Dining table clear coat....

Table top is 42" wide by 144" long and is 6/4 white oak.
Color will be medium walnut by Minwax.
I'm asking for advice on clear coat for the table.
I used Marine Spar Varnish for my own kitchen table and it needs severely refinishing after 15 years of daily use and abuse.

I've been told that I need to use Mohawk Conversion Varnish on the clear coat but my closest place to get it is a 6 hour drive.
Locally, I have Benjamin Moore Paints, PPG Paints, and Sherwin-Williams. I also have the typical big box stores, Lowes and Home Depot.

Please advise.

For waterborne, Target EM8000cv is an excellent finish. The EM9300 is also worth considering for this kind of project. Both spray beautifully and build nicely. Current sale code is ND20

BTW 15years of life on a kitchen table is pretty darn good!

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Originally Posted by Dennis Peacock

Table top is 42" wide by 144" long and is 6/4 white oak.
Color will be medium walnut by Minwax.
I'm asking for advice on clear coat for the table.
I used Marine Spar Varnish for my own kitchen table and it needs severely refinishing after 15 years of daily use and abuse.

I've been told that I need to use Mohawk Conversion Varnish on the clear coat but my closest place to get it is a 6 hour drive.
Locally, I have Benjamin Moore Paints, PPG Paints, and Sherwin-Williams. I also have the typical big box stores, Lowes and Home Depot.

Please advise.

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If you haven't done it yet I would suggest using a different stain than Minwax. Minwax stains are prone to fade over time.

A spar varnish is very water resistant however it is formulated for exterior wood where the wood expands and contracts a lot more. In order to make a finish that elastic it's softer than a interior finish so it's not so great for a table top. A conversion varnish is a very hard finish that would work well for a table top. In the event sometime it's damaged it's difficult to touch up. You don't have drive 6 hours to get some, Sherwin Williams makes a conversion varnish and while they may not have it in their store they can get it for you. The box stores won't even know what a conversion varnish is. It's more of a professional finishing product.

If it were me I would finish the table with lacquer. It's easily available and if it gets a scratch a new coat of finish will literally melt into the dried finish so is easily touched up. It's not as water resistant as the conversion varnish but unless you sit a sweaty glass in the same spot over and over water won't be an issue.

Since this is for a customer, so respraying for a scratch isn't all that practical...

SW offers both solvent based and water borne products. The Kem Aqua product is something liked by some, but I didn't have good results with it "laying down" on a very large kitchen island project last year so I went back to the Target Coatings EM8000vc for that after having to completely level the uneven coating.

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I'd use varnish -- standard interior varnish, not spar varnish. It is harder than spar varnish. Conversion varnish is as tough as conventional varnish, but it is intended for commercial application, where a production shop needs the finish to apply and cure in a day. Conventional varnish wants a day per coat, and I'd use 4 coats on a dining table. In your own home, you have the benefit of time to do the job with conventional varnish.

This isn't for his own home, Jamie...it's for a customer, AFAIK

For a customer table I'd want something durable over easily repairable. I also would not want to have to do a major rubout on something that large, so I'd only spray. So, good, better, best: I'd spray EM-9300 + catalyst, a CV, or a 2K poly.

John

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Originally Posted by John TenEyck

For a customer table I'd want something durable over easily repairable. I also would not want to have to do a major rubout on something that large, so I'd only spray. So, good, better, best: I'd spray EM-9300 + catalyst, a CV, or a 2K poly.

John

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Agree. Totally.

OK, so looks like I'll need to order some materials. I'm not afraid to spray a finish. I've done considerable spray finishing since I've been doing woodworking. I'll look into the EM-9300 + catalyst.

Dennis the "catalyst" is the CrossLinker and it really does increase the durability. I've been using that with the EM7000 and EM6000 on my guitar bodies and have been amazed at the effect once it's fully cured. The singular downside is that once you mix the crosslinker into the finish, you're committed to use that finish or throw out any remaining in the gun when you are done spraying...you can't put it back in the can with the unused finish once adding the crosslinker. No biggie, but don't mix up more than you are willing to commit to using within the allotted time period.