Originally Posted by
Sam Hamory
It's hard to screw up shellac and wax.
I personally conducted "scientific" tests proving you wrong
Seriously, it takes some practice to do shellac right. I'm not even sure how much practice because I gave up on brushing it and I now spray it instead. Especially large areas, such as table tops, require a steady hand. Smaller and narrower parts are easier though.
I won't use shellac anywhere where even a slight chance of contact with alcohol is present, unless under a few chunky coats of a topcoat. I use dewaxed shellac mostly to bring out the warmth of the grain, and as a sanding sealer for blotchy wood, if I plan to stain it.
I will use poly one in a while for very roughly handled surfaces but my preferred top coat is what I think is alkyd based varnish, specifically Pratt@Lambert #38. Takes little longer to cure than poly but the aded benefit is that is can be buffed to a ridiculously pretty sheen.
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