"Chalky" USL?

[Jeremy Sarti]

I am building some kitchen cabinets that looked like they have "chalk dust" or "milk" in the finish. Heres what I did so please tell me if I did something wrong.
Red oak cabinets, oil stain, dried for 24-36hrs, wiped down with denatured alcohol, 2 coats Target wb shellac sealer, light sand, wiped with damp cloth, 2 coats Target usl, light sand, wipe with damp cloth, final coat satin usl. While the cabinets were wet they looked awesome, the longer they dry the "whiter" the finish gets. I let each coat of Target dry at least 1 hr. They have been dry for a week and look terrible. Tonight I sanded off finish and restained. Thanks for any tips.

[Joe Chritz]

The process looks fine. What about temp and water filter on the lines?

Jump over to the Target site they have a very decent forum there. Someone should be able to answer. I have never gotten anything but good results in the last 15 gallons or so.

My process is normally

oil stain, dry 8 hours+, sealcoat (cut to 1.5#), scuff with a sanding sponge, wipe with microfiber tack rag, USL, sanding sponge, USL, done.

Joe

[Jim Becker]

My regimen is similar to Joe's in that I use "real" shellac as my sealer, rather than the Target "shellac" sealer...which I don't like very much. (Just a personal preference...but I also use shellac for a lot of finishing by itself, so I always have a gallon can of Sealcoat available) That said, I have out BLO on a project, wiped it down and sprayed shellac on it immediately...about two coats...and then sprayed USL over that about an hour later with perfect results. I hit the shellac with 320 very lightly just to remove any dust nubs. The same after the first coat of three coats of USL. Did that just this past weekend, as a matter of fact, on the face frame for the wet bar uppers I posted about in the General Woodworking Forum.

What you describe sounds like either environmental (moisture) or bad finish. Suggest you talk with either Homestead or Target, depending on where you sourced your product from.