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Furniture Finishing

This varnish may be used over water or spirit stain, but it is mostly used over water stain because it will dry better over this stain. This varnish has no evaporative qualities, but must oxidize, and any stain that will mix with it will prevent drying. If the paste filler has dried very hard, at least twenty-four hours, it may be safe to use this varnish, but it is best to use a wash coat of shellac over oil stain or filler before using oil varnish.

RULE FOR VARNISH FINISH

If you desire a varnish finish it, of course, follows that the first coat should be a seal coat varnish, or in case of being over oil stain or filler, a wash coat of shellac. If too heavy a coat of shellac is used for a first coater, all the pores of the wood will be filled and the varnish will not knit with the shellac. This condition results in chipping of varnish off the shellac coat, which is very noticeable. So be careful about your shellac coat, if an oil varnish is to be used over it. Make it thin, just enough to cover the stain and filler. The best rule is to use water stain, paste filler and a wash coat of shellac, and then a first coat of varnish. This procedure suffices for all varnish surfaces.

RULE FOR TRANSPARENT LACQUER FINISH

In event you wish a lacquer finish of a satin lustre, or dull for an ending, use water stain or non-grain-raising stain only. Fill with a special filler for lacquer and then coat with clear lacquer sealer or shellac varnish (white) for first coat. Oil or spirit stain will be absorbed by the ingredients of the lacquer and poor drying will result. Furthermore a cloudy or streaked finish will result. The procedure is the same for gloss or polished clear lacquer finish. If the filler is the right kind, the finish will really be better with sealers directly over the filler.

RULE FOR OPAQUE LACQUER OR ENAMEL FINISH

For all enameled surfaces a flat color must be the first coat, and if a piece is refinished and to be enameled, be sure there is no aniline that will bleed through the undercoat. This can be tested by spraying some of the material over an obscure portion a day ahead of the starting of the coating; this will reveal any bleeding and prevent a useless coating, for if it bleeds, you may be obliged to do all the work over again. When new wood is used all the precaution necessary is to select some wood with a very close grain, as maple, gum or birch. A regular lacquer enamel can be used as a firstcoater under the same material for second coat. An oil base lacquer undercoater is advisable on close grained woods.