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Thread: clear finish for basswood

  1. #1
    Join Date
    Sep 2020
    Location
    Oakland, CA
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    253

    clear finish for basswood

    My wife wanted a few very light tables for an art show she's doing and wanted them in basswood. I know it's not the greatest for a table due to the softness, but I think they will survive long enough for the show.

    I'd like to add some kind of protective finish, but she loves the white color and doesn't want to change the texture/add any shine. I tried various vanishes and they all yellowed the wood.

    Maybe a thin wipe on?
    Last edited by Aaron Liebling; 08-30-2021 at 10:16 AM.

  2. #2
    Join Date
    Mar 2015
    Location
    SE Michigan
    Posts
    3,222
    No expert here, but have you tried one of the clear water based flat finishes?

    By the way, I made an end table using basswood for the legs (best match for some northern white pine I had for the rest of the table). The basswood legs have held up very well.
    Last edited by Phil Mueller; 09-03-2021 at 8:44 AM.

  3. #3
    Join Date
    Apr 2013
    Location
    Kansas City
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    2,645
    How about lacquer? if the items are small enough, rattle can lacquer.
    < insert spurious quote here >

  4. #4
    Join Date
    Mar 2003
    Location
    SE PA - Central Bucks County
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    65,638
    If you want the white color, do a test with a waterborne finish, such as Polycrylic, which is readily available and can even be brushed on. Wipe on is not recommended...spray, brush, roll, pad only. It will not yellow the wood. Any oil based product is going to have the warmer, amber color due to the nature of oil.
    --

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

  5. #5
    Join Date
    Mar 2006
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    SoCal
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    Minwax Polycrylic is also my go-to when I want white woods to stay white.
    "A hen is only an egg's way of making another egg".


    – Samuel Butler

  6. #6
    Join Date
    Sep 2020
    Location
    Oakland, CA
    Posts
    253
    I had a sprayer I've never used yet. Sounds like the prefect time to try it out!

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