pore filler on inlays

[david kramer]

I'm working on a project that has inlays into maple from six different types of wood, namely basswood, poplar, cherry, mahogany, bubinga and walnut. Each of these woods has a different texture but I'd like the finish to have a smooth hand. I'll be finishing with shellac and lacquer.

I want the wood colors to speak for themselves, so I need a pore filler that's clear. but I would like the luster of the wood to come out with the finish. I've never really used pore fillers, can anyone recommend something appropriate?

I assume that the finishing schedule will be
- Sand to 220
- Shellac
- Pore filler
- Sand at 220
- Maybe more pore filler?
- More sanding.
- More shellac?
- Light sanding.
- A bunch of coats of lacquer and rub it out.

Do I have too many steps in there?
Thx
David

[Dewey Torres]

Ah ha...perfect solution.

Do you like Norm? He did just this with mahogany when he built the nested tables.

http://www.newyankee.com/getproduct.php?0712

All the steps you need for grain filling with inlays are in this episode. Please post some pics when you get r' done.

[Doug Shepard]

I like pore filler for mahog, oak, etc., but I wouldn't think pore filler would work out well for this. One that's going to match the mahogany is likely to show up too much on the walnut and vise-versa. I think the others are all close grain (not sure about the bubinga) so aren't going to end up with any filled pores anyway. I'd just use the shellac and keep sanding in between until it's smooooth.

[Steve Schoene]

You could use a clear waterborne pore filler, there are several. They would probably call for exactly the schedule you propose since they are reputed to shrink more than the silica based fillers. (I haven't used them myself, however.) That would help keep your two open pored woods, mahogany and walnut from looking identical.

I haven't seen the Norm episode, but Norm's finishing history has been quite a bit less than stellar, if it is a matter of paying to see the video.

[Rich Enders]

The following link is from a post here in the last few days which includes a section on using shellac as a pore filler. I have not tried it, but it does sound like a solution for you, and for me on a white oak table I am going to finish.

http://www.hardwoodlumberandmore.com...llacIntro.html

[Rich Enders]

I tried my link above, and it failed. I went to the website and recopied the complete address as follows:

http://www.hardwoodlumberandmore.com/hardwood/Finishing/Shellac/ShellacIntro.html

[Joe Chritz]

Shellac would be the way I would tackle this one. Spray or brush on, let dry and sand back to bare wood. Do that until the top is evenly flat (sander hits all the spots) and then coat with one last shellac and the final top coat.

I have done little with fillers but have used the shellac method on small walnut pieces and it works pretty well.

Joe

[david kramer]

Thanks everyone. Looks like I'm going to be spraying a lot of layers of shellac! The good news is that the inlays aren't very big, so it shouldn't take more than a couple of minutes to spray each coat.

[david kramer]

This project is finally finished! I followed the advice here and used spray shellac as a pore filler. I put on 6 coats, then sanded it flush, then 5 more coats and sanded flush again. Then a wash coat of shellac, and ten coats of lacquer. Whew! I wet sanded it to 600 and then rubbed it down with 0000 steel wool and paste wax. The feel is absolutely lovely. If I close my eyes I honestly can't feel where the inlays are. Thanks to everyone for the advice.

Pics at http://sawmillcreek.org/showthread.php?t=102146.

[Dewey Torres]

Another happy ending that incorporated inlay :D