Wood varnish

[Gary D]

12 minutes ago, Tommy T. said:

That looks really nice, Gary! Spray application does a much better job than most people can do with a brush. That looks like it took a lot of intricate sanding to get into all the small parts of that cool design...

Curious... what were you charged for that? How many coats (if you know) and did it include prep sanding?

All that I know is that the people who we have bought a couple of pieces of furniture from came along and knocked the pins out of the hinges and took the door away for a couple of days, just left the screen door that we can lock. Anyway I think it was about 1500 pesos..

[Tommy T.]

2 minutes ago, Gary D said:

All that I know is that the people who we have bought a couple of pieces of furniture from came along and knocked the pins out of the hinges and took the door away for a couple of days, just left the screen door that we can lock. Anyway I think it was about 1500 pesos..

Well, I think you got your money's worth, for sure. It does look really great.

[Viking]

8 hours ago, Tommy T. said:

That looks really nice, Gary! Spray application does a much better job than most people can do with a brush. That looks like it took a lot of intricate sanding to get into all the small parts of that cool design...

Curious... what were you charged for that? How many coats (if you know) and did it include prep sanding?

I have never found it hard to get an excellent finish using a brush. You just need to make sure that the door, in this case, is absolutely free from dust and dirt. Use your vacuum cleaner and wipe it of with a clean cloth, then before the last layer, a "takrag" . Also remember to thin the first coats and sand gently between them. Many thin coats are better than a few thick ones. It can be quite easy to get dust in the can, but this is not a big problem if you save some in a different can first thing when you open it. This clean varnish, you use for the last coat and it can also be smart to use a clean brush for that last coat. It is not difficult to get a great result BUT it takes time.

Spraying is faster but you need to do the same things with sanding and make sure the door is clean, and that is what is most time consuming. But for 1500 p, I would without hesitation let someone else do the job, hahahaha.

Getting a varnish from a yacht supply store is not a bad advice, they often have varnish that is more resistent to the UV radiation and will last longer in the sun.

[Mike J]

Wilson Top Coat.  It is a two part acrylic that is specially made for floors.  Dries clear and has a shiny finish.  If you want a flat look you can do a final sanding with 600 wet/dry sandpaper using water to keep the paper and project wet.  The finish is very durable and will hold up to anything.  Make sure you have lots of ventilation as the fumes are quite strong.  HIGHLY RECOMMENDED. 

[stevewool]

Sand paper, is everything here the wet and dry stuff, I have not seen just sand paper just  for wood, this wet and dry stuff seems to make so much more mess then what I am use too.

The problem I have with the doors is that they put wood filler to fill some minute holes in but the amount of wood filler was way to much then they vanished the doors clear so you can imagine what they look like , I think they was going to put a dark stain on the doors to hide all these light colours but I wanted the natural colour of the wood, so it’s of with the vanish and lots of rubbing to get rude of this crap before a few coats of clear, it keeps me busy and keeps my mind sane too.

Edited January 8, 2020 by stevewool
Added

[Gary D]

5 minutes ago, stevewool said:

Sand paper, is everything here the wet and dry stuff, I have not seen just sand paper just  for wood, this wet and dry stuff seems to make so much more mess then what I am use too.

Not sure if I've seen sandpaper as we know it, just various grades of what I'd call emery paper, the black stuff.

[stevewool]

6 minutes ago, Gary D said:

Not sure if I've seen sandpaper as we know it, just various grades of what I'd call emery paper, the black stuff.

I bet Graham brought a load over with all his tools, 

[Mike J]

33 minutes ago, stevewool said:

Sand paper, is everything here the wet and dry stuff, I have not seen just sand paper just  for wood, this wet and dry stuff seems to make so much more mess then what I am use too.

The problem I have with the doors is that they put wood filler to fill some minute holes in but the amount of wood filler was way to much then they vanished the doors clear so you can imagine what they look like , I think they was going to put a dark stain on the doors to hide all these light colours but I wanted the natural colour of the wood, so it’s of with the vanish and lots of rubbing to get rude of this crap before a few coats of clear, it keeps me busy and keeps my mind sane too.

I have had no problems finding sandpaper to include dry paper.  Everything from 60 to 800 grit.  

Once you get the existing varnish off, try staining just the filler to match the wood.

[jimeve]

3 hours ago, Mike J said:

I have had no problems finding sandpaper to include dry paper.  Everything from 60 to 800 grit.  

Once you get the existing varnish off, try staining just the filler to match the wood.

For in between  coats I have always used 120 grit, lightly sanded down then vacuumed off. over 40 years in the trade. Make sure the first coat is thinned down, the grain will rise this is normal but needs to be sanded down smooth once dry.

[Mike J]

2 minutes ago, jimeve said:

For in between  coats I have always used 120 grit, lightly sanded down then vacuumed off. over 40 years in the trade. Make sure the first coat is thinned down, the grain will rise this is normal but needs to be sanded down smooth once dry.

I will have to try 120.  I normally use 220 between coats. I try to use a tack cloth between coats but have not found them here.