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Thread: Sticky mess

  1. #1
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    Sticky mess

    Hello to you fine folks. Would love to get some guidance getting out of a tacky situation. I am an experienced cabinetmaker with very little finishing experience. The kitchen cabinets I make are finished by the contractor. My only previous experience, with beautiful results on Douglas Fir, was with Zar oil-based sanding sealer polyurethane followed by Zar wipe on tung oil.

    My son has asked me to make a 7' bench for seating at his current table. My best guess was that the table was Brazilian Cherry with a stain applied. I experimented with several different colors and the Honey Minwax Wood Finish Penetrating Stain matches closely enough. My plan was to stain and then apply the Zar sanding sealer and tung oil.

    Yesterday afternoon, following the directions on the can, I applied the stain with a cloth and then wiped off with clean cloth. According to the can it dries in two hours.
    Here is the rub. When I got to the shop early this AM much to my dismay the stain was still a bit tacky. My best guess (again) was to buff and buff some more with a clean dry cloth. This took the tacky feeling away. I proceeding to apply the sanding sealer with a foam brush and all looked lovely. Went home to eat breakfast with a plan to return and apply a second coat of sealer before wiping on the tung oil. The sealer dries in 1 hour. Just returned to the shop 3.5 hours later and once again things are still rather tacky.

    How badly have I botched things here? Just noticing now that the sanding sealer can says it dries to the touch in 1 hour on bare wood. My fingers are crossed that I just need further dry time. My fear is that the stain I applied and wiped off should have been vigorously buffed off and then left to dry. Are my fears justified and I have applied sealer over a stain that will never now fully dry???

    Thanks for your consideration

  2. #2
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    Was the stain new product or something you had sitting around for a long time? Minwax stains have a varnish binder that cures and seals the wood. If it's old, it may not be curing. If the wood has heavy pores, it may take a lot longer to cure, too, because of pooling in those pores. Etc. It really is generally a best practice for your pigment stain/binder to fully dry before you proceed with next steps.
    --

    The most expensive tool is the one you buy "cheaply" and often...

  3. #3
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    Thank you for the reply Jim. Brand new product.

  4. #4
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    Any thoughts on how much further drying time I should allow before throwing in the towel and sanding back down to bare wood?
    And if it comes down to that what would be the suggested method as I imagine it taking a thousand sheets of paper to remove tacky finish?

  5. #5
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    I would wait a day or two to see if it dries. If it doesn't I would strip it off with chemical stripper rather than to try sanding it off.

    John

  6. #6
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    Quote Originally Posted by John TenEyck View Post
    I would wait a day or two to see if it dries. If it doesn't I would strip it off with chemical stripper rather than to try sanding it off.

    John
    Thank you John. Care to recommend any particular product for stripping if it comes to that?

  7. #7
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    I will just add that when a product fails to cure as expected, waiting a few more days proved easier than any other solution. If you are not under a time crunch I would wait a bit before deciding on my next step.
    "A hen is only an egg's way of making another egg".


    – Samuel Butler

  8. #8
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    Thanks Glen. I am eager to deliver this gift to my son but will cool my jets for a couple days and hope for the best.

  9. #9
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    Quote Originally Posted by Dan Chouinard View Post
    Thank you John. Care to recommend any particular product for stripping if it comes to that?
    I liked KleanStrip Premium, but since it's no longer available I'm left wondering what works well now. Sorry. I guess just pick one and give it a try.

    John

  10. #10
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    I returned to the shop yesterday morning and was thrilled to find sealer fully dried. So grateful that it only took additional time to solve the problem. Was able to give a sanding and apply a second coat early in the afternoon. Stoked to get tung oil on it today as it is really looking beautiful.

  11. #11
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    Glad to hear it's going in the right direction.

    John

  12. #12
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    I assume the tung oil you mention is still the zar product which is a varnish. As such it should work fine over the sanding sealer. Actual tung oil (pure or 100%) might well not work so well trying to form a film over the sanding sealer.

  13. #13
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    Quote Originally Posted by Steve Schoene View Post
    I assume the tung oil you mention is still the zar product which is a varnish. As such it should work fine over the sanding sealer. Actual tung oil (pure or 100%) might well not work so well trying to form a film over the sanding sealer.
    I dont know what the formula consists of Steve but the stuff could not be any easier to work with and produces a beautiful finish.

    http://www.zar.com/products/zar-interior/zar-interior-oil-base-tung-oil-wipe-on.php

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