks for the reply's and advise
I have read that the Rock hard will buff out nice without any lines so hope that will not be an issue, I will have to consider the amber color, I am partial to a little amber like amber shellac but I dislike the aged yellow of some clear coats.

[Steve Schoene]

Rockhard does rub out well. But you still do need to be careful not to cut through the top coat in the process. The best way to do that is to be sure that the next to last coat is as smooth as possible, so that the last coat can be very even in thickness.

[john whittaker]

Larry, this is the maple dinette set I refinished using Rock Hard. After sanding and routing a new edge, I used approx 8 coats of thinned Rock Hard Varnish, wiped on the top only. You can compare the top to the legs to judge the color difference. The legs are finished with clear acrylic poly and not finished with Rock Hard. The top and legs were the same color before any finishing. This might give you an idea as to the effect of the amber color in Rock Hard.

[Larry Crim]

Thanks steve and Jonh,
John That is really a big difference between the top and the legs, I think I like the color on the top it's a nice rich color.
Larry