Top coating woodmasters tung oil

[Carl Swanson]

Any thoughts on a top coat (please don't say shellac) for a sealer after
many coats Woodmasters tung oil? Do you think wax is the best option?
If I'm happy with my finish, I was thinking about duplicating this for
an end table. I don't like wax for a top coat for a table... I've always
used poly or lacquer.

Big missing link here... it's curly maple. I personally have always used
veneers for curly maple. For some reason (other than a higher quality,
bookmatched, expensive look) it has always looked sleek. Also, simply
BLO and lacquer has proven effective to get the look I wanted out of
veneers.

I wanted my product to look more like a guitar finish, but rustic. I also
wanted the grain to be random, and have the flames matching from board
to board, more than the grain pattern. Selecting these boards was a
bit tricky, since they were rough cut, but I matched it up how I wanted
it to look, thankfully.

Trying to wrap this up... I sampled poly and lacquer (and shellac; but
do not use this for a table!) over my finish. It seems to make the
grain more 2 dimensional again. I can't seem to keep the "pop" like
the veneers kept.

Thanks for any thoughts and input,
Carl

By the way... don't know if I'd use Woodmasters again; Woodlox doesn't
disappoint. If it's not broke, why fix it?

Well, I wanted to try something off the shelf from my local hardware store...

[Scott Holmes]

I would like to know which product you are using? Woodmasters is a brand name.
Pure tung oil is a terrible finish that cannot be high gloss.

There are dozons of "tung oil" finishes out there; most are NOT even made from tung oil.

[Carl Swanson]

Woodmasters 100% Pure Tong Oil. This was to be in lieu of BLO.

I have a few samples drying in the garage with gel and oil varnishes.
I'll see how they look in the morning. My dad swore by oil varnishes...
but I haven't really cared for what the finish looks like over the years.

Like most wood finishes, there is a bit of maintenance to keep their look.
So maybe we never really took great care of his crafts. He liked to sand
and refinish as they matured from sunlight.

Thanks for any input,
Carl

[Scott Holmes]

Well I know you said not shellac so I wil not recommend de-waxed shellac. That said you should not even think about poly. I would not put poly on a table unless it was going in a bar where someone would be dancing on it. Poly is for floors! Poly is also very susceptible to UV damage.

De-waxed shellac is an excellent barrier coat between finishes that may not play nice with each other. It is also a very good sealer to slow water vapor.

You will need to give the tung oil at least a week to cure before you top coat. A quality non-poly varnish would be execellent. There are many out there here's a few you may like; none are at the big box stores.

Waterlox Original (phenolic resin/tung oil varnish) dark in color very hard, excellent water & water vapor resistance.

Sherwin Williams Classic Fast dry Oil varnish (Alkyd resin/Linseed oil varnish) available at Sherwin Willims paint stores); not as dark nor as hard as phenolic resin varnish, will not darken as much with age. UV stable

Behlens Rock Hard Table Top varnish (phenolic resin/linseed oil varnish) dark in color very hard, good water & water vapor resistance. UV stable

Pratt & Lambert #38 Alkyd resin/soya oil varnish, hard, clear, very little color shift over time; good water & water vapor resistance.

All these varnishes will easily outperform any poly varnish you can buy at a big box store.

As for lacquer (nitro cellulose)... unless it's a CAT lacquer the varnishes will be better.

[Harold Burrell]

Waterlox Original (phenolic resin/tung oil varnish) dark in color very hard, excellent water & water vapor resistance.

Sherwin Williams Classic Fast dry Oil varnish (Alkyd resin/Linseed oil varnish) available at Sherwin Willims paint stores); not as dark nor as hard as phenolic resin varnish, will not darken as much with age. UV stable

Behlens Rock Hard Table Top varnish (phenolic resin/linseed oil varnish) dark in color very hard, good water & water vapor resistance. UV stable

Pratt & Lambert #38 Alkyd resin/soya oil varnish, hard, clear, very little color shift over time; good water & water vapor resistance.

All these varnishes will easily outperform any poly varnish you can buy at a big box store.

As for lacquer (nitro cellulose)... unless it's a CAT lacquer the varnishes will be better.

Scott,

Would this be your order of preference for a table???

[Scott Holmes]

Not really. I would need to know the color and look wanted; then I would pick a suitable finish.

[Carl Swanson]

Hey Scott,

As mentioned... if I had access to Waterlox, it was my first choice. I wanted to see if I could
get similar results with something offered close by. We have an array of hardware and paint
stores around here that aren't Lowe's or HD. They offer some pretty great products that are
useful, depending on the type of finish you are looking for.

I went with McCloskey's oil varnish, which was my dad's recommendation. I'll see what the
results are when it dries. I already put an online order in for some more Waterlox varnish.

When I met with Jesse at W.D. Lockwood's in the city, he showed me some pieces he was working
on, as well as some great concoctions with Waterlox. We were both commiserating on the
quality that some of these varnishes have, and how hard it is to get a great finishing product
at your local hardware store.

Have you used anything from Fine Finishes of Europe line? Was curious to see how these worked...

Thanks for your feedback,
Carl

[Scott Holmes]

I don't see much of the McCloskey's Heirloom Varnish anymore. McCloskey's Man-O-war Spar and Marine are what seem to be most prevalent. They are for EXTERIOR use only. You do NOT want them on a tabletop. (I don't care what the guy at the hardware stores said about it.) I think the Heirloom was bought and replaced by Cabot #8000 series varnish. Don't see it much either. It was a very nice Alkyd resin varnish; hard and clear.

Pratt & Lambet #38 (my favorite alkyd resin/soya oil varnish) would be a good substitiute for McCloskey's Heirloom Varnish. If you want a bit more color (warmer amber) in the varnish, pick one of the phenolic resin varnishes.

[Carl Swanson]

Hi Scott,

I appreciate your input, and I'm eager to try Pratt & Lambet #38. The McCloskey's Heirloom
Varnish provided the look I was going for. Here is a photo of the maple after three coats varnish.
I had already begun the applications prior to your post, so I didn't get the chance to try other
options that were available locally.


IMG_4770.jpg

Thanks for you input,
Carl