Roller for finishing panels?

[Chip Olson]

I'm soon going to have a whole lot of panels to finish (which will then get assembled into kitchen cabinets), and I'm not looking forward to the amount of time it'll take with a brush, or the number of coats it'll need using wipe-on varnish. Does anyone have any experience or tips with applying varnish or water-base with a roller? I experimented with a paint pad on water-base and wasn't satisfied with the results. A spray rig is not in the budget right now.

These are going to be cabinet interiors (and unseen exteriors), so I don't care all that much how it looks as long as it isn't completely heinous.

[Jamie Buxton]

You may find that the roller-applied finish is not as smooth and bubble-free as you want it. You might try the roller for initial application, and then use a brush to smooth out the varnish.

[Joe Pelonio]

I've found that spraying is always the best, but if you do use a roller the foam rubber ones do better, actually pretty well with water based clear.