Walnut Finishing ??

[Scott1977]

All
I'm a newbie so be gentle. My father and I have recently took up the sport of weekend woodworking and find it quite enjoyable. We have started small and have slowly tackled more complicated pieces. Our latest project is coming to conclusion.

The bookcase consists of both walnut hardwood and ply. I'm now at the finishing stage and am leaning toward (based on research of good walnut finishing techniques) 3-4 coats of a brushed amber shellac finish (with a couple drops per oz of brownish red tint). Possibly a finished layer of satin laquer (with a dewaxed shellac in between). I wanted to see if anyone here may have some other suggestions.

 

[mxracer]

Scott,

What you explain above (outside of the tint) is one of my favorite finishes for walnut. I usually just finish with amber shellac with not tint. IMO it brings out the natural walnut color nicely.

I also sometimes stain it with dark walnut stain if I'm looking for, well, a darker finish.

One other consideration is rubbing the shellac vs. brushing. At least for me I seem to get a better finish if I rub it in vs. brushing on.

I'm sure there will be more responses by members with more experience but those are my thoughts.

 

[nelsone]

Try garnet shellac if you want to enrich the color a bit. Other than that, sounds like you are spot on!

 

[Gofor]

Before working on the finished piece, you may want to try your selected coating on some scrap pieces, that are sanded the same as the finished piece. (At least one of the ply and one of the hard wood.) You may find the ply reacts differently to the coating than the ply, so you can adjust as needed to match them.

That way there are fewer unwelcome surprises. You may find you like it without any added tint. Also, you may find that you want less coats if the amber, or like Ed said, the garnet.

Just a good practice to "practice" first.

JMTCW

Go

 

[Bill Clemmons]

I agree w/ what everyone has said so far. Amber shellac is my favorite finish on walnut. I usually thin it down to a 1# cut and wipe it on, especially if the piece has any irregular surfaces. Rub out between each coat w/ either 320 paper or 0000 steel wool.

HTH

Bill

 

[Howard Acheson]

All
I'm a newbie so be gentle. My father and I have recently took up the sport of weekend woodworking and find it quite enjoyable. We have started small and have slowly tackled more complicated pieces. Our latest project is coming to conclusion.

The bookcase consists of both walnut hardwood and ply. I'm now at the finishing stage and am leaning toward (based on research of good walnut finishing techniques) 3-4 coats of a brushed amber shellac finish (with a couple drops per oz of brownish red tint). Possibly a finished layer of satin laquer (with a dewaxed shellac in between). I wanted to see if anyone here may have some other suggestions.

Maybe I'm missing something but what is the reason for the "dewaxed shellac in between"? Your first 3-4 coats are shellac, why add the dewaxed shellac layer? You can apply your lacquer directly after your 3-4 coats of shellac.

Let me suggest you try out your finishing schedule completely on some scrap from your project. Never let you project be your finishing learning curve. No tears.

 

[PeteM]

Dewaxed shellac over amber shellac will not work as a barrier coat because each coat of shellac blends in with the previous coats so the wax will bleed through. However, Woodwhisperer has a video where he tested applying various top coats over waxed shellac vs dewaxed shellac and he didn't find any difference or problems either way.

I don't see a reason to apply lacquer over shellac. I like to rub out the final coat with 000 steel wool and apply a coat of wax as a top coat.

pete

 

[Ken Massingale]

I'm lazy, a favorite of mine is Formbys Tung Oil Finish, a wiping varnish. (contains no tung oil) I especially like it on Walnut.

 

[JimD]

I like the look of linseed oil (boiled) on walnut. A coat or two, then some poly on top for protection would be my choice. You have to give the oil plenty of time (like a week) to dry before applying a topcoat. The easiest way to do poly is to thin oil base about 1/3 mineral spirits to 2/3 oil based poly and then apply it with a rag - wipe it on. Poly is more durable than shellac or lacquer.

Jim

 

[Howard Acheson]

>>>> Dewaxed shellac over amber shellac will not work as a barrier coat

There is no need for a barrier coat between wax containing shellac and lacquer. The only time there is a issue with adhesion over wax containing shellac is if it is being over coated with oil based poly varnish or a waterborne acrylic finish. Lacquer has no adhesion problems over wax containing shellac.

 

[02blues]

I love shellac. Although I have only finished mahogany and white oak I have been using a trans tint in distilled water followed by a gel stain and topped with a 1# cut of shellac then wax. I like a soft hand rubbed look.

I fill a 30ml of dry seedlac shellac grind it in my shellac coffee grinder then mix with one cup of denatured alcohol. I then filter it and use thin coats via brush or make a "rubber" with wadding and muslin cloth.

I need to figure out how to finish some walnut canes I am making for my parents.
Looking forward to seeing your case. Will post a bible box soon that I am finishing this weekend.

Good luck:icon_thum

 

[Scott1977]

Thanks everyone. I have been toying around with numerous samples over the past couple months. What I didn't realize is that laquer didn't require a barrier layer to adhear to shellac. Thanks. Question: I was thinking the laquer finish only on the flat part that may hold a beverage down the road. The sample (with de-waxed shellac which is not necessary) showed very little color difference...only a small texture difference. Would a poly finish (w/ dewaxed shellac) be more suitable. See pic below

View image in gallery​

 

[Howard Acheson]

>>>> I was thinking the laquer finish only on the flat part that may hold a beverage down the road.

NC lacquer is no more water resistant than dewaxed shellac. In fact, dewaxed shellac is more water and water vapor resistant.

 

[Jeff]

You can get high quality 100% dewaxed amber, garnet, or blond shellac flakes here:

http://www.toolsforworkingwood.com/...Screen=PROD&Store_Code=toolshop&Product_Code=

It's imported from Germany. I've tried the garnet & it's good stuff.

 

[chesterboyd]

Did I miss something in these replies? There was no mention of using wood filler----or I missed it. yes it is tough to apply but sure makes a smoother nicer finish. And of course getrs rid of that look caused by open pores.
By the way, my experience with shellac and lacquer is that they are not very moisture resistant. Mohawk makes a finish called Nucote that is fairly water resistant.But is not as good as polyurethane on the projects I have used it on. I agree that shellac is the prettiest but it will turn if you sit that "on a spot that might hold a drink" on it.

 

[Howard Acheson]

>>>> my experience with shellac and lacquer is that they are not very moisture resistant.

In fact, dewaxed shellac is one the most water and moisture resistant finishes. Standard shellac containing its natural wax is less water and water vapor resistant. NC lacquer is less water and moisture resistant than oil based varnish or poly varnish finishes.

 

[golfdad]

I agree with Jim D....BLO/mineral spirits mixed......wipe on an let dry...then I spray about 4 coats of water based finish...lately I have been using Deftccasion1