I am making a bunch of small pieces out of various woods, and am finishing them with simple wipe on poly. The Walnut, White Oak and Bubinga all dry normally, but the Bocote pieces take over a week, and are still not completely dry. Would a first coat of shellac have helped? Is this a wood that can only be finished with oil? Or does the humidity of my basement shop prevent the drying moreso than with the other woods? Thanks for any help. By the way, the Bocote I am using has been in my basement for about two years, and according to the guy at the store, most of it has been there for over ten years.
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The oil in oily woods such as bocote can retard the drying of oil based finishes, whether oil, oil/varnish/ or varnish. The oil can prevent lacquer or water borne finishes from bonding well.
Most sources suggest wiping the surfaces down with acetone or lacquer thinner shortly before finishing to wipe off surface oil. Then, the first coat of finish must be applied before the oil has time to resurface.
Before I stripped off the finish, I would give it additional time, in a warm place, to see if it will cure. If not, then I would strip the non-curing finish and try the acetone wipedown. And, just for an added help, I would also shift to a traditional resin varnish--aklyd or phenolic since those tend to have better adhesion properties than polyurethane varnishes.
I have had some sucess with a acetone wipe down just moments befor i apply the finish... with out it... forget it really the naural oils will prevent the curing process
Rich
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